Aizere's Point of View
The thorns parted like teeth opening to swallow a fly. As I stepped past the line of Elves, the air grew cold and heavy with the smell of old pine and dried blood. Behind me, the voices of Ezrain and the Princess faded into a muffled hum. In this part of the woods, the silence was thick.
I reached a wide clearing where the trees were taller than towers. In the center stood a tree that pulsed with a soft, gold light—the Lightwood. But between me and my birthright sat a shadow that began to move.
The lion beast rose slowly. It was massive, with fur the color of a dark sky and wings tucked tightly against its ribs. Those wings were huge, covered in feathers that looked like sharpened steel. Its eyes were not like a normal animal's; they were bright, glowing gold, fi
