The jungle returned in a rush of humidity and noise.
One moment, Kael was standing in the crushing silence of the void; the next, the sounds of the cicadas, the dripping leaves, and the distant river crashed back into his ears.
He stumbled, his boots sinking into the real, tangible mud.
He was back.
He looked around slowly.
Rylen was on his knees a few feet away, clutching his chest.
Seraphina was standing rigid near a fern, her rapier lowered, staring at nothing.
The atmosphere was heavy.
It wasn't just the humidity; it was the suffocating weight of three people who had just been flayed open and forced to look at their own insides.
Nobody spoke.
The silence stretched, uncomfortable and thick.
"Uhm..."
A small, hesitant voice broke the tension.
The Healer girl, was standing near the tree line. She was looking at them with wide, cautious eyes, clutching her staff like a lifeline.
"Are you guys okay?" she whispered.
The question hung in the air.
Okay was a strong word.
