Aisha thought training would start with movement.
With drills. With lessons she could memorize and repeat.
Instead, it started with a door closing.
The council chamber was smaller than she expected—round, stone-lined, with a single table in the center. No windows. No decorations. Just weight.
The elders were already seated when she entered.
Callen was not there.
That, somehow, made it easier to breathe.
“Sit,” the same silver-haired woman said gently, gesturing to the chair opposite them.
Aisha sat, folding her hands together to stop them from shaking.
“We’re not here to frighten you,” the woman began. “We’re here to be honest.”
Aisha gave a tight smile. “That’s new.”
One of the men nodded. “Everything we tell you today has been… softened. Simplified. Not because you’re incapabl
