"Forgive the hour," she said. "But we must speak. The time for silence is over."
Thaelyn stood behind Thorne, the firelight glinting off her sigil.
Elyria stepped in and closed the door. Her gaze swept them both, then settled with pride and caution on Thaelyn.
"The stars are moving again. The same signs that came before Aeromir’s fall now rise once more. You two have precious little time to decide where your loyalties lie, not just to each other, but to the world that may soon demand everything from you."
Thorne stepped closer. "We’ve already chosen. We stand together."
Elyria studied them for a long moment, then nodded once. "Then I will help you prepare." Behind her, shadows deepened along the window, and far in the mountains, thunder rumbled. The next storm was coming.
The stone tower atop the western cliffs of the Asgar Training Academy stood wrapped in morning mist, its spires rising like spears into the veil of dawn. Here, far from the prying eyes of cadets and councilors, Queen Elyria waited in silence beneath the glass dome of her private chamber. Shelves bristling with tomes older than the kingdom itself circled the room. Glyphs shimmered on the walls, pulsing faintly with magic too ancient for most to name.
Thaelyn entered alone. Her boots echoed against the polished floor as she stepped inside. A long cloak was drawn tight around her frame. The shadows beneath her eyes had lessened, but the weariness had not faded entirely. It clung to her in the way she held herself, alert, but quieter. Her hair, braided back for formality, shimmered silver where the morning light struck it.
"Thank you for coming," Elyria said gently, rising from a stone bench beside a brazier. "There’s little time."
Thaelyn inclined her head. "Thorne said you wished to begin today."
"You must be ready," Elyria said. "The wards around you will not hold forever. Kaen moves faster than what we suspected.”
Thaelyn hesitated, then stepped further inside. "I know he's not finished. I can feel it."
Elyria’s expression remained unreadable. "You’ll feel more than that soon. Sit."
The Queen gestured to a circular space etched with layered sigils, Aether runes mixed with symbols of the lost language of Aeromir. As Thaelyn settled cross-legged into the circle, Elyria lowered herself beside her, hands folding into her lap.
"We begin not with power," Elyria said, her voice low, "but with restraint. Aether reflects. If you burn with vengeance or fear, it will consume you. If you center in stillness, it will open."
Thaelyn let out a slow breath. "So with meditation?"
"No," Elyria replied. "It is surrender, not of self or illusion. You were told you are the last of your line. That may be true in name. But the name was never the power. It was the vessel."
Thaelyn’s brow furrowed. "Then what am I, truly?"
The Queen extended her hands. "Give me your palms."
When their skin touched, light burst between them, soft, iridescent, and for a moment, Thaelyn felt her body dissolve into light and wind. Visions rippled beneath her mind’s surface. A woman with her face but different eyes. A battle atop a burning cliff. A dragon with wings of starlight singing her name in a language she didn’t know. Then it snapped away. Thaelyn gasped and nearly fell.
Elyria caught her with surprising strength. "You carry more than your blood, Thaelyn. You carry the echo of the Watchers. And they are listening again."
"The Watchers?"
"Old magic. Older than even dragons. Those who held the balance between realms. They were sealed when Aeromir fell, but something is stirring them now."
Thaelyn’s voice trembled. "What does that mean for me?"
Elyria let go of her hands. "That when the veil tears again, it will be through you that it begins to mend, or unravel."
A long silence stretched between them, filled only by the quiet crackle of fire.
"And Thorne?" Thaelyn finally asked. "Where does he stand in all this?"
Elyria looked toward the dome’s glass, where the dragons wheeled far beyond. "He was born of fire and shadow for a reason. He will stand at your side or fall trying to protect you. The bond between you both was not an accident. It was fate, and perhaps a warning."
The Queen stood. "Go now. Prepare. The next time you face Kaen’s forces, it will not be in secret. It will be in war."
Thaelyn rose with her, the weight of the moment settling deep in her chest. "Thank you, Your Majesty."
