The days after the war felt strange. Quiet. Peaceful in a way Selene wasn’t used to. The world that had once been filled with roaring battles and endless commands now breathed slowly again, like it was learning to live after holding its breath for too long.

The sun rose earlier these days, brighter and warmer. The skies were clear, and the land that had been scarred by fire and blood was beginning to heal. Green shoots broke through the blackened soil, and streams that had dried up were ...