The Sacred Arena had not hosted a royal challenge in nearly a century.
It had once been a place of games, of prideful duels and honor-bound trials. But tonight, it brimmed with tension—thousands gathered across stone tiers, alphas from every region watching in tight-lipped silence. The royal families of the vampire courts sat hidden in the shadows above, and even the witches had sent an envoy.
No one would miss the crowning of a queen... or her fall.
Kael stood to Ivy’s left, dressed in battle leathers that hugged his powerful frame, a protective hand near his sword. Ember stood to her right, cloaked in fire-threaded silk, her expression unreadable.
Ivy walked forward alone.
Every step echoed.
She wore black. Not mourning black, but power black—stitched with silver markings that shim
