Silent Defiance

Kaia's POV

The morning broke with a pale silver light that seeped through the thin fabric of the tent. My eyelids fluttered open, and for the first time since my escape, I felt... still. Not healed, not whole — but still.

The air smelled of pine and smoked meat drifting from the campfires. Warriors murmured outside, footsteps thudding, children crying, elders whispering. There was urgency ev