Chapter 5
“A debt is a sacred bond. One must always repay what is owed.” – Emperor Cole, first official address to the people of Umbra
Yet is that really Rose Archer?
Perhaps this is a trick of the mind.
I blink.
Take a deep breath.
Refocus.
But Rose Archer is still there, visible through the center of the swirling drift void. It’s like some bizarre version of an enchanted mirror from a fairy tale. Only instead of seeing an evil queen or lost princess, I’m looking at none other than Rose Archer, one half of the scientist team who won my father his throne.
My knowledge sentient have shown her to me before. Sometimes when I meet with my father—and he’s acting like my father, not Cole—Dad will talk about his decision to become Emperor. The Komandir Emperor, Valerik VII, had gone on a
