Chapter 5 Find Her
On the opposite side of the palace, there was no beauty at all.
Inside the military strategy chamber, the air was heavy with the smell of old candles, sweat, and iron. A huge map of the frontier was spread across a thick oak table, held in place by iron daggers.
“The Eastern Coalition has strengthened their southern side here, Your Majesty,” a scarred General said, slamming a thick finger onto a marked mountain pass.
“They’ve sent three more infantry units. They expect us to retreat to the fortress at Oakhaven and prepare for a siege.”
Darius Alkov stood at the head of the table, leaning over the map. His black hair fell over his eyes, hiding some of the exhaustion written across his face. Around his neck, hidden beneath his leather armour, the ancient black Seal Stone gave off a faint cold vibration.
It was a strange, numb feeling that kept the Beast trapped beneath his mind, but it felt like carrying a heavy weight around his neck.
“Then we will do the opposite,” Darius said.
His voice wasn’t loud. He didn’t shout like the older generals, and he didn’t slam his fists on the table.
But the cold certainty in his voice made the entire room fall silent.
The advisors shifted uneasily.
“Move the Third Legion through the narrow northern pass,” Darius ordered, tracing a dangerous rocky path across the mountains with his finger.
“We will go around their flank completely and attack their supply lines from behind.”
“Your Majesty, that pass is very narrow,” the General protested, frowning. “If the weather changes, or if they trap us in the gorge, it will become a death trap. The risk is extremely high.”
Darius raised his head.
His dark eyes, entirely free of fear or doubt, locked onto the older man.
“So is losing.”
The General opened his mouth to argue, but when he met Darius’s firm stare, he quickly closed it again and bowed his head.
“At once, sire.”
Darius turned to Commander Lucien, who stood quietly at the side of the table, watching him with a careful and protective look.
“The preparations are set. The army marches at dawn.”
“I will have the vanguard ready, Your Majesty,” Lucien replied calmly.
Darius nodded once and turned away from the map.
The war would begin tomorrow. He had no time for fear, no time for politics and absolutely no time to think about the strange, heavy silence that had settled inside his mind.
By evening, the strategy chamber was empty.
Darius stood alone on the high stone balcony outside his private quarters. The wind swept around him as he looked out over the capital city.
The sun was sinking below the horizon, painting the sky red. The wind howled around him, pulling at his heavy black cloak.
But for the first time in ten years, his head didn’t hurt. The Beast didn’t roar at the sight of the setting sun.
It was quiet. Unusually, unnaturally quiet. And that bothered him. It felt like the unsettling calm before a terrible storm.
The heavy oak door to his chambers slowly creaked open. Darius didn’t need to turn around to know who had arrived. The sharp, familiar rustle of silk told him immediately.
“You are leaving for the frontier tomorrow,” Queen Isolde said as she stepped onto the balcony and stopped a few steps behind him.
“I know,” Darius muttered, his eyes still fixed on the distant mountains.
“The Rite Women arrived safely this morning,” she continued. Her voice sounded casual, but there was a clear meaning behind her words.
“They have been settled in the East Wing. High Priest Overn has already started the first resonance tests.”
Silence stretched between them. The wind filled the space.
Darius gripped the stone railing, his knuckles turning white.
He hated the system. He hated the idea of using those girls as shields. But despite himself, a strange and unwanted question slipped from his lips.
“Did they?” he asked quietly.
Isolde’s eyes narrowed slightly. A sharp, knowing look crossed her elegant face. She stepped closer, studying the side of his face.
“That is the first question you have ever asked about the tributes, Darius.”
A sudden spark of irritation ran through him. Darius pulled his hands away from the railing and straightened his posture.
He turned away from the balcony, his face becoming cold and unreadable once again.
“I asked a question,” Darius said, his voice sharp like a knife cutting through the air.
“Don’t mistake it for interest. Keep them away from my rooms, Mother. I have a war to win.”
He didn’t wait for her answer. He walked past her and went back into the dark room.
Isolde stood still and watched him leave. Her lips pressed into a tight line. He was lying, and she knew it.
The Beast had never been this quiet before, and Darius had never looked toward the East Wing before.
Night fell over the palace like a heavy black cloth.
In the East Wing, the large room was dark. The soft, comfortable beds did nothing to calm the fear of the new girls who had arrived. From one side of the room, Seris heard a girl crying quietly under her silk sheets. Farther away, another girl was whispering fast, scared prayers to the goddess of mercy.
Seris lay still on her back, staring at the dark ceiling of her bed. She could not sleep. The strange feeling she felt in the morning had come back, but now it was different. It was no longer a sudden shock. It was a low, steady hum deep inside her chest.
It felt like something huge, invisible, and ancient was watching her through the stone walls. It was not hostile, but it was very heavy. A pressure that pulled at her attention and her spirit.
What is this place? she thought, turning on her side and pulling the blanket closer.
Why does it feel like the palace is breathing?
Far away, in the elevated part of the imperial fortress, Darius Alkov was still awake.
He lay on his large bed without armour, wearing only a loose tunic. The Seal Stone sat on the table beside him, glowing faintly with a weak grey light. The calm he had felt earlier was starting to break.
The Beast was becoming restless again. But this was not the usual violent rage Darius was used to. It was not trying to make him kill or destroy anything. Instead, it moved in a strange, focused way. It paced slowly in the dark parts of his mind, like it was searching for something.
Then suddenly, a voice echoed inside his head. It was not a roar, but a deep, rough whisper that made his blood run cold.
Find her.
Darius sat up quickly. His chest rose and fell fast, and sweat formed on his forehead. He grabbed the edge of his bed and looked around the dark room.
“Who?” he whispered into the silence. “Find who?”
There was no reply. The Beast went quiet again. Only Darius’s heavy breathing filled the dark room.
Back in the East Wing, the steady feeling of the palace finally pulled Seris into deep, tired sleep. But as soon as she closed her eyes, her room disappeared.
She was standing in a huge, dream-like forest she had never seen before.
The sky above her was deep purple, like twilight. The air was very cold, ancient, and full of magic. Huge trees with silver bark reached up toward a broken moon. Their glowing leaves gave off a soft, strange light. Thick silver mist moved around her bare feet as she took a careful step forward.
Suddenly, a low, deep growl rolled through the silent forest. The sound shook the ground beneath Seris’s feet.
Seris froze. Her heart was beating fast against her chest. She did not turn away. Instead, her eyes were pulled toward the thick darkness between two ancient silver trees in front of her.
Slowly and carefully, the shadows opened.
Two huge golden eyes appeared in the dark. They burned with a strong, ancient power. They were not looking at her with hunger or madness. They were looking at her with deep recognition, as if they already knew her.
The golden eyes stared straight into her soul. Watching her.
Waiting.
