They returned from the northern wilds changed.
Not outwardly — their armor still gleamed, their eyes still burned with purpose. But within them, something had shifted. The weight of the First Bond, the promise of a child prophesied to stand between light and shadow, and the looming threat of the Severed King — it all settled like a second heartbeat beneath their skin.
The Flameborn Citadel stood waiting atop the mountain cliffs, bathed in crimson dawn. But something was off.
No guards lined the entrance. No torches burned. The banners were still.
Kael was the first to speak. "Where are the sentries?"
Tobias growled. "This smells wrong."
Aria's magic coiled tightly around her fingers. Her flame hadn't flickered since they'd left the Temple. Now, it burned with urgency.
They crossed the bridge into the inner court.
And that's when they saw it.
Bodies.
Ten of them.
All Flameborn guards.
