Chapter 30: The Ashes Speak
The village was gone.
Not just the structures. The spirit. The laughter. The memories.
Elric stood in the ashes, wind brushing through the charred vines, the sigil on his wrist glowing like a heartbeat in mourning.
Keera watched silently from the ridge, arrow notched, though there were no enemies left.
"They took faces," she said softly. "But not voices. The trees don't scream when they burn. They just watch."
Elric looked at the scorched soil. "Then let them remember this."
Behind them, Lira limped toward the clinic ruins, holding what remained of their banner.
"Next time," she muttered, "I vote we run before the possessed villagers start crawling out of the soil."
"You'd miss the drama," Elric said with a faint smile.