Ashlynn's coven had gathered at the base of the rise, closer than anyone else, and Nyrielle could see that every one of them was bracing for the worst.
Virve stood like a great russet wall at the edge of the lantern light, her golden eyes narrowed against the mist with her massive arms folded across her chest. Talauia hovered above her with her wings humming low and mournful, and Isabell stood very straight with her hands clasped before her.
The engineer's spectacles had misted over, but she made no move to wipe them clean, as if she was grateful that she couldn't see the scene before her clearly, or at least relieved. Hauke was there too, a pale, silent shape behind his teacher's coven. His great white mane hung limp with the cold dampness of the air, and his iridescent horn pulsed with a dark, anxious purple glow that reflected off the mist.
