A sudden, strange silence fell over the tavern. The laughter stopped, conversations died, and the only sound left was the soft hiss of the torches.
Moriana, Gord, Hyran, and Zarius turned at the same time. Yulia lowered the book from her face.
A few meters away, Veda was lying motionless before their eyes. Blood trickled from her head onto the dirty floor. Her clothes were soaked with liquor, and her body was tangled in the wreckage of two chairs.
Her eyes were wide open, staring at the dark wooden ceiling, completely empty.
Moriana's lips parted, trembling.
"Veda…?"
Gord made his move — slow, steady, not a flicker of emotion on his face. His eyes were locked straight ahead, sharp and focused, like a predator closing in on its prey.
Hyran turned his head, golden eyes narrowing as he took in the scene.
Yulia shot up from her chair. The cup slipped from her hand, shattered, and she ran.
Zarius's eyes widened, his gaze flicking between Veda's body and the man standing over her, who was scratching his head like nothing had happened.
"You son of a bitch!" Zarius jolted from his chair and lunged forward. Before he could take another step, Hyran's clawed hand gripped his arm, stopping him cold.
"I'll rip your guts out of your throat!" Zarius roared, his voice cracking through the silence like a blade.
"Calm down, Zarius," Hyran said, his tone low but unshakable.
"Gord's handling it."
Only a second passed before Gord moved. He snatched a jagged shard of the bottle that had struck Veda. His face was a mask of calm fury.
The drunk man turned, his lips twisting into a crooked, mocking smile.
"Tsk… How pathetic. A noble man like you getting worked up over a worthless bit—"
Before he could finish his sentence, Gord launched himself at the man and dragged the shard across his left cheek, tearing it open until jawbone and teeth showed.
The man screamed like an animal, writhing on the dirty floor like a fish just pulled from the sea. But Gord didn't even let him breathe. He planted both feet on the man's chest. The man's eyes reddened. Gord stared down at him, his gaze cold and merciless.
Yulia dropped to her knees beside Veda and started patting her cheek gently, voice trembling.
"Veda… Veda, answer me."
Veda's empty eyes didn't move; then her lids tightened shut.
"I'm… fine," she muttered, her voice barely audible.
The man's ribs cracked beneath Gord's boots. Then, Moriana stepped closer, her voice low as she placed a hand on Gord's shoulder.
"That's enough… young man."
Gord straightened slowly and stepped back from the man, who was now curled on the floor, groaning in pain as blood spread beneath him across the tavern's dirty planks.
Gord let the man breathe only at the price of more pain before he returned to his chair, silent, his cold eyes never leaving the man writhing on the ground.
Moriana knelt beside Yulia and Veda, her voice calm but firm.
"Yuli, move back a bit."
Yulia took a step back without a word.
Moriana pulled out her watch, letting it hang above the wound on Veda's head.
"There's a shard stuck in there," she said quietly. "I'll take it out."
Veda gave a faint nod.
Moriana pinched the fragment carefully between her fingers. It sliced her skin as she pulled it free, but her face didn't flinch—her eyes stayed locked on the wound.
Moriana leaned closer, studying the wound. Her thoughts raced as the blood began to flow faster, spilling down Veda's face and neck, soaking the front of her clothes.
Damn it… an artery.
I need to heal it right now.
The watch trembled in the air above Veda's head as Moriana whispered,
"Lumiere"
The watch above Veda's head began to hum, its chain shivering as the hands spun backward — slow at first, then faster. The light around them bent, gold and white threads twisting in the air like liquid glass.
Yulia flinched, shielding her eyes. Gord and Zarius froze where they stood, their reflections caught in the watch's glow. The sound of time itself seemed to stretch — a long, aching note filling the tavern before it snapped.
Everything went still. The watch's hands stopped after a heavy tick. The light folded in on itself.
***
Morgana's eyes snapped open. She was in her lab — head slumped to the side, neck screaming in pain.
"Ugh…" She rubbed the spot, wincing.
Her gaze drifted over the cluttered desk — glass, papers, half-filled tubes. The faint hum of the machines filled the room.
"Veda… you feeling any bett—"
Before she finished the sentence, her eyes widened. The chair creaked beneath her as she straightened.
"Veda…?"