The silence inside the emerald sanctuary lingered far longer than either of them wanted.
Kael sat beside the glowing pool, feeling strangely awkward. Moments earlier, he had nearly leaned forward. Nearly crossed a line neither of them seemed ready to name.
Now a dull sense of loss gnawed at him.
Across from him, Eya remained turned away.
The green radiance from the sacred well painted her profile in soft jade light. The tips of her ears were red. Every few moments she brushed a loose strand of hair from her cheek, only for it to fall back again.
Neither knew what to say.
At last Kael forced himself to break the tension.
"So," he said, perhaps a little too loudly, "what was that thing that stabbed you earlier? The invisible one."
Eya visibly relaxed at the change of subject.
"The Sword Generals," she replied. "The same kind we encountered in the passage."
Kael frowned.
"Those things could turn invisible?"
Eya glanced over her shoulder.
"Do you remember the Ghost Spiders we found on the Thousand-Web Ridge?"
"Of course."
"Then you remember that they could vanish from sight."
Kael nodded.
"Our elders once refined a strange substance from those creatures," Eya explained. "A coating. Applied to certain mechanisms, it grants them a similar ability. Very few constructs received it, but the Sword Generals that attacked us were almost certainly among them."
Kael stared.
"Invisible constructs..."
The idea alone made his skin crawl.
"That's terrifying."
"It would be worse if they were common," Eya said. "Ghost Spiders are extremely difficult to capture, and the refinement process wastes most of the material. There was never enough for large numbers."
Silence returned.
Eya's eyes wandered around the cavern.
Kael desperately searched for another topic.
His gaze landed on the short blade hanging at her waist.
Immediately he seized the opportunity.
"You know," he said, "you're frighteningly good with that thing. You were cutting through those monsters like they were vegetables."
Eya patted the hilt.
"That's not because I'm good."
"It's because of this."
Kael leaned forward.
The weapon looked utterly ordinary.
No jeweled guard.
No elaborate runes.
No divine aura roaring from its edge.
Nothing.
"Hard to believe," he admitted. "It doesn't look special."
A faint smile appeared on Eya's lips.
"Actually, it's beautiful."
She drew the blade.
The Wood-Release Token slid free with a soft whisper.
Holding it before him, she slowly rotated it in the green light.
"Look carefully."
Kael obeyed.
At first it appeared simple.
Then he noticed it.
The color.
The jade surface shifted subtly with every movement.
Not dramatically.
Just enough to seem alive.
Like flowing water trapped inside stone.
A strange vitality pulsed through the blade.
"Huh."
His eyes widened.
"The color's changing."
Then another thought struck him.
"Be careful with that thing."
He still remembered watching tree-demons several yards away being sliced cleanly in half.
The memory sent a chill through him.
Eya suddenly grinned.
Without warning she swung the blade toward him.
Kael froze.
The tip stopped against his throat.
Every muscle in his body locked solid.
For a moment he couldn't even breathe.
Eya burst into laughter.
The clear sound echoed around the cavern.
Holding the blade lightly against his neck, she moved it back and forth as though shaving him.
"A pity you don't have a beard."
Kael sat rigid as stone.
His mind screamed.
Nothing happened.
No blood.
No pain.
No severed head.
Finally he managed to speak.
"How am I not dead?"
Eya laughed harder.
"Because it isn't sharp."
"What?"
"It isn't sharp at all."
She continued rubbing it playfully against his neck.
"You couldn't shave with this thing even if you tried."
Kael blinked.
Then blinked again.
"If that's true, how did you kill all those tree-demons?"
Eya lowered the blade.
"A little Aether is required to use it."
She paused.
"But that's not the important part."
Holding the weapon before her, she said softly:
"Do you know why it's called the Wood-Release Token?"
Kael shook his head.
"Because all wood yields before it."
Her voice carried quiet pride.
"Any wood-aligned material. Any wooden construct. Any living thing born of wood."
She gently traced a finger along the blade.
"It possesses absolute authority over them."
Kael stared.
"And against everything else?"
Eya shrugged.
"It cuts worse than a kitchen knife."
Realization dawned.
Kael touched his neck.
Not even a scratch.
"That explains a lot."
"It also explains its rankings."
She slid the blade back into its sheath.
"Among wood-aligned relics, it's ranked near the very top. Among knives, it's far lower. Among all weapons, lower still."
Kael whistled.
"That's still incredible."
He thought of another weapon.
"My master's sword, Dreamgate, can cut steel like paper and carry people through the skies. Entire armies fear it."
Eya listened.
"But?"
Kael laughed.
"My Elder Soror once told me it isn't even close to the top of the weapon rankings."
Eya nodded.
"The Universal Spirits Ranking isn't perfect."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"Sometimes it's completely wrong."
"Still useful, though."
"Usually."
Kael stared at the Wood-Release Token.
His expression became increasingly greedy.
Eya immediately noticed.
"Oh no."
She pointed accusingly.
"That look again."
"What look?"
"That 'I wonder if I can somehow steal this' look."
Kael nearly jumped.
"No!"
Eya folded her arms.
"No?"
"Absolutely not."
He waved both hands frantically.
"I swear."
"You swear?"
"I'll swear on anything."
Eya rolled her eyes.
Then she sheathed the weapon completely.
The gesture made it abundantly clear that she trusted him about as far as she could throw him.
Afterward she pressed a hand against her wounded side and rose to her feet.
"Enough resting."
Kael blinked.
"What?"
"If you're determined not to stay here, we should get back to work."
"What work?"
Eya looked toward the immense emerald well dominating the cavern.
"Sealing the Jadebelt Ley-Vein."
Kael followed her gaze.
The realization hit him immediately.
"Wait."
He pointed.
"That's the Jadebelt Ley-Vein?"
Eya nodded.
Everything suddenly made sense.
The hidden fortress.
The monsters.
The invisible guardians.
The unnatural waterfall.
All of it.
"No wonder so many fiends were guarding this place."
His expression darkened.
"The Sevenfold Dominion found it after all."
"We should be careful."
Eya started walking.
"There may still be remnants lurking nearby."
Kael immediately moved after her.
"No."
She glanced back.
"No?"
"I'll handle it."
Kael pointed at her shoulder.
"You're injured."
Eya smiled.
"Do you know how to seal a ley-vein?"
"I'll figure it out."
"You'll figure it out?"
"I always do."
Eya laughed.
"One ward-script solves the problem."
She tapped the small satchel at her waist.
"I'll do it."
"Not happening."
Kael crossed his arms.
"That wound nearly killed you."
Eya merely shook her head.
"Come with me."
Instead of approaching the well, she turned toward the pool.
Kael frowned and followed.
When they reached the water's edge, Eya knelt.
Then she began loosening the bandages around her shoulder.
Kael's eyes widened.
"What are you doing?"
She didn't answer.
The wrappings came free.
She leaned over the water and began washing the injured area.
Kael nearly had a heart attack.
"Stop!"
His voice echoed through the cavern.
"You can't just wash a wound like that!"
Still she ignored him.
The green-lit water rippled around her hand.
Several moments later she stood.
"All right."
Turning, she walked back toward him.
Kael's protest died instantly.
His eyes widened.
The wound was gone.
Completely gone.
The shoulder that had been pierced earlier was flawless.
Smooth skin gleamed beneath droplets of water.
The emerald glow reflected from those droplets like scattered gemstones.
Not even a scar remained.
Eya spun once.
"See?"
She turned slightly, revealing the other side where the blade had exited.
That wound was gone as well.
Perfect.
Untouched.
Kael simply stared.
His mind refused to process what he was seeing.
"How?"
Eya looked enormously pleased with herself.
"I healed."
"That's impossible."
"It happened."
"Not that fast."
She laughed.
"You're looking right at it."
Kael could only stand there, speechless.
The girl before him seemed more mysterious every day.
Eya adjusted her clothing and started toward the great well once more.
"Come on."
Kael hurried after her.
"Explain."
"No."
"Eya."
She smiled.
"You really want to know?"
"Yes."
After a moment she relented.
"Fine."
Her expression softened.
"The Verdant Artificers were born with unusual vitality."
They walked beneath the cavern's emerald glow.
"When one of our people is injured, we recover faster than ordinary folk. Several times faster, usually."
Kael nodded slowly.
"That explains some of it."
"I'm not finished."
Her smile grew slightly smug.
"In every generation, one child is born different."
Kael listened carefully.
"A unique Spiritual Root appears."
"The bearer possesses healing abilities far beyond the rest."
"How much farther?"
Eya thought about it.
"Several times."
Then she added:
"Sometimes dozens."
Kael nearly stumbled.
"Dozens?"
"Mm."
She pointed at herself.
"And this generation's fortunate child happened to be me."
The pride in her voice was impossible to miss.
Kael stared.
The more he learned about Eya Verdane, the more impossible she seemed.
Master artificer.
Keeper of ancient secrets.
Bearer of one of the Three Vale Treasures.
A survivor from a lost people.
And now this.
A living miracle.
Before long they reached the enormous well.
Eya stopped beside it and withdrew a yellow ward-script from her satchel.
Kael, meanwhile, leapt onto the stone rim.
Emerald light surged upward from the depths.
The moment it touched him, a wave of comfort spread through his body.
His fatigue eased.
His battered muscles loosened.
Even his breathing felt cleaner.
"Oh, that's wonderful."
Eya smiled.
"The nineteen great ley-veins each possess different properties."
She gestured toward the glowing depths.
"The Jadebelt Ley-Vein governs vitality."
"Growth."
"Recovery."
"Fertility."
"If a wood-aligned adept cultivated here, the benefits would be immense."
Kael immediately thought of someone.
"Mira would love this place."
He leaned over the edge.
The well descended into endless green brilliance.
"How deep is it?"
"No idea."
Eya joined him.
"My elders claimed it connects to some hidden realm far below."
She looked at him sideways.
"Want to find out?"
Kael snorted.
"Not even slightly."
"Then get down."
She raised the ward-script.
"I'm sealing it."
Kael jumped from the rim.
Eya held the yellow script before her chest.
Then she began chanting.
The incantation continued for a surprisingly long time.
Ancient syllables flowed steadily from her lips.
The cavern grew still.
Even the emerald glow seemed to wait.
At last the chant ended.
Her fingers opened.
The ward-script transformed into a streak of yellow smoke.
It shot upward.
Higher.
Higher.
Higher.
Then—
CRACK.
A thunderous sound exploded through the cavern.
High above, empty air tore open.
A colossal boulder appeared from nowhere.
Several yards across.
It plummeted toward the well like a falling mountain.
Kael's eyes bulged.
"That's incredible."
His thoughts immediately drifted toward Mira.
The earth-aligned soror would have adored such a ward.
The massive stone crashed downward—
—and the world erupted.
A gray blur exploded out of the well.
BOOM!
The boulder shattered.
Not cracked.
Not broken.
Obliterated.
Thousands of fragments blasted outward like artillery fire.
Before either of them could react, the gray shape expanded.
One shape became ten.
Ten became a hundred.
A hundred became a thousand.
The cavern suddenly filled with enormous writhing appendages.
They looked like serpents.
Like dragons.
Like monstrous roots torn from the depths of the world.
Each one lashed through the air with nightmare speed.
Eya's face drained of color.
"The Thousand-Armed Ancient!"
The cry tore from her throat.
Her hand flashed to her waist.
The Wood-Release Token appeared.
One swing.
Several colossal tendrils were severed instantly.
But victory lasted less than a heartbeat.
Something struck from behind.
A gigantic appendage wrapped around her waist.
The pressure was monstrous.
Her body bent under the crushing force.
Pain exploded through her.
At the same instant another blow smashed into her sword arm.
The Wood-Release Token flew from her grasp.
"No!"
For the first time, genuine panic entered her voice.
Golden light erupted from her body.
A blinding flare.
The tendril around her waist exploded into fragments.
Eya launched herself after the stolen relic.
But dozens more appendages surged from every direction.
They surrounded her completely.
Meanwhile Kael found himself under attack as well.
Fortunately fewer tendrils targeted him.
Only several.
Unfortunately several was still enough.
He darted left.
A tendril smashed into stone.
He sprang right.
Another crashed where he'd been standing.
The cavern shook.
Kael cursed.
No room.
No time.
No escape.
His hand snapped outward.
The Eight-Claw Flamescourge roared to life.
"Move!"
The whip lashed forward.
Fire exploded across the nearest tendril.
Flames engulfed it.
Yet the thing kept moving.
Burning.
Thrashing.
Alive.
A blazing sweep nearly caught him across the chest.
Kael barely avoided it.
Shock raced through him.
Then Eya's voice rang across the cavern.
"It's heading your way!"
Kael turned.
"What is?"
The answer came rushing through the chaos.
"The Wood-Release Token!" Eya cried.
Her voice cracked with fury and panic.
Both hands flew through a storm of ward-signs. The motions were impossibly fast. Ward after ward burst into existence around her. Scarlet fire exploded. Spears of white lightning cracked through the air. Frost-blue flashes shimmered like frozen rivers. Multicolored lights swarmed like living butterflies.
The emerald cavern became a battlefield of fire and radiance.
Kael looked up.
A massive tendril was racing past, the stolen Wood-Release Token trapped within its coils.
"There!"
He launched himself after it.
Immediately several more monstrous appendages surged into his path.
They came from every direction.
One slammed downward.
Another swept sideways.
A third struck like a giant serpent.
"Help me get it back!" Eya screamed.
There was something in her voice he had never heard before.
Desperation.
Kael's heart tightened.
He glanced back.
The girl was surrounded by countless writhing limbs. Her beautiful face was pale. Her eyes were fixed on him.
Hope.
Fear.
Pleading.
Whatever that token was, it mattered more than life itself.
Kael clenched his teeth and threw himself forward.
He twisted through the attacks at full speed.
One tendril brushed his shoulder.
Another nearly caught his leg.
He ignored them all.
Only the knife mattered.
Only the token.
Behind him Eya's wards detonated without pause.
Fire.
Lightning.
Ice.
Explosions hammered the cavern.
Yet the monsters surrounding her seemed endless.
Every time she destroyed a dozen, dozens more appeared.
The ring around her tightened.
Shrank.
Closed.
The available space grew smaller and smaller.
Heat scorched her skin.
Lightning burned her arms.
Some of the injuries were now from her own wards.
Still she fought.
Still she refused to stop.
But the enemy was stronger.
The lights around her became brighter.
The circle became smaller.
Then smaller again.
Until finally—
A muffled cry escaped her lips.
The light vanished.
Everything vanished.
Pain exploded through every part of her body.
It felt as though thousands of iron chains had wrapped themselves around her limbs.
Her ribs.
Her waist.
Her throat.
She could not move.
Could not struggle.
Could barely breathe.
Then through the forest of writhing tendrils she saw Kael.
Not far away.
He was trapped too.
Several gigantic appendages were wrapped around his body.
His eyes were closed.
Motionless.
"E... Kael..." she whispered weakly.
A muscle twitched in his cheek.
His eyes opened.
"How bad is it?" she asked.
Kael struggled for breath.
"What in the Abyss is this thing?" he snarled.
Eya's teeth ground together.
"It has to be him."
"Him?"
"The monster."
Hatred blazed in her eyes.
"He was hiding here all along."
Kael grimaced.
"Eya... I couldn't get the knife back."
Guilt filled his voice.
"I got close. Then this damn thing caught me."
Tears suddenly filled her eyes.
The sight stunned him.
"Eya?"
"Kael..." she choked.
"I'm sorry."
"What?"
"I'm sorry."
The tears overflowed.
"I thought the monster wasn't here."
Her voice trembled.
"I thought it was safe."
More tears followed.
"I thought this time there couldn't be any danger..."
Kael's chest hurt.
Seeing her cry felt worse than any wound.
"It's fine."
He forced a grin.
"We're not dead yet."
His mind raced desperately.
"There has to be a way out."
Then laughter echoed through the cavern.
A deep.
Monstrous.
Cruel laugh.
It sounded like something speaking from the bottom of the world.
"What way out?"
The voice rolled through the air.
"The Wood-Release Token is mine."
"What way out remains?"
The tendrils began to writhe.
A vast cloud of green mist rose before them.
Something huge moved inside it.
The shape expanded.
Expanded again.
Then burst through the mist.
Kael stared.
The thing resembled a colossal tree.
Its bark was gray and mottled with age.
Its crown vanished into darkness overhead.
At the top of the trunk grew three gigantic humanlike heads.
And every tendril.
Every monstrous appendage.
Every arm attacking them—
All of them extended from the tree itself.
Like hundreds of living limbs.
Kael felt cold.
"What are you?"
One head laughed.
"I am an ancient sacred tree."
Its voice dripped with pride.
"I was born within the treasures of creation itself."
"I have endured countless ages."
"I have surpassed mortality."
"I am the Thousand-Armed Saint."
"All powers beneath the heavens fear me."
Another head turned toward Eya.
"You shameless monster!" she shouted.
"I know exactly what you are!"
"You devoured innocent spirit-trees and sacred groves for ages!"
"And you dare call yourself sacred?"
The second head chuckled.
Its voice sounded completely different.
"Strength survives."
"Weakness dies."
"Such is the order of existence."
Its gaze fixed upon her.
Then its smile widened.
"Little girl."
"You're a descendant of the Verdant Artificers, aren't you?"
A shiver ran through Kael.
The creature licked its lips.
"That bloodline is delicious."
"I suspect my power will increase greatly after consuming you."
Kael felt his stomach drop.
"What do you mean consume her?"
The third head answered.
Its voice was cold.
Merciless.
"I will devour the final true bloodline of the Verdant Artificers."
"She will become part of me."
"Part of my eternity."
Kael's face drained of color.
"You can't be serious."
The monster laughed.
All three heads laughed together.
The sound shook the cavern.
"Ages ago I surpassed the limits of ordinary existence."
"I devoured countless sacred trees."
"I discovered this Jadebelt Ley-Vein."
"I have bathed in its power for ages beyond counting."
The left head sneered.
"Now even the greatest powers of creation could do nothing to me."
Kael blinked.
Then suddenly snorted.
"You're full of rot."
The monster paused.
"You look like a dying tree."
Kael grinned.
"If you're really that powerful, why did two kids keep you busy for half the day?"
The grin widened.
"Hell, if some passing Seraph showed up, she'd probably erase you with one finger."
The cavern fell silent.
Kael waited.
Hoping.
Praying.
Trying to provoke the thing.
But the monster merely laughed.
Not angry.
Not offended.
Almost amused.
"There was once one thing I feared."
Several tendrils carefully lifted the Wood-Release Token before the three heads.
The creature examined it.
"This."
Its voice grew quieter.
"Whoever forged this object created something extraordinary."
"I never understood its secrets."
"It alone disturbed my peace."
"Perhaps this tiny blade was the only thing capable of threatening my eternal existence."
The laughter returned.
"But now you've delivered it directly into my hands."
Eya's eyes burned with fury.
She looked ready to bite through steel.
Beside her, Kael suddenly froze.
A thought had struck him.
The monster noticed neither reaction.
"Enough."
Several tendrils lifted Eya toward the giant heads.
She trembled violently.
Her eyes squeezed shut.
Across from her, Kael closed his eyes as well.
His expression became strangely calm.
"Do not fear."
The monster's voice echoed.
"This is your greatest destiny."
The central head slowly opened its mouth.
Green mist swirled within.
The darkness inside seemed bottomless.
"You will become part of me."
"Part of eternity."
"No!"
Eya broke.
Completely broke.
"I don't want that!"
"Kill me!"
"Just kill me!"
She struggled desperately.
Nothing changed.
The tendrils held firm.
Then Kael opened his eyes.
Softly he said,
"Darling Selene."
Light exploded.
A ring of brilliant colors erupted around him.
The tendrils binding his body suddenly separated.
Cleanly.
Neatly.
Severed.
The monster jerked.
Too late.
Far above, the invisible Shadow Wraith flashed into existence.
A streak of rainbow brilliance.
It circled the Wood-Release Token once.
The tendril holding it fell apart.
"Come back!"
Kael roared.
The Shadow Wraith shot toward him.
The token flew with it.
In the same instant Kael launched forward with an Ember Dash.
A shower of sparks burst behind him.
The Wood-Release Token landed in his hand.
Three swift slashes.
Three flashes.
Every tendril binding Eya was cut apart.
The Thousand-Armed Saint finally understood what had happened.
It bellowed.
Hundreds of limbs erupted into motion.
The entire cavern became a storm of attacks.
"Eya!"
Kael shouted.
Eya hit the ground.
Freedom.
Life.
Hope.
She only stared for half a heartbeat.
Then instinct returned.
"Attack the heads!" she yelled.
Flames erupted around her body once more.
Broken tendrils exploded away.
Kael charged.
The Wood-Release Token gleamed in his hand.
Around him the Shadow Wraith danced like a living nightmare.
Seven tendrils.
Eight.
Nine.
All cut apart before they could reach him.
Eya followed close behind.
Purple light flashed between her fingers.
Four glowing violet spheres appeared around her.
They spun around her body.
Every wave of her hand launched another sphere toward an approaching tendril.
Explosions echoed across the cavern.
The distance vanished.
They reached the monster.
Kael roared.
The Wood-Release Token descended.
A horrifying scream erupted.
A long crack appeared down the center head.
Green energy burst from the wound.
Then the head split in half.
One side fell.
Dragging branches and leaves with it.
Kael's blood surged.
It worked.
The token worked.
He raised the blade high.
And struck again.
The second head split apart.
Another earth-shaking scream erupted.
Green power shot upward like a volcanic eruption.
Only one head remained.
Fear finally appeared in its eyes.
Hundreds of tendrils rushed toward them.
But only a handful arrived in time.
The Shadow Wraith cut them apart.
One after another.
Then Eya struck.
Both hands thrust forward.
All four violet spheres slammed into the final head.
An enormous chunk exploded away.
Yet before their eyes—
The missing flesh regrew.
Instantly.
Kael's eyes widened.
"What?"
He raised the token again.
"Give it to me!" Eya shouted.
Without hesitation he handed it over.
Eya caught the blade.
Hatred blazed in her face.
"Die."
The strike descended.
Like a waterfall falling from the heavens.
The Wood-Release Token split the final head.
Then continued downward.
Through trunk.
Through bark.
Through wood.
Through the entire colossal body.
All the way to the roots.
The scream lasted forever.
The gigantic tree shook violently.
Then split.
The trunk broke apart.
One half crashed left.
The other crashed right.
The impact shook the cavern walls.
Hundreds of dying tendrils writhed madly.
Then one by one they fell.
Silence returned.
At last.
The Thousand-Armed Saint was dead.
Then Kael noticed something.
A bright emerald object flew from the shattered remains.
Hidden among the escaping green energy.
Moving incredibly fast.
Trying to escape.
Kael reacted instantly.
The Eight-Claw Flamescourge lashed out.
The whip wrapped around the object.
The thing immediately struggled.
Jerking.
Twisting.
Trying desperately to flee.
But escape was impossible.
The dragon-whip excelled at binding prey.
Slowly Kael reeled it in.
A glowing emerald sphere floated before him.
His pulse quickened.
A spirit core.
It had to be.
Dragons possessed dragon pearls.
Phoenixes possessed inner flames.
Powerful creatures possessed spirit cores.
And the Thousand-Armed Saint was stronger than anything he had ever harvested before.
His imagination immediately ran wild.
The Shadow Wraith had been born from a far weaker core.
What might this create?
A stronger construct?
A greater weapon?
Something entirely new?
Excitement surged through him.
But Eya mattered more.
Without examining it further, he stuffed the core into the Wardian Satchel and hurried downward.
He landed beside her.
Eya stood frozen before the corpse.
The Wood-Release Token still rested in her hands.
Her knuckles were white.
Her entire body trembled.
"Eya?"
The token slipped from her fingers.
It struck the ground.
Then she threw herself into his arms.
And broke.
Sobbing.
Not quiet tears.
Not restrained grief.
Years of pain pouring out at once.
Kael wrapped his arms around her.
"It's over."
He gently rubbed her back.
"It's over now."
"We killed it."
Eya clung to him.
Her entire body shook.
"I avenged them."
The words came between sobs.
"My grandfather."
"My father."
"My mother."
"My people."
More tears followed.
"I avenged all of them."
Kael swallowed.
Only now did he fully understand.
Only now did he realize the weight she had carried all this time.
"Yeah."
His voice softened.
"They can rest now."
His hand brushed through her hair.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Eya lifted her head.
Tears still clung to her lashes.
Yet she was smiling.
A beautiful smile.
The first truly free smile he had ever seen from her.
Kael smiled too.
Seeing her like this filled him with a strange warmth.
"Eya..."
She gazed directly into his eyes.
"Thank you."
Kael opened his mouth.
Planning to say something modest.
Something clever.
Something foolish.
Instead he forgot every word.
The girl before him looked unreal.
Like a flower washed clean by rain.
Beautiful enough to steal breath from his lungs.
"Kael..."
A faint blush appeared on her cheeks.
Yet she never looked away.
Not once.
Her eyes remained locked on his.
Brave.
Open.
Filled with affection she no longer wished to hide.
Kael's heartbeat thundered in his chest.