Lilly's POV
The sun climbed higher over the settlement and for the first time since the world collapsed it almost felt like a normal morning. The air was calm as the streets were alive with movement, people carried baskets of vegetables to their houses and the dining area.
After meeting with Kael that morning I hadn't been able to stop thinking about him. His voice and presence lingered in my mind and refused to go away. But I forced them away, there were too many people pretending life hadn't shattered outside these walls.
Liam had gone to speak to one of the guards about what working with them was like, leaving Scarlet, Mary and me to explore. John took Lilac to the house saying she needed a nap. We followed a dirt path lined with flowers growing from carefully tended soil.
Scarlet bent down to touch a daisy, her fingers trembling slightly. "I forgot what these looked like," she murmured.
"Feels like another lifetime," I said.
"It was."
A few people smiled at us as we passed but most just nodded politely and went back to work. Mary seemed lighter, her usual tension softened by the normalcy here.
"This place is incredible," Mary whispered. "They have gardens, running water and even music."
I hadn't noticed it at first but she was right, somewhere nearby someone was playing the guitar, soft and slow notes that didn't belong in a world like this and for a fleeting moment I imaged it could last.
Then a voice broke through my thoughts. "You must be the new survivors."
We turned to see a young woman approaching from between two houses. She looked to be around Scarlet and my age, maybe late twenties, with golden brown skin and hair that shimmered in the sunlight looking almost silver. Her eyes were a bright blue, but not like any blue I had ever seen, there was a depth in them that was glowing.
"I'm Hailey," she said offering a small smile. "Kael told us about your arrival."
Scarlet raised a eyebrow and muttered, "Word travels fast."
Hailey laughed softly. "It sure does."
Something about her felt different, but not in a threatening way, more like the air around her was alive and vibrating with warmth.
"You aren't human," I said before I could stop myself.
Hailey's smile faltered a little as she replied, "Half, my mother was human and my father wasn't."
"God?" Scarlet asked carefully.
Hailey nodded. "Yes a minor one, from before the veil shattered. I have been here since the settlement was started."
Mary looked almost hopeful. "So it's true then? Gods and humans surviving and living together."
Hailey's eyes softened and she said, "Yes, we aren't very different from you. We want to leave in peace, well some of us."
Scarlet crossed her arms and asked, "And Kael is what, the leader?"
Hailey hesitated her eyes flicking toward the tower that overlooks the gates. "He keeps us safe and help any way he cans. We are grateful."
Hailey must have seen the questions on my face because she smiled again. "Come on I will show you around."
She led us through the winding streets introducing us to people as we passed. A group of teenagers were mending nets by a pond, two older woman worked side by side in a smaller garden, and there were even chickens running around a yard that had a coop.
"This used to be a fairly big neighborhood," Hailey explained. "Kael and the others rebuilt the walls and made it a sanctuary. Everything inside the walls is protected by wards."
Scarlet frowned and asked, "Wards?"
"Magic," Hailey answered simply. "Old binding magic from before the collapse."
I shivered remembering the faint hum in the air when I stepped through the gates the first time.
"So it's true?" Mary whispered. "There is magic?"
Hailey just nodded then gestured toward a fenced area near the back of the settlement. "That's the family housing. You will meet David and River there, they are some of our best gardeners."
The couple stood near a patch of tilled earth surrounded by green shoots. River was short and dark haired with her sleeves rolled up while her hands were covered in dirt. David was taller, his grin was wide and genuine, his arm was around a small boy playing with a toy truck in the dirt.
"Howdy, this is Levi," River said proudly as we approached. "He's three and likes to think he is in charge."
Levi looked up, his round cheeks red and smudged with dirt as he announced, "I am in charge."
Scarlet laughed for the first time in what felt like weeks. "I believe it."
David shook our hands. "You're the newcomers, right? Welcome to the only slice of paradise left on earth."
His tone was light but his eyes told a different story, one I recognized all too well, it came from losing more than you could say out loud. Hailey helped River pull a few carrots and we joined them, kneeling in the dirt enjoying the simple act.
"You will get used to the quiet," River said softly. "It's the hardest part at first because your mind doesn't know what to do with the peace."
I nodded while brushing the soil from my fingers. "Feels like we are waiting for something to go wrong."
She looked at me knowingly. "It always does but at least here we can breathe between the storms."
Levi toddled over and dropped a small rock in my hand telling me seriously, "For you."
I smiled and said, "Thank you."
He gave me a toothy smile then ran back to his toy, and for a moment everything felt normal.
Hailey touched my arm gently. "You are safe here Lilly, I can feel it, the wards don't let those who carry darkness in. Kael wouldn't have let you in."
My chest tightened at hearing his name and I wanted to ask her the questions I have been holding off about him. Before I could open my mouth a bell rang from somewhere near the center of the settlement.
"Lunch," David said wiping his hands. "You will like it here everyone eats together most of the time."
The meal was set up in the square, long tables filled with people talking and laughing, the weather was perfect for eating outside. The food looked fresh and hot, it was stew, bread and several different roasted vegetables. I hadn't seen a feast like this in a long time.
We all sat together at one of the tables that had room, Liam joined us halfway through the meal.
"What do you think?" I asked him quietly.
He chewed and swallowed before replying, "Everthing seems too perfect."
"Exactly what I was thinking."
But as the afternoon went on even he seemed to relax a little. The people here were kind, open and grateful to have survived. For a brief moment I forgot about everything outside the walls.
Later when night came upon us and the lanterns turned on, I stood near the edge of the gardens near our house. The air was warm and peaceful and for the first time I accepted that we were safe for the moment.
I felt something pulse faintly in the earth, a heartbeat that wasn't mine.
I looked toward the watch tower and sure enough Kael was there, standing and watching the horizon like he could see beyond it. My heart quickened at the sight of him and I didn't know why or why the world felt heavier whenever he was near.
But I knew one thing for certain, this place was safe only because of him.