Day 4: Gem’s Journal

I keep going back to that spot by the river, the one where Vex stood waiting. The water’s still cold even after the storm broke. I remember the way his voice sounded, low and tired, like he’d been walking for days. I don’t know why I keep thinking about him—maybe because I’m trying to remember what he said before the rain started. The words are all fuzzy now, but I feel like they were important. I wish I could ask him again. Maybe if I stood there quietly, I’d hear him speak. The air smells different at night, like wet earth and something else, like the quiet before sleep. I don’t want to go back to the ruins tonight. I don’t want to think about what I found there yesterday. I just want to rest, but my mind keeps drifting back to that place where the river bends and the stones glow faintly. I think I know what I need to do next.