The Sancturm walls echoed that morning with the sound of breaking.
A training mirror in the west wing had shattered on its own. The attending mage, pale and shaking, claimed he saw Lucian in the glass before it exploded.
But Lucian was in the eastern sanctum. Meditating. Or trying to.
Because in his mind, someone else was breathing.
---
The reflection had stepped through.
It didn't speak. Not in words. But Lucian felt it.
A tug at the edge of his spine. A voice like thunder wrapped in velvet.
It didn't need to speak to be understood.
It wanted to help.
It wanted freedom.
It wanted him.
---
Lucian hid the change well.
On the surface, nothing was different.
But when the Council assigned him a purge mission against rebel mages in the Thorn Valley, his eyes glinted with something colder than obedience.
He accepted.
He left with a squad of six.
He returned alone.
---
The official report said ambush. That the enemies were too strong.
But Riven didn't believe it.
He found the trail. Followed it. Found the bodies—both rebel and Sancturm alike.
Only one type of power could've done this.
Possession.
---
Riven confronted Lucian beneath the Moonstone Bridge.
"You used them."
Lucian didn't deny it.
"They were Council loyalists," Lucian said. "I needed them to see what the enemy saw."
Riven stepped closer. "You took their minds."
Lucian's silence was answer enough.
Riven's fist tightened. "This isn't who you are."
Lucian looked up, and for a moment, Riven flinched.
Because behind his eyes, something else moved.
---
Lira stood at the tower, watching storm clouds gather above the Sancturm.
The sky had always mirrored Lucian's moods. But this storm didn't feel like his.
It felt… other.
She turned—and found Lucian there, standing still, soaked, silent.
"You're scaring people," she said.
"I know."
Lira's breath caught. "What do you want?"
Lucian stepped closer. His voice was quiet. "I want the truth."
"About what?"
"Why the Council buried the names of the original Sancturm founders."
She paled.
"You're chasing ghosts."
"No," he whispered. "I'm chasing what they buried me to forget."
---
That night, Valen read the full report from Riven.
"He's become too dangerous."
Thorne nodded. "It's time."
"Not yet," said another voice—one robed in black and seated in shadow.
"If we move too soon," the voice continued, "we validate his paranoia."
Valen frowned. "You want him to strike first."
"Yes," the figure said, "and when he does—we end the Lightbringer."
---
Meanwhile, Lucian knelt before a broken mirror.
The reflection smiled.
"You let me in," it whispered.
Lucian said nothing.
"I can give you the strength to tear down the lies."
Lucian closed his eyes.
"I only want the truth."
The reflection grinned wider. "Then we'll take it."
Lightning shattered the sky above.