"Who are you?" the man in front of him demanded.
Asef only stared at him.
His expression didn't shift. His body didn't flinch. He simply stood, eyes dulled, lips unmoving.
He didn't know why he had come here.
He couldn't explain what drew him toward the lone house in the plains.
Something in the air? A scent on the wind? Or was it like the time he wandered toward the well as a boy?
That memory surfaced faintly, like an ember flaring in a pile of ash.
A brief pang shot through his chest.
But his face remained blank.
"Who are you?!" the man repeated, voice sharper now. Not cruel, but forceful, as if trying to snap Asef back into the moment.
Asef considered answering. He really did.
But when he tried to open his mouth, nothing happened.
Not even a rasp.
Even if he did manage to speak, he wasn't sure if his voice would still sound human.
So instead, he turned.
Slowly. Without a word.
He didn't owe this stranger anything.
He had no reason to be here.
