The night in Marrowvale was eerily quiet.
Cael lay beside and old cracked wall, wraped by an black cloak filled with exhaustion. The ground was cold and unyiealding, like everything else hes seen in this cursed hell. bove him lay the clouds low and unmoving, blocking any hope of starlight.
Cael was reminded of a distant memory, one were he was laying down in the grass with his sister Lira. Like today that day was quiet, but back then he had a siter beside him she was a strong woman, perhaps the strongest he knew, but sadly that was the past.
Cael griped hard on a ribbon around his waist, his last piece from his sister.
Unlike that day with his sister where he felt warmth and safety, today he felt cold and scared. Even— after surving the ruins, after clawing a shard from a creature that should've definetly have killed him. All he could feel was the eerie silece that pressed hard to his chest.
He carefully brushed his fingers against the pocket where the shard sat, pulsing ever so slightly against the fabric, it was warm. Not physically— more like a memory, or even hunger.
The others didin´t know he had kept it.
Nor how many times he'd pulled.
Hadn't told them what he saw in the creature's illusion.
Cael stared into the dark, eyes burning from lack of sleep, and tried to steady his breathing. Every heartbeat felt loud. Fragile.
he thought back to Tarris. Of the final words spoken in that training hall—sharp, bitter things meant to wound.
He was alive. Barely. But not because he was strong.
Because he was afraid.
Because something deep inside him refused to break.
And yet... he didn't feel like he'd won anything.
A soft scrape echoed nearby—just a shift of armor or a foot on loose gravel—but Cael tensed anyway. His hand went instinctively to the edge of his cloak, where his Soulbrand glowed faint beneath the skin.
It was Sela
She didn't speak. Just sat nearby, close enough to offer presence but far enough to leave him space. Her gaze was turned skyward, where the clouds looked like they were holding back something ancient and cruel.
For a moment, Cael wondered what she saw when she looked up.
Then he looked away.
He didn't want to see stars that weren't there.
They just sat there in silence for many long breaths.
The fire had long since died, leaving only ash and cold.
Cael lay on his side, fingers curled around the edges of his coat, the weight of the shards in his pocket pressing against his hip. His body ached in strange places. His soul felt scraped raw. He hadn't spoken since the tower fell.
Sela hadn't either.
She sat a few paces away, one leg drawn up, elbow resting on her knee, gaze tilted toward the sky. Watching for stars that wouldn't return.
Then, quietly:
"You bled through your bandage."
Cael didn't move. "Yeah."
"You shouldn't sleep with your hand on the shards."
He shifted, just enough to hide the way his fingers were still wrapped around them. "Didn't mean to."
Silence again. The kind that stretched thin but didn't snap. It didn't feel cold, just… heavy.
"You always do that," she said finally.
Cael blinked. "…Do what?"
"Look like you're about to speak. Then don't."
He exhaled, barely a laugh. "Not much worth saying."
Sela didn't answer right away. A breeze passed, stirring the ash.
"Tarris was wrong about you."
That cut deeper than anything. Cael sat up slightly, his heart catching.
"You weren't listening when he said it."
"I didn't have to."
She stood, brushing dirt from her knees, then paused.
"Try to sleep." Her voice was soft now, almost an afterthought. "You'll need your strength tomorrow."
She turned away, her silhouette vanishing into the dark.
Cael stared after her a long time before finally letting go of the shards.