Kingdom of Ash

Bronwen extended a fist toward Manon and
opened it.
Inside lay a pale purple flower, small as
Manon’s thumbnail. Beautiful and delicate.
“A bastion of Crochans just made it here—
a bit late, but they heard the call and came.
All the way from the Wastes.”
Manon stared and stared at that purple
flower.
“They brought this with them. From the
plain before the Witch-City.”
The barren, bloodied plain. The land that
had yielded no flowers, no life beyond grass
and moss and—
Manon’s sight blurred, and Glennis took
her hand, guiding it toward Bronwen’s before
the witch tipped the flower into Manon’s
palm. “Only together can it be undone,”
Glennis whispered. “Be the bridge. Be the
light.”