After two grueling days of relentless flight, the Omaticaya finally broke through the clouds to descend upon the blinding white sands of Awa'atlu, where the sudden, rhythmic beat of leathery wings silenced the Metkayina village. As the forest-born refugees dismounted, their bodies stiff and coated in the dust of their scorched home, the air between them and the reef-dwellers grew heavy with an inexplicable tension. Yutari stepped forward, his eyes—bright with the raw, golden intensity of the jungle—sweeping across the gathered crowd.