"Enjoy your false sense of security, young one. Because in seventy-two hours..."
A pause.
"...it will all be over."
The Wyvern shrieked in agreement, dark wings spreading slightly before folding back in.
---
**[APARTMENT – THAT EVENING – 9 PM]**
The team ate dinner together—a simple meal Emily had prepared (no one else trusted their cooking skills at a moment this stressful).
The conversation was light, forcibly normal.
But the underlying tension was impossible to ignore.
Everyone knew the hunters were out there.
Everyone knew an attack was inevitable.
It was only a matter of *when*.
Raven pushed a piece of bread around her plate without eating it. "I keep thinking about the timing," she said quietly. "They've had days to act. Why haven't they yet?"
