The silence didn't come all at once.
It arrived slowly.
First, the screams faded.
Then, the footsteps.
Then… even the wind seemed tired.
The battlefield was still there.
Destroyed.
Open.
Breathing wrong.
No one celebrated.
The Monarch stood there, in the same place.
As if nothing had happened.
But everyone knew it had.
Lyra was the first to move.
Slowly.
As if any movement could break something invisible.
— …where is he?
Her voice came out low.
No one answered.
She didn't look back.
Not yet.
Mike was sitting on the ground.
Arms resting on his knees.
Head down.
He didn't look hurt.
But he didn't look okay either.
Kael walked past him.
Without saying anything.
Stopped.
Stayed there.
For a few seconds.
— You managed to hit her.
He said, without looking.
Mike let out a short laugh.
Dry.
— Yeah… I did.
Silence.
— Didn't change anything.
Kael didn't answer.
Because he knew that wasn't true.
But he also knew…
it wasn't the moment.
On the other side—
a group of hunters gathered.
One of them knelt.
Another turned his face away.
— …he's not breathing.
Lyra closed her eyes.
Now she turned.
And saw.
The body was still there.
Motionless.
Real.
She stood still.
No reaction.
— …no.
The word came out automatically.
Like denying it could change something.
She took a step.
Then another.
One more.
Until she stopped nearby.
— Get up.
No one said anything.
— Get up.
She repeated.
Stronger now.
Silence.
— Stop it, get up.
Nothing.
Lyra took a deep breath.
And gave the body a light kick.
— Hey.
Nothing.
Now her breathing failed.
— …don't do this to me right now.
Her voice broke.
And she turned her face away.
— Someone say something.
But no one did.
Because there was nothing to say.
Elion approached.
Slowly.
Stopped beside her.
Didn't try to comfort.
Didn't try to say something nice.
Just stayed there.
— We were… just together.
She said, still not looking.
— I know.
— It doesn't make sense.
Elion took a moment before answering.
— It does.
She turned fast.
— No, it doesn't!
— It does.
He kept his voice low.
— We just don't accept it.
Silence.
Lyra looked back at the body.
This time without speaking.
Without denying.
Just… looking.
Mike stood up.
Slowly.
His legs still unstable.
He started walking.
Not really knowing where to.
Not thinking much.
Stopped nearby.
Looked.
And stayed quiet.
For a long time.
— It was fast.
He said.
— I didn't even really see it.
No one answered.
— I thought I could do it.
Silence.
— I thought I could hold it.
Kael finally spoke:
— It wasn't yours to hold.
Mike let out a weak laugh.
— But I was there.
— And that's already more than a lot of people would do.
— It's not enough.
Silence.
The Monarch started walking.
Slowly.
Until he stopped near them.
No one looked directly.
But everyone felt it.
— He didn't suffer.
The voice came out calm.
Simple.
Without extra weight.
But firm.
Lyra clenched her fist.
— That doesn't help.
— I know.
Silence.
— But it's true.
Mike looked at him.
— You fix everything like that?
The Monarch looked back.
— No.
— Seems like it.
— That's because you've only seen this side.
Silence.
The Monarch looked at the body.
For a few seconds.
— Name?
No one answered at first.
Until one of the hunters spoke:
— Daren.
The Monarch nodded slightly.
— Right.
Silence.
— We're not letting this turn into a number.
The sentence was simple.
But it stayed.
Heavy.
Real.
Lyra took a deep breath.
— We failed.
— Yes.
The Monarch answered.
No softening.
No hiding.
— Failed.
Silence.
— And now?
She asked.
He looked around.
The destruction.
The marks.
The people.
And then looked forward again.
— Now we understand.
Silence.
— Because this wasn't an end.
Mike lifted his gaze.
— It was a beginning.
The Monarch nodded.
— Exactly.
The wind came back.
Weak.
But enough to move the scene.
And remind—
that it wasn't over yet. The body was covered.
Not with ceremony.
Not with pretty honor.
With what they had.
A piece of cloth.
A trembling hand.
Silence.
— Do we take him to the capital?
One of the hunters asked.
No one answered immediately.
Because the question wasn't simple.
It was heavy.
— His family is there.
Another said, low.
— Then take him.
Lyra answered.
Without hesitation this time.
— He doesn't stay here.
Her tone wasn't loud.
But left no space for argument.
— I'm going with him.
Kael looked to the side.
— You don't have to.
— I know.
She answered.
Silence.
— But I will anyway.
Mike stayed quiet.
Watching all of it happen.
Like he was late.
Like his body hadn't caught up to what happened yet.
He stood slowly.
— I'm going too.
Kael turned his head.
— Mike—
— I'm going.
It wasn't firm.
It wasn't strong.
But it was… real.
Kael held his gaze for a few seconds.
Then nodded.
— Alright.
The Monarch was already walking.
Like the path had already been decided.
— Hey!
Mike called.
He stopped.
— That thing you said…
Silence.
— About my power.
The Monarch turned his head slightly.
— Hm?
— You talked like you've seen it before.
Short silence.
— I've seen something similar.
Mike frowned.
— Similar isn't the same.
— No.
— So you don't know what could happen to me.
The Monarch shrugged lightly.
— No one does.
Silence.
— Not even you.
That hit.
Mike looked away.
— Great.
The Monarch gave a half smile.
— Relax.
— I almost died just now.
Mike answered dryly.
— And you're telling me to relax?
— I am.
Silence.
— Because if you don't…
He turned his body fully now.
— you lose control faster.
Mike stayed quiet.
— Your power depends on what you believe.
— I know.
— Then start choosing better what you believe in.
Silence.
— Because today you believed you could hold it.
Mike swallowed.
— …and I couldn't.
The Monarch didn't soften it.
But didn't push either.
— Learn from it.
And turned back to walking.
Without waiting for an answer.
Kael passed by Mike.
— He's not wrong.
— I know.
— Then stop trying to prove he is.
Mike exhaled.
— I'm not trying to prove anything.
Silence.
— I just… didn't want that to happen.
Kael stopped for half a second.
— No one did.
And kept going.
Up ahead—
Lyra was already organizing everything.
— Two go ahead.
She said.
— Warn the capital.
— Say what exactly?
She stopped.
Thought.
Breathed.
— Say something showed up that we can't classify.
— That's going to cause problems.
— It already did.
Silence.
— And say this too…
She looked back.
At the destroyed field.
— that the Monarch had to intervene.
Now—
the hunters tensed.
— That's going to draw attention.
— It has to.
— And if—
— Enough.
Lyra cut him off.
— We're not hiding this.
Silence.
— Not this time.
They nodded.
And left.
Running.
Carrying the news.
And with it—
the beginning of something bigger.
Elion approached.
— You know what this will cause, right?
— I do.
Lyra answered.
— Then why do it like this?
She took a moment.
— Because if we hide it…
She crossed her arms.
— the next thing that shows up kills more people.
Silence.
— And I'm not pretending this didn't happen.
Elion nodded slowly.
— Fair.
The wind hit harder.
Carrying dust.
Carrying the smell of battle.
But not the weight.
It never did.
Mike looked back one last time.
At the place where everything happened.
And this time—
there was nothing there.
Just a mark.
— …it really happened.
Kael heard it.
— It always does.
Silence.
— We just pretend it doesn't.
They started walking.
All of them.
Together.
But different.
Heavier.
More aware.
More… alive.
And in the distance—
the capital waited.
Still unaware…
that the world had changed.