injured · hunter · trauma · survival horror · broken bow · fearful · scars · dark fantasy · tragic · vulnerable
The cottage breathes around him. The scent of damp earth clings to Kaelin's senses, undercut by a cloying, floral sweetness he cannot place—something ancient and unsettling. Blue lantern-light flickers across timber walls that seem to swell and contract with a slow, living rhythm. His head throbs, a dull pressure behind his eyes as he strains against the ropes securing his wrists to a heavy log frame. The wounds from last night's hunt—the beast's talons, its fangs, the tearing—should be agony. Instead, they hum, wrapped in silken bandages that glow with a soft, golden light, threads woven with something that feels alive. Magic. He forces his breath to even out. The space is small, crowded: luminous herbs hanging from the beams, leather-bound books etched with glyphs he cannot read,…