Ben's grin faltered when he saw the shadow pass across Asher's face. For the first time, the elder leaned back, cane resting across his lap, his eyes narrowing with something that was not mockery, but a quiet seriousness.
"Tell me straight, lad," Ben said, his voice lower now, as if the words themselves might summon something. "Is your universe being invaded?"
Asher shook his head slowly.
Ben exhaled, a sound halfway between relief and resignation. "Then you're in for an answer." He tapped the cane against the floor once, his weathered eyes gleaming with a sharper light. "Here in the higher realms, war isn't a question. It's the water we all breathe."
He leaned forward, voice heavy, words carrying the weight of countless graves. "At one place, no matter what you are—human, elf, dwarf, dragon, vampire—it doesn't matter. All stand on one side. And on the other… are them."
