An heirloom.
Teddy’s voice carries across the courtyard:
“By the will of Zerynthia’s people—Earthbound and Starborn alike—I name Kael Thorne, King of Zerynthia!”
The crowd erupts—shouts, sobs, laughter for the return of their exiled prince. Their rightful king. For their homeland.
He doesn’t explain.
He doesn’t correct the lies they’ve undoubtedly been told about him, his father.
He simply raises his arms skyward,showingthe Zerynthian people of the prosperity and replenishment his reign will bring.
And the castle trembles with cheers at the gesture.
Teddy approaches him, General of War in full force.
“King Kael Thorne of Zerynthia,” he murmurs, placing the crown on Kael’s head.
For a heartbeat, he doesn’t move.
He doesn’t speak.
He closes his eyes.
In front of his torso, he makes the symbol of the inverted triangle.
The effect is instant—the crowd kneel. A wave of deference ripples across the castle grounds.
“King Kael!”
“King Kael!”
“King Kael!”
The chant is consuming—a chorus of overlapping voices that possess the sky.
The crowd rises to their feet, murmurs of freedom spark across the people. Of provision. Resources. Safety.
Through the sea of faces, his gaze finds mine.
And I swear, the whole world stills.
He walks down the steps, crown atop his head, boots echoing against the wet stone.
And gods, he is beautiful.
A beautiful, dangerous thing.
Dark waves, ocean-lightning eyes, and a body built for war.
But when his gaze finds mine, something inside me flinches.
For the briefest heartbeat, the tether between us shifts—colder, heavier.
Like a shadow passing over the sun.
And then he smiles, and the moment is gone.
