The report arrived before dawn.
Peripheral Settlement Incident – Stonecross
Monster surge.Delayed response.Casualties confirmed.
I read it once.
Then again.
Names followed the header.
Serah VossMarrek Voss
Survivors listed below.
Ilen Voss — missing
Elian was already awake when I found him.
He was sitting on the academy steps, hands clasped tightly enough that the knuckles had gone pale. The report lay folded beside him, untouched.
"I thought if I didn't read it," he said quietly, "it might not be real."
I didn't respond.
"They didn't request help," he continued. "They never do. They don't want to be a burden."
His voice didn't break.
That was worse.
"Ilen is smart," he said. "She knows how to hide. She might still be alive."
There was no accusation in his eyes when he finally looked up at me.
Just something harder.
"You were right," he said. "The decision was reasonable."
I waited.
"But reasonable decisions shouldn't leave this much behind."
The silence stretched.
For the first time, I had no efficient response.