<Insight: (Ledger of Nightmares)>98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFTyCKUbiLh
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIdze6346j6
Cel stared at the words, absorbing their meaning.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv00UXJ7yhH
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"The Ledger will serve you well," Selina said, her voice carrying quiet approval. "Though I would advise you to examine it when you return to the physical world."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡldtuGvu8LA
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjKim80ZRC2
The reminder struck like cold water. He'd been so focused on examining his new gifts that he'd forgotten - his physical form was still slumped in those ruins, bleeding and defenseless.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAu8w8auw6U
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"How long have I been here?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYKeVSOew0I
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"Minutes only. But minutes can be enough for predators to find prey." Her tone remained gentle, but the warning was clear. "You should return. Examine the Ledger when you are safe - or as safe as one can be in such a place."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9m3Wrfcg0u
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTOSmvdl9P5
Cel nodded, the wisdom obvious once stated. "Thank you."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqI6WovqfBb
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXpNmPqVZ8m
"There is no need for thanks." Selina's smile deepened. "Go now. And may the Moon Goddess light your path."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3oHxzSXm8i
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡon88PlqC07
The familiar words wrapped around him like a benediction as he closed his eyes and reached for the world beyond.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNLYkhYCl10
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Pain crashed over him like a wave.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9hUCXMLxtK
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Cel gasped, his awareness slamming back into his physical body with brutal force. Every wound announced itself at once - the claw marks across his back, the burns on his left arm, the countless smaller injuries that painted his skin in blood and ash.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcB3CXzBcVR
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He was still in the ruins, sitting against the wall where he'd left. The storm had passed completely now, leaving only settling ash that drifted through gaps in the broken stone like gray snow.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7I63lC4k2m
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A sound broke the silence. Soft. Wet. The unmistakable noise of tearing flesh.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrCLuDEmux4
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Cel's eyes snapped to the corpse.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhTZsgkIVDO
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It lay where he'd left it - serpentine body coiled in death, dark ichor pooled beneath it in the ash.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYgnVykknVk
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Something was perched on its chest.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQWPmIAODne
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A bird.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvVGAeyhS1Q
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But calling it a bird felt wrong. Obscene, even.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWsz80MdRM4
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3mo20aoCLR
The thing was roughly the size of a craw, but there the resemblance ended. Black feathers covered its body - sleek and dark as obsidian, their tips bleeding to crimson red. The proportions were all wrong - body was too long, legs too thin, neck too flexible, wings that folded at angles wings shouldn't fold. 98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzSMulmVysV
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS7wfRPiVsT
When it tore another strip of flesh from the corpse, Cel glimpsed rows of tiny teeth lining the inside of that beak - serrated, designed for more than just pecking.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfCm3q2zkrN
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'That's not a normal bird.'98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbdici6q1VK
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The thought arrived with crystalline clarity. Normal birds didn't exist in the Hollow Realms. Couldn't exist. This place had been dead long before any normal animal could have found its way here.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmpPPqXyEeP
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD5uuGcHwgX
Which meant this thing, with its blood-dipped feathers, was a rift-creature.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN9BAk1CIUW
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His left hand moved, reaching for the bond with Silent Moon. Pain lanced through his shoulder, his back, his arm - but he ignored it.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJDe3C5Jx1N
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoxLB1TRSHy
Moonlight threaded through the air as the chokutō materialized in his grip. Six crescents ignited along its length, casting pale radiance across the ruined space.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡblGvevPC8p
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The bird-thing's head snapped toward him - neck bending at an angle that should have broken bone. A single crimson eye fixed on him, unblinking and bright against the black feathers.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI59hOhOuur
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Cinderward came next.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡruFcsFEu6U
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The armor manifested instantly, moonlight wrapping around him in silver threads. The mantle settled across his shoulders, the cloak falling behind him. Weight distributed itself across his body as bracers formed on his forearms and boots encased his legs.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGJ6lbNoSSY
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The transformation took perhaps two heartbeats.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHUbrKn5fjP
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When it finished, Cel stood in full divine regalia, blade raised, every muscle coiled despite the exhaustion weighing on him.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqhnYb5XgfN
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The bird-thing regarded him for a moment. Then it took another bite of the corpse, tearing away flesh with those serrated teeth hidden in its beak.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMroJvk5gQF
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It was... ignoring him?98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7MeQMWR9NJ
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBxwC8BqSP7
Cel's grip tightened on Silent Moon's hilt. The creature showed no aggression, no interest in him at all. Just methodical feeding, as if he were no more threatening than another piece of the landscape.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8D3oAyXztw
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Should he attack? The thing was clearly unnatural, clearly wrong—98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV8tnCyU8fA
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Footsteps.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnvsXE3PvZy
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The sound came from outside the ruins. Steady. Deliberate. The crunch of boots on ash-covered stone.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1dSQvv7Zd5
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFVP1oEQmYK
Cel's head tilted toward the entrance gap, every sense suddenly focused on that new sound.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbbDIhMiAai
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Someone was approaching.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmW09RaIP2b
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The bird-thing didn't react. It simply continued its meal, pecking at exposed organs with clinical precision.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡirYlka2Qky
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzZkKvvlmA3
The footsteps grew closer. Not running. Not cautious. Just walking with the confidence of someone who knew exactly where they were going - or the carelessness of someone who didn't understand danger at all.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmxiZROhOna
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A silhouette appeared in the gap between broken walls.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoB7sA904gs
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Tall. Lean. Moving with a grace that spoke of training and deadly purpose.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGlVAZJvXhJ
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The figure stepped into the dim light filtering through the ruins.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkiUg34JCgV
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Cel's breath caught for the second time in as many minutes.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBdNKELWUIJ
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMuoeq179af
A young man. Perhaps eighteen, maybe twenty. Dark hair fell across sharp features that carried a weight far beyond their years.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Vf3lOIZzp
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ54MRv6brBO
Relief crashed through Cel's chest before he could stop it.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5aLu8tFY4y
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'A human.'98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbShiZIdody
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrLwshE75KM
The thought arrived with desperate force. After what felt like eternity alone in this nightmare, fighting for every breath, surrounded by nothing but monsters and ash…98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx3VFTGq8e3
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX4TvkcwG0K
Another human being stood before him.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSRK5jiV1WN
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Then the stranger's gaze met his, and the relief shattered like glass.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡksKWBNPYUB
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Those eyes.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhgr5wgednC
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Crimson iris set against black where white should be, holding depths that seemed to swallow light rather than reflect it.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1akYNeUoMB
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Wrong. Fundamentally wrong in a way that made his instincts scream.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGVjlePaxnH
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVWIPVk8sJy
'What if it's not human at all?'98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT6cKbWc9ML
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The thought sent ice through his veins. The cult had taught him that appearances meant nothing - that the cruelest monsters often wore the most familiar masks. His own father had smiled while arranging his torture. His mother had looked loving even though she abandoned him in the end.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjcNl9lfajk
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Trust was a weapon that had been used against him too many times. A weakness he couldn't afford.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmGFPHC9UjX
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But beneath the fear and suspicion, that desperate hope still pulsed. Weak. Pathetic. The part of him that wanted so badly to believe he wasn't completely alone in this dead world.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbyqjkWGUsQ
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1kutqDJRfG
He hated that weakness. But he couldn't quite kill it either.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRjp44rEP8W
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The stranger wore practical clothing in dark tones with blue-grey accents. A cloak draped across his shoulders, shifting with his movement. Everything about him spoke of someone who lived by blade and shadow.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBCcazsdYiI
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUrh86w4nNu
But it was the way he carried himself that made Cel's instincts scream danger. Not aggressive. Not threatening. Just... present. Like death itself had learned to walk on two legs and dress in mortal clothing.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJGIvQhzcsi
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For a long moment, neither of them moved. The bird-thing continued pecking at the corpse, the only sound in the sudden, heavy silence.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8SAYmiU0tI
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2jFQWUNQgg
Cel's grip on Silent Moon remained steady despite the pain lancing through his wounded shoulder. Six crescents pulsed along the blade's length, casting pale light across the ruined space.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo9Za6Ozi7n
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The young man's gaze swept the ruins in a single, assessing glance. Took in the dead creature, the ash-covered floor, the storm damage.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡICNawDddeN
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Then those crimson eyes fell back to Cel's face.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwTU6P9Dc2g
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"You're human." The words came flat, carrying neither surprise nor emotion. 98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNU2iZh8OA0
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5dhz0MRa2v
"So are you." Cel's response was equally neutral, though his mind raced in disbelief. 'A human. In the Hollow Realms. How—?'98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnn0tvp6HTb
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmhEqc5m5HB
The stranger's gaze swept over him again - lingering briefly on the blood seeping through the new armor's fabric, the way Cel's right arm hung slightly wrong at his side.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNyRQaKEWxS
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"You're injured." Still that same flat tone, neither offering help nor threatening attack.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1naeOvji5m
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"I'll live."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHNKv4vjivQ
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A slight tilt of the head. "Will you?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlekMJscHte
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The question held no malice. Just genuine curiosity, as if the stranger were genuinely uncertain whether Cel would survive his wounds.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsaycnUNEcw
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Cel's jaw tightened. "Long enough."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2hY7BLSHJG
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Something flickered in those red eyes - not quite amusement, but close. "Confident."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTAiTaJGvWN
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The bird-thing chose that moment to tear away another strip of flesh, the wet sound obscenely loud in the tense quiet. Neither of them looked at it. Neither dared break eye contact.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFGshsC5Cnm
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The stranger moved.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHEqxCzvni7
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Cel's entire body tensed - but the motion was just a step to the side, away from the entrance, giving himself a better angle to observe both Cel and the feeding creature.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoRDz46XhZN
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Not aggressive. But not careless either.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL7gckCVk8h
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"That yours?" The stranger gestured toward the corpse with a slight nod.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaleNjpLOUk
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM33Ddxdf2m
"I killed it."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH6ta4GQ9Ii
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"Hmm." The sound carried something that might have been approval. "Ash-crawler. Nasty when cornered."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡismKPbKvvW
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4hrQUANUqQ
The casual knowledge in those words made Cel's instincts scream. 'He knows what it is. That means he'd encountered them before. At least once.'98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyzthlAOIkL
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"How long?" Cel asked before he could stop himself.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGGFyrdNM0d
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The stranger's gaze narrowed slightly. "How long what?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGt2UBYX0Yn
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"How long have you been trapped here?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡasvMnpjD2K
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For the first time, something resembling emotion crossed that pale face. Not quite a smile, but a subtle shift at the corner of his mouth that suggested bitter humor.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsX6CgwsMFZ
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"Trapped." The word hung between them. “Seems like that.”98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1X6FGNxw9r
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Cel waited, watching the stranger's posture. Relaxed but ready - the stance of someone who'd learned to be comfortable with danger.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNsgShii5sL
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The silence stretched again. The bird-thing pecked at exposed organs with clinical precision.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvwfyfpDchZ
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"What's your name?" Cel finally asked.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7cGebpLXCr
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Those crimson eyes studied him with unsettling intensity. As if the stranger were looking through him rather than at him, measuring something Cel couldn't identify.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWCKquIag0k
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"Raven."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFW3zh5KTH1
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Raven's gaze remained fixed on him, expectant. 98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBsNFBE6Y6r
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"And yours?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbYJJM9fmkP
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Cel hesitated. The question was simple enough, but his mind raced. 'How did he get here? Why is he here?' 98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh4sKtX1kDf
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7m1XLF7TTH
His father's face flashed through his mind. If Lord Aldric  had somehow learned he survived, then the Children of the Voidmother would come for him again. This stranger could be one of them.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUFP3H9oolL
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But refusing would accomplish nothing. If Raven meant him harm, a name wouldn't change that. And if he didn't... Cel might need an ally more than he needed secrets right now.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhmOV5JB6FQ
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"Celvian," he said finally.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmDjNUrsecc
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"Celvian." Raven repeated the name once, testing it. Then his attention shifted - quick as mercury - to the entrance gap. "You alone?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDYT9UY5XEg
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"Yes."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdKU0W140CC
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"No companions? No escort?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIPMqAKqZEJ
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"I said I'm alone."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkJUwZsht7L
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Raven's eyes came back to him, sharp and assessing. "Moon Chosen."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPNe6mACZBD
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It wasn't a question. Cel's hand tightened on Silent Moon's hilt.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlKOUaHR7xw
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"How did you—"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYAykpzCnNl
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"Your weapon." Raven's gaze flicked to the chokutō. "Moon phases etched in the blade. And the way moonlight clings to you even when you're not manifesting power." A slight pause. "Distinctive."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡveo47VXAfN
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Cel's chest tightened. He'd thought his divine gifts were his own secret, his own advantage. To have them identified so casually—98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI1Y8j4guc8
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"Don't worry." Raven's tone remained neutral. "I'm not here to fight you."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXtuYHgwJda
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"Then why are you here?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSLcOVxnrNo
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Those red eyes held his for a long moment. When Raven spoke again, his voice carried something that might have been weariness.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDoEh7U7fFI
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"Does it matter how I got here?" A slight pause. "I'm here. That's what counts."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSa1O38dDJ3
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The statement hung in the air between them. Two humans, standing in the ruins of a dead world, both wary, both armed, both trying to decide if the other was threat or friend.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdpQ3dAOgCa
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The bird-thing finished its meal and took flight - wings unfolding at wrong angles before it vanished through a gap in the ceiling. Neither Cel nor Raven tracked its departure.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8DygXuO9MW
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"Fine.” Cel resigned. “But you didn't answer my other question. How long have you been here?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkOxXqYhQDz
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This time, Raven actually answered.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQjJ0eNBq4M
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"Long enough." His eyes grew distant. "Maybe a year."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOCheWcvUaf
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The number hit like a physical blow. 'A whole year. Alone. In this place.'98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOkVfuiH5QA
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAKImA6U92s
Cel stared at the young man before him, truly seeing him now. The dark circles under his eyes. The weight in his posture. The way he moved like danger had become as natural as breathing.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnnqUF0jD5r
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"How?" The word escaped before Cel could stop it. "How did you survive that long?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxofREH9xRt
98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp803adKH8o
Something flickered across Raven's face - there and gone so quickly Cel almost missed it. Pain, perhaps. Or memory.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8YchiNBSe8
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"You learn." The words came quiet, distant. "Or you die."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNGCiIX0QLC
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The bird-thing's cry echoed from somewhere outside, harsh and alien.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvek1AmQ8Zw
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Raven's head tilted slightly, tracking the sound with practiced ease. When his attention returned to Cel, those crimson eyes carried a weight that made Cel's chest constrict.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkuKy13RKo
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"Your wounds. They'll fester in this place. Faster than you'd expect." The statement came flat, matter-of-fact. 98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6NcnruyBzW
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Cel's fingers tightened on Silent Moon's hilt. "I'll manage."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6gyWCXlOPV
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"With what?" Raven's tone didn't change, but something sharp entered it. "Ash and hope?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡizQkA3Ycek
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The question hung in the air between them.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcopb2LR95l
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Cel had no answer. His divine gifts could create ice, could grant him strength under moonlight, could even bring him back from death under the right circumstances. But healing? He had nothing for that.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl7V4myuBIK
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Raven seemed to read his silence accurately, eyes narrowing.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyn4siuDDDx
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"Stay here." Not a suggestion. A command, delivered with the casual authority of someone used to being obeyed. "Don't leave this ruin."98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfwuWKoWZM4
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Cel blinked. "What?"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX73Q6y7bP6
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"I'll be back." Raven was already moving through the gap.98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0AatEqNYIu
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"Wait—where are you—"98Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpqrNpM2D40
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But Raven had already vanished into the ash-covered wasteland, his dark form swallowed by gray and shadow.1234 copyright protection94ＰＥＮＡＮＡd9qfN47dVD 尼

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