The war could no longer wait.
Zaria knew it the moment she laid Mira’s hand into the ground. Mourning had its place, but her people did not need a grieving Luna. They needed the Queen she had promised to become. And Queens did not wait for death to knock twice on their door.
By dawn, she had summoned her circle into the war room, a wide chamber lined with screens, maps, and the faint glow of lanterns. Rain still lashed at the tower windows, streaking the glass like bloodstains.
Marcus wheeled himself closer to the central table, tapping quickly on his tablet. “I’ve traced the courier routes, hacked into half the city’s camera feeds. Whoever delivered that package didn’t do it alone. Rogues moved through the underground tunnels. That’s their weakness.”
Liora leaned forward, hair tied ba
