Apart from himself, the adults gathered in front of the partially destroyed orphanage bowed respectfully as they realized who had arrived. They immediately dropped to their knees to show reverence, but a simple hand gesture from the figure made them stand up again.
"It's you..." Aldric remained highly vigilant. He recognized the woman before him – Safa – but he sensed an incredibly dense darkness within her, and it felt like there was not just one source, but several intertwined.
The most prominent difference in her appearance was the presence of small horns on Safa's head. They seemed somewhat juvenile, or perhaps she was restraining her power from fully manifesting. Furthermore, her body floated in the air with a pair of bat-like wings. It was evident to anyone that Safa was not a human as they had once thought.
"What is the meaning of all this, Lady Safa?" Aldric questioned.
