Chapter 16 – Shattered Vows

They didn’t leave the crater that day.

Not yet.

The ground was still warm from the soul-gate’s pulse. Ash floated gently through the air like stardust, drifting between broken spears and discarded war banners.

Seph sat on the edge of the obelisk ruin, her legs dangling over the scorched stone. Her body ached. Not from injury—but from weight.

Something inside her had changed.

Or rather, settled.

The half-soul that had merged with Leo’s now pulsed in rhythm beneath her ribs, quietly, constantly, like a second heartbeat.

It wasn’t painful.

Just… present.

Leo approached, fresh bandages on his arm and a rare softness in his expression. “Still alive?”

“Barely.”

He lowered himself beside her. “You haven’t said anything since sunrise.”

“I’ve been listening.”

He glanced around. “To the wind?”

“To the wolves. They’re quiet.”

Leo nodded. “No one’s fighting. Not even the zealots.”

Seph sighed. “That’s the part that scares me.”