Chapter 1505

Grace ran her fingers through Scarlet's hair, which now shimmered faintly red under the star-glow. "It's like we're connected to every root. Every stone. I can feel the river even though it's not near us."

Jude rose slowly, heart still pounding. "Then what now?"

The forest answered.

A pulse of wind lifted the leaves.

The silver path appeared again, stretching in a new direction - this one lined not with flowers, but with fireflies, a thousand of them, blinking like beacons in the dark.

Rose stood, completely nude, utterly radiant. "Now we follow again."

"Where does it lead?" Emma asked.

"To what we'll become next," Rose said.

They gathered their strength, their breath, their trust in each other.

And walked again into the forest.

Naked.

Marked.

Transformed.

The fireflies danced in spirals ahead of them, laughing in light.

And far in the distance, a new song began.