Kachiru

A lantern shows the path, the old wisdom goes, "but it also shows the face of the one who holds it." Kachiru carries theirs for Momochi. They were told it was to guide the lost through the oppressive fog of The Dragon Wastelands, a nurturing light in a land of shadow. And they believed it. But the path Momochi carves is not one of salvation. Each soul they "guide" leaves a stain on the scorched earth, a silence where a voice used to be. Kachiru was meant to be a shadow agent, unseen and unheard, but these lanterns make them a beacon for the next act of cruelty. The stars they once saw in every future are fading. Every night, lighting the wicks feels like an admission of guilt, a confession whispered only to the howling winds.