Vael

Veilrend 16 - Ash Beneath the Tongue Part 2 They emerged into moonlight—weak and trembling. The ruin of the cult’s chapel loomed behind them, caved inward like a consumed ribcage. Smoke rose in slow columns. Vael paused. Glanced sideways. > “You knew this would happen.” Rhen stiffened slightly. > “I didn’t know how. Only that the book would lead to something.” > “The book.” Her voice was iron. “You opened a gate to the Veil and let two gods back into the world, and you’re calling it a book.” Rhen said nothing. That silence was too heavy. Too composed. No one carries that kind of guilt so cleanly. > “Who are you really, Rhen?” He met her gaze finally. And for a heartbeat—just one—his eyes shifted. Not color. Geometry. > “Someone trying not to be used,” he said. And in that moment, Vael understood that they were both caught in webs larger than themselves. Not allies. Not yet. But for now—aligned. --- She walked ahead, faster now. The shard pulsed again in her satchel. Unseen by either of them, the fractured spiral at its heart turned once more. A glimmer of light—a soul’s breath, a memory not yet dead—flickered across the mirrored surface. > Deep within, Seris stirred Not whole. Not free. But aware.