"Prophecies are never warnings. They are choices disguised as fate. And this one—this one was never about destruction. It was about what we would build from the ruins."
The Throne Room
The torches flickered against the stone walls of the throne room as the council argued—loudly, openly. The war was over, but in its wake, the kingdom was fractured.
Some stood behind me. Others behind Asher.
And in the center of it all, the prophecy hung over us like a blade waiting to fall.
I sat at the long table, my fingers pressing into the wood, listening as yet another noble droned on about balance, about tradition, about keeping the power where it had always belonged.
With them.
With men like Asher.
I had bled for this kingdom. I had fought, clawed, and sacrificed. And still, they
