The early morning fog clung to the forest like a heavy shroud, curling low around twisted roots and cloaking the trees in a ghostly pallor. The silence was unnerving thick, oppressive, as though the woods themselves were holding their breath. Aria stood at the edge of Kael's encampment, watching as the mist moved past the tree line. Her shoulders were squared, but tension rippled through her frame. The blood moon from the night before still echoed in her bones.
Her voice had shattered the silence last night, and now she couldn't ignore the weight of it. It had stirred something deep within her, and within those who had heard. Word was already spreading through the camp. Some whispered in awe. Others in unease. To speak after years of silence, it wasn't just bravery. It was transformation.
Kael approached from behind, his scent earthy and grounding. He didn't speak immediately. Instead, he stood beside her, eyes fixed on the fog.
"You're not hiding anymore," he finally said.
