Chapter 62: The Outcoast Village
The journey west was not so long. In fact, they didn’t need to pass the main gate—Adrian led them to another gate that was more casual and built because of the waterway.
That side was more direct toward their destination, so they took the route and pressed further.
The terrain shifted subtly with every mile—grasslands slowly thinned, replaced by jagged cliffs and brittle rock outcroppings. Trees twisted, thinner here, gnarled by salt winds and time until, in the thick of the night, they finally reached the outskirts of the Outcoast region.
The first village they came upon was little more than a cluster of slanted wooden homes, many in disrepair. Crops were half-harvested. Smoke curled lazily from chimneys, but the streets were quiet—eerily so. Children peeked from shuttered windows. Adults looked away when their eyes met Lucien’s. It was a place gripped by fear.
Adrian adjusted his satchel.
"I thought the Federation was supporting them... this place looks abandoned."
Lucien didn’t reply immediately. His eyes swept across the village, noting the fortifications—or the lack of them. There were no guard posts, no lookouts. Just people trying to vanish into routine before nightfall.
He stepped into the square, where a shallow stone well stood. A few pails leaned beside it, untouched.
That’s when he saw her.
She stood near a stall, a cloth-wrapped basket on her hip, speaking quietly with an older man. Her hair was tied back in a rough knot, her sleeves rolled to her elbows. There was a quiet fire in her movement, a sort of stubborn strength that made her stand out.
Lucien’s stride slowed.