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After the Void showed up in our Throne Room, “gentle lessons” went out the window.
We had maybe months before it came back. Maybe weeks. The Moonstone was dust and the warning was clear: _The shield must be willing. The blade must be willing. Or all is lost._
So we trained like our lives depended on it. Because they did.
*Level 1: Fear Control*
We started with Elias. He was 5, but he’d already killed to protect us and he’d stared down the Void without flinching. Time to make that useful.
Darius created illusions in the courtyard - snarling Vampires, shadowy Witches, the Void itself in that shapeless, awful form.
“Fear is normal,” Darius told him, standing behind him as the first illusion lunged. “But fear can’t control you. You control it. Breathe. Anchor to Aria.”
Elias was s
