The sun had risen with clarity, casting golden shafts across the forest trail and glittering off morning dew that clung to leaves like droplets of memory. The sky, free of clouds, offered no promise of shade, only an open stretch of warmth that bathed the slow-moving caravan in its relentless glow. Still, the pace was steady, measured. Each tiger's paw thudded rhythmically against the dirt, a heavy, thumping tempo that grounded them in the stillness of progress.
Though it was only the middle of the morning, the group had long been on the move, and at Commander Valerie's insistence, no time had been wasted after the camp had been broken. There was still ground to cover, and despite the aching weariness etched into their bones, the thought of home tugged them forward like a distant but unwavering beacon.
