The young Council sent for Kael on a winter morning when snow covered the mountains.
They were facing a crisis that none of them had encountered before. A kingdom within the alliance was fracturing. The king had died without an heir. Two ambitious generals were claiming the throne. War was brewing.
The new Council had already spent two weeks debating how to respond. Should they send military support to one side? Should they remain neutral? Should they try to mediate? They could not agree.
So they asked for Kael.
He came slowly, moving with the careful steps of a man in his seventies. Lyris walked beside him, her hand on his arm. They entered the Council chamber and saw the young leaders seated around the great table, looking exhausted and frustrated.
"We need your wisdom," young Shan
