CAGED.

Chapter: 49

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TALON:

A week had passed since graduation, and with each day, the silence in Camp Elysium grew heavier, wrapping around me like a suffocating blanket. The laughter and companionship that once filled the air had faded into echoes, leaving only memories of what had been. My friends had left one by one, each day marked by tearful farewells and promises to visit. Kieran, Jace, and Nara had all urged me to come see them in their respective Packs, their eyes filled with hope for the future. But I felt like a ghost, fading into the shadows of a life I no longer belonged to. If only I were allowed to visit, but even if I were, I didn’t want to. Altair needed me within the Pack, and I couldn’t leave, no matter what.

I followed each of them to their cars, standing on the gravel driveway as they loaded their bags and climbed in, my heart heavy with sorrow. “Promise you’ll visit,” they’d said, their voices mingling with the sound of engines starting. I nodded, forcing a s