"What now?"
At Atticus's abrupt question, the clearing fell silent. That single question lingered heavily in the air, occupying every mind present.
The thrill of battling a superior race and winning began to dissipate as the gravity of their situation started to settle.
"The monster kid is right. Aren't we all toast now?" Luminous suddenly broke the silence.
"Stop calling him a monster," Seraphina remarked sharply, turning toward Atticus. "Are you sure you're okay, sweetie?"
Atticus stared at her for a moment. The pause was brief, but for beings of their power level, it was significant. After the incident in the Starhaven sector, Atticus hadn't spoken to Seraphina. He still didn't know how to navigate the entire Spirit King situation.
Still, Seraphina had been nothing but kind to him. Atticus gave her a reassuring smile and nodded. "I'm fine."
