The echo of Kael’s voice rolled down the vast, shadowed corridor and vanished into the depths of the keep. No answer came—no shuffle of guards, no barked commands, only the long, unbroken hush of a place abandoned too quickly or guarded too cleverly.
The boy lingered just inside the shattered doorway, his spear clutched tight in both hands. The hall before them was wide and cold, its high-vaulted ceiling veiled in darkness. Columns of black stone lined the walls like sentinels, and between them hung banners heavy with dust and rain, their crimson silk dull beneath the gray morning light that seeped weakly through a few narrow windows.
The soldier stepped forward first, sword raised, her boots striking the marble floor with slow, measured steps. The sound echoed faintly, carried back to t
