đč"Crown of Ashes"đč
In halls where whispered verdicts bloom,
And gilded shadows swallow light,
A single breath can birth a doom,
A laugh can turn the dawn to night.
A watch, a promise, iron and rustâ
A crown that cracks when truth is shown;
The guilty fall from gilded trust,
And empires tremble when truth is known.
~~~~~~~
"Await your doom, Horace Donovan, because your reign is over and there is nothing you can do about it!" Gurus spat, each syllable sharpened like a dagger.
Silence draped the hall; it was the kind that made your skin prickleâanticipatory, electric. Horace's shadow cut long across the marble, his posture a study in calm menace. Behind Gurus, the judges shifted, collars whispering, eyes like flint. Then a new voice filled the entrywayâclear, cool, impossible to ignore.
