Chapter 80: ashes and aftermath
The ruins of Aethermoor lay still, cloaked in the silence that only follows great chaos. A strange calm settled over the forest, as though the world itself was holding its breath—unsure if peace had truly come, or if this was merely a pause before the next storm.
Cain sat beside Selene, his arm protectively around her shoulders. Her body still shimmered faintly, residue of the power she had unleashed pulsing under her skin. Her breathing was shallow, but steady. She hadn't said much since the confrontation with the Hollow King—her mind seemed to be somewhere far away, as if trying to process what her body had become.
Leo was tending to their mother, who remained unconscious but stable. He sat beside her, muttering soft incantations and running his fingers across the deep burn marks that traced her chest and arms. Eren, ever the quiet one, stood at the edge of the clearing, staring into the dark trees as though expecting someone—or something—to emerge.
"Do you think it's over?" Selene finally whispered.
Cain's grip on her tightened. "No. But we survived him once. We'll do it again."
She turned to look at him, eyes filled with exhaustion and fear, but also something else—love. "I didn't know I had that kind of power... I didn't want it."
"I know," Cain murmured, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "But you used it to protect us. That's all that matters."
Behind them, Leo stirred. "Mom's pulse is growing stronger. Whatever that last surge of Selene's light did... it healed part of her."
"She saved us all," Eren said quietly, finally turning to face them. "And maybe woke up something even older."