Chapter 1011

Late at night, near an ember-fire, they spoke of what they discovered. Susan plucked from a ribbon: a moss-eye pattern glowing faint. "This means growth within darkness," she said.

Lucy read Shannon's slates. "They show us the path in our home. Not only outside, within."

Jude nodded. "Path isn't just outside in the forest. It's within us too."

Grace added softly, "We need inner shrines, places inside each of us where watcher pulses echo. Hearts where water meets stone."

They thought about that long after the fire died. Children slept in arms or tents, wives in quiet circles beneath ribbons. Jude lay with Grace, hands clasped.

"Today feels like a turning point," she whispered.

Jude kissed her palm. "We're weaving watchers into every stratum, forest, home, heart."

Her breath slowed. "When they cross into bodies of water, will they cross into us?"

He held her close. "They already have."