Chapter 32: The Whispering Flame
The council room was still recovering from the trial.
The scent of scorched air clung to the ancient stone walls, and the runes beneath the marble floor still pulsed faintly, as if the castle itself was trying to understand what had just happened. Aria stood beside Lucien, her shoulders straight, her pulse wild beneath her skin.
She’d passed the trial of truth.
But what now?
“You saw what you needed,” she said calmly, addressing the vampires seated around the crescent table.
The council members murmured amongst themselves, the tension crackling like lightning in a coming storm.
Elder Varion stood. “The Flameborn has proven that her magic is not only awakened, but bonded to the bloodline. The prophecy breathes through her. Deny it, and we court ruin.”
