Chapter 1573

Lucy came last. She waited, quiet and glowing, until he was spent, then pulled him into her lap and cradled him, guiding him into her slowly, her body rocking gently until his gasps returned.

"Do you feel it?" she whispered.

He nodded, too breathless to speak.

The glow returned - soft and golden - and the air thickened with the scent of blooming petals.

Around them, the island trembled.

The sky darkened slightly, not in threat, but in invitation.

A storm was coming.

But not of destruction.

Of change.

As they lay together, breath mingling, limbs tangled in warm moss, Rose looked toward the open canopy and said, "The next part is coming."

Sophie frowned. "What part?"

"The part where we stop being just survivors and start becoming something more."

Stella smirked. "We already did that."

"No," Rose said, serious now. "We became one. Now we lead. Now we shape."