Chapter 68
The light did not fade slowly.
It dropped.
One moment the space was steady, pale and quiet, and the next it dimmed sharply, like something had taken hold of it and pulled its strength away. The ground beneath Ariana's feet shifted slightly, not breaking, but losing that sense of certainty it had held before.
Ariana felt it first.
Her breath caught as the deeper current inside her tightened, not surging outward this time, but pulling inward, like something bracing for impact.
Kael's head lifted at the same moment.
His shoulders stiffened as the storm inside him reacted. The lightning along his arms did not flare outward. It drew closer to his skin, darker and more concentrated, like it was preparing rather than reacting.
"That's not us," he said quietly.
Ariana nodded.
"I know."
The presence stepped forward slightly.
Its light dimmed along with the space, but its form remained intact. For the first time, it did not feel in control.
