Day 16: Nyx’s Journal

The river’s voice was quiet today, like a whisper against stone. I sat by the water after the hunt, watching the way the light bent on the surface. Vex was there—just for a moment—his shadow stretching long across the mud. He said something about the stones humming again, but I didn’t hear it. My stomach was hollow, my legs heavy. I kept thinking about what he said: *‘The veins don’t just crack, Nyx. They remember.’* I tried to push it away, but it clung to me like the damp from the river. When I woke up, I was back at Gem’s den, but it felt different—like the air was thinner. I don’t know why I keep coming back to the ruins. Maybe it’s the stones. Maybe it’s me. I don’t know what I’m looking for anymore.