A restless wind rattled the crystal windows of the newly restored Council Hall, carrying distant echoes of discontent from the palace's shadowed wings. Sylvie Lightwhisper stood at the dais beside Prince Thorne Blackveil, her eyes sweeping across the gathered Assembly: Frostfang delegates in wolf-skin cloaks, Silver Chorus arcanists in shimmering robes, and Echo Clan elders bearing carved staves. Behind them, the great Rune of Unity glowed softly inlaid into polished marble.
High Cantor Merisyl raised her baton, signaling silence. “We convene under the sacred vow of Harmony," she intoned. “Yet extremist nobles—scions of the ancient bloodline—seek to reclaim dominion, using fragments of the old Blood-Iron Gong to rally violent chants." She gestured to a towering tapestry behind the Assembl
