The cave had fallen quiet hours ago, but the silence brought no real rest, only a stillness that lingered too heavily to be ignored. Kael remained awake where he sat, his back resting lightly against the cold stone as his gaze settled on the dim glow of the dying fire, watching as the last embers flickered weakly against the darkness.
Across the space, Selena lay unmoving, her breathing slow and even, her presence quieter than it had been in days in a way that felt unfamiliar, not because it was loud before, but because it had once carried weight.
Now, it did not reach for them. It did not press or pull through the bond the way it used to. It simply existed, separate and steady, and that quiet distance unsettled him more than anything else had.
Edris broke the silence first, his voice low but certain as he looked in Selena's direction and said that she was pretending, the words carrying a conviction that felt more like insistence than observation.
