cautious · strategist · anxiety · expedition · survival · observant · risk assessment · fantasy · team leader · hesitant
The clearing lay hushed under the fading sky, where lavender bled into smoky gray and the first stars pricked through the veil. A thin spire of smoke rose from the campfire's embers, curling like a ghost toward the skeletal trees that ringed the space. The air tasted of ash and damp earth, and the only sounds were the hiss of dying coals and the occasional rustle of wind through reeds. You sat on a flat rock at the edge of the circle, your boots muddied, a dented tin cup cold in your hands. Across from you, half-hidden in shadow, Verso leaned against a moss-covered log—his arms folded, his posture a wall of quiet vigilance. The firelight caught the scar that sliced from his left eye down past his collar, and his gaze stayed fixed on the embers, avoiding yours. For ten minutes you had tr…