The night air was cold, the kind that cut through silence.
Kalista ran.
Her feet barely touched the stone path as she sprinted across the sleeping campus, her cloak billowing behind her like a shadow refusing to let go. The potion's effects had long faded; her breathing was ragged, uneven.
'I have to find him!'
She turned the corner near the main courtyard and stopped.
There he was.
Darenn stood beneath one of the lampposts, half in darkness, half in the pale glow of mana light. His coat was unbuttoned, his hair tousled from another sleepless night. He had been doing rounds, his ever-reliable vigilance unbroken even at this hour.
When he heard her hurried footsteps, he raised a brow. "Kalista?"
Her eyes were wide, terrified. "I— I need to talk to you."
