I started to join the puzzle pieces, trying to connect the branches in my mind—to see what kind of pattern they were forming. After concentrating for a while, letting the lines twist and converge, I came to a conclusion.
It was a bizarre shape.
The more I stared at it, the clearer it became.
It looked like the face of a reindeer—only instead of eyes, it had a pair of twisted, broken horns. There was something writhing between them, a tangled, fleshy mass. A tentacle. Or maybe several, wound together. That was the shape that kept forming in my mind, no matter how many times I tried to unsee it.
Kaelira winced beside me, taking a small step back. "A reindeer with tentacles... what kind of cursed face is that? I'm sure this is just a coincidence. If this is some kind of code language or symbol. Maybe a cult's weird crest." She muttered, voice strained. "Then whoever made this needs therapy."
