Before the sun rose and before the temple filled with nobles and whispers, the mountain was silent.
Deep within the heart of the Silver Seers' Temple, in a circular chamber lined with ancient glyphs, Ninzu sat cross-legged before a small pot of fire. The flame within did not flicker, it shimmered, steady and silver-blue, as if it too were holding its breath.
She had not moved for hours. Her eyes were closed, her breath shallow, her mind unfurled like mist on a still lake.
Then...
The fire shifted.
Not with wind, for there was none. But with a presence.
A shimmer passed through the smoke. The temperature dropped, though the fire did not dim. And there, rising from the heart of the flame, stood a figure, translucent, robed in moonlight and shadow.
Ninzu opened her eyes slowly.
She did not startle. She did not speak at once. She simply studied the image with ancient eyes.
Then she smiled, a slow, reverent smile that reached into the quiet corners of her soul.
"There you are," she said softly. "Finally."
The figure did not respond in words, but its presence was unmistakable. Moonguard blood. Moonguard power. And behind it… a seal, once locked, now cracking.
Ninzu bowed her head.
And just before the figure faded, the flame leapt higher and for a moment, in its light, the sigil of the Moonguard flared across the stone floor beneath her.
She rose with grace and purpose.
"The heir walks among us," she murmured, "and the veil will not hold much longer."
The Silver Seers' Temple was veiled in silence, the kind that held its breath just before the gods decided to speak.
Lords lined the carved stone benches, draped in formal robes, their faces masks of ceremony and suspicion. The council was present. Selene stood beside Queen Maravelle's envoy, serene as a sharpened knife. Thornak, broad-shouldered and grim, remained by the steps leading to the central dais, where the Circle of Flame waited dormant, for now.
Ninzu moved like time itself, slow, unhurried, eternal. Draped in her usual shadow-colored robes embroidered with silver moons,She approached the center with her violet eyes closed and her palms lifted. In her hands she held a single ember, plucked from the sacred urn at dawn. She whispered a prayer in a forgotten tongue, then dropped the ember into the circle.
The Silverflame ignited.
A hush fell over the temple, like the breath of the gods had caught in their throats. The flames licked the air in a slow, steady rhythm, silver with a faint shimmer of violet.
Lara stepped forward, the hem of her gown brushing the stone floor, her heartbeat echoing in her ears.
She lifted her gaze to Thornak.
He stood just beyond the circle, tall and unmoving, but when her eyes met his, his expression softened. He gave her a small, sure nod, a silent vow.
See only me, he had told her before they came. Not them. Not their lies. See only me, and how much I love you.
And in that moment, all her fear vanished like mist under morning sun.
Ninzu's voice rose, clear and solemn.
"Before this rite begins, let it be known, the Silverflame has been tampered with by one of my priestesses."
Gasps and startled murmurs erupted. Lords shifted uncomfortably. Maravelle's lips parted slightly, but she said nothing. Selene's smile faltered.
Ninzu lifted a hand, and silence fell again like a blade.
"Blood magic, foul and forbidden has seeped into the flame's foundation. It seeks to blind truth and silence fate. But the moon goddess has spoken louder."
Then, with a sudden sweep of her staff across the air, she struck the ground.
The flame roared black.
Gasps erupted.
But before fear could root itself too deeply, the blackness shimmered, wavered and with a sharp hiss, burned away.
The flame blazed silver once more. It stretched toward the high dome of the temple, casting long shadows and illuminating every face with its holy glow.
Her staff struck the floor again, boom, a sound like distant thunder.
"Did you think me blind to the corruption in my own flame?"
The room was heavy with tension, the smoke of judgment still curling in the air.
Ninzu stood at the edge of the flame, hands raised. Her voice had cut through lies and veils, and now the Silverflame burned steady, reborn under her command.
She turned her eyes to Lara.
"Step forward, child."
Lara obeyed, her face calm but unreadable. Each footfall echoed against ancient stone as she approached the flame, this sacred fire that had judged kings and broken pretenders.
The moment she crossed the boundary, the Silverflame surged upward. The flame turned dazzling white, then into a radiant silver-gold that lit the high arches of the temple like dawn breaking through centuries of darkness. It reached out to Lara and wrapped around her, not to harm, but to embrace.
Not one soul spoke. Not even the wind dared stir. The light danced across her skin, revealing no cracks and no shadows
Ninzu stepped forward slowly, her silken robes whispering across the stone. The Silverflame bathed her in gold-white radiance as she looked upon Lara. Her voice, when it came, was low and sure, echoing like wind through ancient halls.
"Her heart is as pure as starlight on still water," Ninzu declared.
As she spoke, her eyes turned pure white, clouded not by blindness but by vision, she was no longer speaking for herself. The flames had claimed her. Her breath slowed, her spine straightened, and in that moment, she became a vessel.
The fire surged, casting halos on every surface. Gasps broke from the gathered lords and priestesses. Even Queen Maravelle could not tear her gaze away.
Then, just as suddenly, the light receded.
Lara swayed. The glow drained from her eyes. The crescent mark on her skin shimmered once, then vanished beneath her collar. Her knees buckled.
Before she could fall, Thornak moved.
He was at her side in an instant, catching her as if he'd been waiting for that moment his entire life. Without a word, he swept her into his arms. His expression was unreadable but his grip was iron.
He turned, the crowd parting in stunned silence. No one dared speak. Not even Ninzu.
The flames still danced behind them, but the trial was over.
The Silverflame had spoken. And now Lara lay unconscious in the arms of the king.
Thornak rode hard for the palace, Lara cradled in his arms as if she were spun from moonlight and breath. The wind howled around them, but he heard only the echo of the flame's judgment, still burning in his mind.
When they arrived, he carried her straight to his chambers, laying her gently upon the vast bed, its silken sheets barely stirring under her weight. She did not wake. Her face was pale, her breaths shallow but steady. As if the fire had not harmed her… but drained something vast.
He stood over her a moment, jaw set, eyes dark with thought.
Kael had been left behind to manage court petitions and trade disputes, duties Thornak could not tend to now. Ruvan and Dain were tracking signs of a rogue incursion along the southern border. The moment Lara had collapsed, Thornak's priorities had shifted entirely.
Mira hovered near the doorway, hands clasped anxiously.
"Will she be alright sire?" she asked softly.
"She's exhausted," Thornak answered, his voice low and steady. "She'll wake soon."
The girl nodded and slipped inside quietly, already gathering soft cloths and cool water. Thornak returned to Lara's side one last time. A single golden strand had fallen across her cheek, and he brushed it back with careful fingers.
He leaned in, lips grazing her forehead.
"I love you," he whispered.
She did not stir.
With one last glance, he turned and strode from the room. The day was far from over. Ninzu had summoned the Alpha Lycans to council, and the throne room awaited.
But his heart remained behind.
....
Selene slammed the doors open, eyes wild. "We've lost everything!"
Maravelle turned slowly, face unreadable. "Lower your voice."
"The people will rally to her, the council is already whispering..."
"The people are fools," Maravelle snapped. "And the council only whispers because they have nothing better to do."
Selene dropped into a chair, shaking. "She's not supposed to be anything. She was supposed to burn."
Maravelle moved closer, ice in her voice. "Today we lost, tomorrow...."
....
The high council chamber was heavy with silence.
Sunlight slanted through the arched windows, falling like judgment across the obsidian table. The Alpha Lycans had gathered with the human representatives. Kael was already seated and in conversation with lord Edrion.
Thornak entered last, his expression carved from stone, eyes unreadable. He took his seat at the head of the table, the weight of command settling around him like a cloak.
Ninzu was already there, veiled in the faint shimmer of Silverflame, two of her priestesses standing silent at her back.
She turned, facing the assembly now with eyes gleaming violet pools that seemed to look through time itself.
"This morning, in the final rite of the moon cycle, the veils parted. The truth was shown to me. The heir of the Moonguard walks among us."
A collective gasp. Even Thornak's breath caught.
"They are here," Ninzu continued. "Within this very castle, snd the blood that once ruled with the Moonfire's light now stirs once more."
For a moment, it was as if no one breathed.
Then like a dam breaking the court erupted.
"Who is it?"
"She must name them!"
"Is this some trick?"
"The heir? After all this time?"
"I will not name the heir," she said, her voice clear, calm, final. "Not today."
Murmurs rose, but she continued.
"She walks among us, yes. But to name her now would be to draw every dagger in the dark to her throat. The shadows are thick in this castle… and not all hearts beat loyal."
Her gaze swept the assembly, but it paused, ever so slightly, on Queen Maravelle. Long enough to draw notice. The Queen's mouth tightened; her fingers curled in her lap. And though she tried to appear composed, she winced.
Ninzu's next words were quieter. "The heir will awaken soon. The Moonfire calls her even now. But I fear..." Her violet eyes turned cold as winter. "The shield that once hid her has cracked. The enchantments that veiled her presence are fraying."
She looked to Thornak, then to the Alpha Lycans at the table.
"That sorcerer and his master will find her."