Seraphina limped towards her, her features etched with concern. "Elara..." she began, her voice a mere whisper. "I'm so sorry."

Elara's gaze found her friend's, and in that moment, a lifetime of shared pain and loss passed between them, an unspoken understanding that bound them together in their sorrow.

"He's gone, Sera," Elara rasped, her words catching in her throat like shards of glass. "Damien... he..."

Unable to give voice to the anguish that clawed at her very soul, she simply shook her head, her shoulders trembling with the weight of her grief.

Seraphina stepped forward, enveloping Elara in a fierce embrace. "We'll get through this," she murmured, her tone...