Chapter 71
The space didn't react right away, and that silence felt wrong. After everything that had just happened, Ariana expected something to move, something to break, but instead everything held steady. The cracked ground beneath her feet stayed as it was, faint lines glowing and then fading like the space itself couldn't decide what to do next. The air felt thick, heavy enough that every breath came slower than it should.
The stillness pressed against her chest in a way that made it hard to ignore. It wasn't calm. It wasn't peace. It felt like something had already decided the outcome and was simply waiting for it to finish.
Ariana didn't move. The deeper current inside her had gone quiet again, but it wasn't calm. It felt aware, like it was watching the same thing she was. Kael.
