His eyes were black and brimmed with gold. Heart, elevated. Pupils, dilated.
Somewhere in the thicket of trees, in the dead of night, a beast stirred. Before moonlight could reach him, the beast had already fled and left the woods stained crimson.
It was no longer a forest but a crime scene.
At this hour, the being who would bear the most pain over the sight in the morning was still fast asleep. The deed had been done, but at the same time it hadn't happened yet.
A lot can happen in a night.
A travelling rain cloud washed away the most damning evidence but left enough to raise a specter of doubt.
It was the dawn of a warring era.