B4 - Prologue (Part 1)

Elena sat on the edge of a velvet-cushioned chair, fingers digging into the fabric of her robes. Vaulted ceilings arched overhead, upheld by pillars of polished white jade that shimmered beneath the glow of floating crystal orbs, while mosaics depicting constellations stretched across the floor. Yet none of the chamber's grandeur did anything to ease the knot in her chest.

Marine, Marshal Vancaws, and every member of the Champions of Chaos occupied the waiting room alongside her.

No one moved. No one spoke.

The Marshal was seated with his arms folded across his chest, his jaw locked tight. Marine stared silently at the floor between her boots, her posture as rigid as everyone else's. The tension hanging over the room had become almost tangible, pressing against Elena's shoulders.

Her gaze drifted to Orwen, the silver-haired leader of the Champions of Chaos.

She wanted to ask if he had heard anything from Seth. A full month had passed since the battle in the neutral zone, yet she hadn't received a single message from him.

As she looked at the tense face of the man, she swallowed the question.

Not the right moment.

Half a dozen guards stood motionless around the chamber's perimeter.

The pressure radiating from them rolled through the room in crushing waves, easily dwarfing the distinct aether signatures of both Marshal Vancaws and Orwen. Every one of the guards stood near—or perhaps at—the very pinnacle of the Platinum Tier.

They wore seamless plate armor forged from a dull gray alloy, and their breastplate had been engraved with the official crest of the NEVAK: a radiant sun divided cleanly in half, one side gleaming gold, the other black as midnight, encircled by five small, five-pointed stars.

Beside every guard stood a massive Animated Armor.

Each hollow construct rose nearly eight feet tall, and they all gripped a colossal, rune-etched war hammer whose head rested against the polished floor. They were nearly identical to the vanguard constructs the NEVAK diplomats had summoned during the battle a month earlier.

Since arriving in the floating Rift City of Iriebus for the mandatory interrogation, Elena had seen close to a hundred of those sentinels patrolling the city's sprawling streets with Platinum-Tier guards.

Surviving the interrogation was the final obstacle standing between Kastal and true independence.

Although King Theron was dead, transforming the kingdom into an officially recognized republic still required the formal approval of the overseeing NEVAK council. Without the council's seal, Kastal would remain an illegitimate state, leaving any neighboring nation free to declare war while the country struggled to rebuild.

And this was despite the fact that they were supposed to be protected by the one-year armistice following the end of the conflict with the Bridan Empire.

In the day following the battle in the neutral zone, Marshal Vancaws and Orwen had met with the Empress to negotiate peace. To the astonishment of the entire continent, she had agreed to end the war while allowing Kastal to retain three of the six disputed Legacies.

Her sudden willingness to compromise had only one explanation.

Seth's mysterious backer and the giant wyvern.

Elena could still recall the colossal beast toying with both the NEVAK diplomats and Draeria's combatants. No one could fault the Empress for changing her mind. Continuing the war—which would put both Elena or Seth's friends in danger—after witnessing the creature's power firsthand would have been utter madness.

Across the waiting room, Orwen shifted in his seat and met Elena's gaze. The silver-haired man forced a faint smile onto his face.

Elena couldn't tell whether he was trying to reassure her... or himself.

The NEVAK clerks had already called her name. She would be next.

Since arriving at the Tribunal of Iriebus, scarcely a word had been exchanged amongst the group, but Elena knew exactly why the council had summoned her, Marine, and the others.

They didn't care about the details of Kastal's new government; they wanted to know more about Seth.

Elena returned Orwen's smile, keeping her expression calm despite the knot in her stomach. She still remembered the Oracle Snake that had accompanied the Empress during the skirmishes in Okson. If the empire possessed a beast capable of prying into another person's thoughts, then the organization that oversaw an entire continent undoubtedly had access to far-more-terrifying methods.

She slowly steadied her breathing.

Seth had barely uttered a single word against the NEVAK council itself, so there was nothing incriminating in her memories on that front. The real danger was his Legacy.

I cannot let anything about that slip, Elena thought.

If she did, she could put him in danger. And she would never be able to look at herself in the mirror again.

From the day she'd met him, fairness and justice had seemed to drive nearly everything he did. He lacked tact—sometimes spectacularly so—and had an unfortunate talent for provoking people. But beneath all of that, his intentions had always been painfully sincere.

When someone weaker needed help, Seth stepped forward. It didn't seem to matter what it cost him or how much he would suffer. He never hesitated.

He had done it in the Desert of Misery during their first year at the academy, and countless times since. Even during the war, when walking away would have been so much easier, he had put his life on the line for people who couldn't protect themselves.

In many ways, he was what she had always aspired to become.

Though with a little more tact.

The hint of a smile tugged at Elena's lips before quickly disappearing.

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Seth had already done so much for Kastal's people. For her. She couldn't let him down when it mattered.

Heavy footsteps echoed from the corridor to the left.

Two armored soldiers marched into the waiting room, escorting Elena's father back from his interrogation. The pressure radiating from the newcomers crushed the air itself, eclipsing even the High-Platinum guards stationed around the chamber. The suffocating aura was unmistakable.

It was identical to that of the NEVAK overseer who had supervised the war.

Diamond Tier.

"Elena Surani," the soldier on the left spoke in a cold, metallic voice that left no room for hesitation.

Elena rose from the velvet chair and walked toward them. As she passed her father, he met her eyes and gave a small, reassuring nod.

She offered one in return before stepping between the two Low-Diamond guards, who silently led her down the sprawling corridor.

Towering arches of polished white jade framed the passageway, while enormous oil paintings adorned the gleaming stone walls. Elena couldn't identify the historical events depicted upon the canvases, but the figures at their center were unmistakable.

Gods.

To her right, Gaia stood amid a primordial forest, thick emerald vines coiling around her bronze skin. Farther ahead, Hemeris appeared draped in a flowing white gown, arms spread wide before the blazing sun.

Portrait after portrait followed.

Most of them depicted deities Elena and others had worshipped since childhood. Others showed what seemed to be heroes, whose names she didn't know. Their painted eyes watched her with an unsettling stillness.

The guards finally stopped before a pair of towering wooden doors reinforced with black iron bands.

Two sentries standing watch grasped the massive handles and pushed them open. Beyond the threshold, a shimmering translucent barrier stretched from wall to wall while also rising all the way to the impossibly high ceiling.

An elderly man in plain gray robes was waiting before the luminous curtain of energy.

Elena recognized the ward right away.

They had passed through an identical barrier upon first entering the floating Rift City hours ago. When they had, her father had explained the nature of these barriers.

No living being could cross one without its keeper's permission.

According to him, even NEVAK officers would be unable to pass through—or would struggle immensely if they for some reasons tried.

The elderly man stepped forward and extended his weathered hand, palm turned upward. Without a word, Elena placed her own hand against his.

A sharp surge of pure aether flooded her channels. The invasive energy swept through the depths of her Well in the blink of an eye, leaving behind a faint trace that would allow her to cross the spell.

"Proceed," the guard behind her ordered.

Elena stepped forward.

The shimmering barrier washed over her body, rippling across her robes as waves of concentrated aether prickled against her skin like thousands of icy needles.

The moment she emerged on the other side, a profound sense of seclusion settled over her. She suddenly felt alone.

No one could help her now. Not her father, not the Marshall, nor Orwen.

Behind her, the massive doors shut with a loud thud.

A vast amphitheater unfolded before her, arranged like a grand parliament that was entirely devoid of spectators. Empty rows of wooden benches rose in arcs along the chamber's flanks, every seat facing a tall dais at the far end.

Five banners hung from the jade wall behind the platform, each bearing the crest of one of the NEVAK nations: the Northern Confederation, the Velmark Kingdom, the Republic of Eryndor, the Aelmyra Empire, and the Kravess Union.

Beneath them, six figures sat behind an imposing mahogany bench, looking down upon her from their high perch.

On the far left sat the representative of the Northern Confederation—a giant, broad-shouldered northman with braided blond hair, a thick beard, and furs over his chainmail despite the warmth of summer. The man looked less like a diplomat than a warrior who had just walked off a battlefield.

To his right sat the consul of the Velmark Kingdom, a black-haired woman clad in a formal, high-collared velvet gown. Unlike the previous one, she carried herself with the unmistakable poise and arrogance of an aristocrat. She regarded Elena with an icy expression.

Beside her sat the representative of the Republic of Eryndor.

The woman's ears tapered into long, elegant points, while her flawless features seemed sculpted rather than born. There wasn't a single blemish on her pale skin, and her movement held an effortless grace.

Elena might have stopped breathing altogether if she hadn't already caught glimpses of other elves in Iriebus' streets hours prior. Until arriving in the floating city, this woman's species had only existed in bedtime stories.

The same was true of the two delegates seated farther down the table.

The representative of the Aelmyra Empire possessed many features of a reptilian. Rmerald-green scales covered every inch of his exposed skin and shimmered beneath the chamber's lights. His crocodilian snout was lined with sharp teeth that remained visible even with his mouth closed, while the man's amber eyes followed Elena's every step.

Had she encountered him anywhere else, Elena would have mistaken him for a beast rather than a person.

Beside him sat the delegate from the Kravess Union. The dwarf barely reached the others' shoulders despite sitting at the same table, yet his stocky frame made it clear he wasn't fragile.

Elena had lived her entire life believing northmen, elves, reptilian folks called skaari, and dwarves belonged only in myths. Now they were all at the same table, looking at her.

Seated at the center of the tribunal, between the representatives of Eryndor and Aelmyra, sat the sixth and final arbiter.

Unlike the others, he wore plain robes of dark violet. His eyes glowed with an unnatural purple hue that pierced through Elena. The sight sent a chill racing down her spine.

He reminded her of the Empress's Oracle Snake.

Elena crossed the echoing floor toward a lone wooden stand positioned at the center of the chamber. Resting both hands on its edges, she forced herself to breathe slowly, hoping to calm the fast beat of her heart.

"I am Lurs Stackspear, Earl of the Oracle Guild, and I will be overseeing this interrogation."

The man's voice rolled through the empty amphitheater with an aetheric resonance that seemed to vibrate through the very bone of Elena.

His violet eyes brightened. "I possess the ability to read your thoughts. Do not attempt to lie; it would be futile. Should you do so, we will be forced to examine your memories directly." He paused. "Is that understood?"

Elena's chest tightened as her fingers dug deeper into the edges of the wooden lectern. "Yes, Sir."

"Good." Lurs held her gaze. "You are Elena Surani. Daughter of Leonard Surani and Marissa Surani. Sister of Brandon Surani."

"Yes, Sir."

Elena glanced across the elevated mahogany bench, looking at the northman, the elf, the skaari, and the others. None of the remaining five arbiters had uttered a single word, nor had they bothered to introduce themselves.

"It is unnecessary for you to know who they are," Lurs stated flatly, answering the thought before she had even realized she had formed it.

Elena's stomach lurched, and cold sweat prickled down the back of her neck. She steadied her breathing, clamping down on her wandering mind.

"My apologies, Sir."

Lurs dismissed the apology with a lazy wave of his hand. "You are a close acquaintance of Seth Elrod. Is that correct?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Were you aware that he is descended from the Elrod Clan?"

"No, I was not, Sir."

Lurs leaned forward slightly, and his violet eyes narrowed. "Were you aware that he intended to poison the two NEVAK officers overseeing the war between the Kastal Kingdom and the Bridan Empire?"

Elena felt heat rise into her chest. "No, Sir. He believed that the Bridan assassin was going to—"

"Answer only the question, Miss Surani," he said, voice dropping a register.

A crushing force settled onto Elena's shoulders, making the lectern creak beneath her tightening grip. She snapped her mouth shut for a moment before replying, "Understood, Sir."

"Were you aware that he originated from Draeria?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Were you aware that powerful soldiers from that nation were hunting him?"

"No, Sir. And I'm fairly certain he wasn't either. He only knew that they would come for him if they learned he existed."

Lurs studied her in silence, his violet eyes seeming to peel back every layer of her thoughts. "Then why did you fail to report this information to the governing authorities of your nation?"

Elena slowly lifted her chin and met the Earl of the Oracle Guild's gaze without flinching. "Because he has a good heart. Everything he's ever done has been to protect others."

The human woman from the Velmark Kingdom let out a contemptuous scoff. "I find that difficult to believe."

"I don't," Elena replied, keeping her voice level as she met the woman's gaze.

She would never let them paint Seth as a monster. He wasn't one.