Dawn came late in Gravesend.
The light that broke through the thick canopy of grey clouds was wan and reluctant, painting the ruined town in pale gold and shadows. Yet the battlefield bore no remnants of the storm from the night before. The ash had settled. The hollow warriors were gone. And the dark knight that had led them had vanished without a trace.
Only Thalen's sword still pulsed faintly with violet fire residue of the Tyrant Spirit's brief emergence.
Selene stirred first. She had slept only briefly, and her eyes remained wary as she studied the murals on the temple walls once more.
"Why now?" she murmured. "Why reveal this place to us?"
Thalen approached, his hand resting on the hilt of his blade. "Because someone wanted us to find it. The Warden, the knight last night… they're all testing us."
Corin snorted as he stuffed dried rations into his mouth. "'Testing' is a soft word for nearly getting gutted."
