The throne room reeked of perfume, old gold, and lies.
The banners of House Calvarion drooped in the stale summer heat. Silk guards in crimson armor lined the obsidian pillars, unmoving, soulless. And at the center of it all upon a throne built from the bones of dead kings sat Emperor Vael IX, eyes hollow, smile painted.
He was dying.
Not from poison, nor blade.
But from prophecy.
"One shall be born of light and ruin. His name shall burn the old world."
The Veil had erased the prophecy from every text. Burned every tongue that dared to speak it.
But they could not kill Aelios.
A ghost among nobles. A secret in flesh. A shadow raised by an outlawed priestess and a forgotten warrior.
And now he stood in the heart of the empire, hidden in plain sight, wearing the robes of a servant. His eyes were golden fire beneath soot. His breath trembled not from fear, but from fury.
"Do not be seen. Not yet." his mother's last words echoed in him like thunder.
But how could he remain hidden…
…when the emperor's own son was about to murder an innocent child in front of the court for sport?
The blade rose. A scream. Laughter from nobles.
And that was when Aelios broke his oath.
The stone cracked beneath his step.
The air rippled as magic bled from his hands like silver lightning.
The emperor stood. The guards turned too slow.
And the royal court saw what prophecy had warned them of:
A boy with a voice like the void.
A name older than flame.
Eyes of burning dawn.
And power that could not be bound.
The sky darkened.
And the age of silence ended.