Page 89 of Court of Aether and Shadows

The Weaver tried to react, its legs weaving disparate patterns of protection.

“Wait! The old laws?—”

"Are mine to remake,"Liarel interrupted and brought her hand down.

The strike wasn't physical.

It was a rewriting of what was possible, a denial of the Weaver's very right to exist in this realm.

The ancient creature had time for one terrible screech that echoed across dimensions before it simply... ceased to be.

Not destroyed, but rather edited out of reality itself, leaving nothing behind but rapidly fading threads of void-black webbing.

In the ringing silence that followed, Liarel turned her blood-fire gaze to where Fenris lay partially entangled in the remaining threads. With another small gesture, the webbing dissolved into motes of light that drifted away like dark snow.

The wolf struggled to his feet, his form stabilizing as the Weaver's destructive influence faded. His golden eyes met hers with a mixture of awe and something deeper — more primal.

And I...

I could only stare at her, my heart thundering in my chest.

This was my queen as I remembered her — terrifying and beautiful, powerful beyond measure yet still somehow achingly human.

Every fiber of my being yearned to go to her, to kneel before her, to reclaim what had been lost for so many centuries, yet was this the time to focus on such sentiments?

Or was I afraid this was a dream that would all twinkle away as I woke to reality…her presence but a memory, like all these centuries?

I dared to hold my breath with a speck of hope.

As Ancient Souls Collide

~AETHEREON~

My Starlight…

The power emanating from her form made the very air crystallize — reality bending in subtle ways around her presence.

I stood there,transfixed,watching as my queen —my Liarel— turned from the dissipating remains of the Void Weaver to face me. I couldn’t even grasp when I initiated the few steps to let me stand where she was mere inches from my grasp, but I’m thankful for the unintentional initiative because I could admire her alluring beauty up close.

Her hair continued to float in an ethereal dance of shadow and light, each strand a perfect balance of darkness and radiance.

Those blood-fire eyes fixed on me with ancient knowledge and newfound purpose.

The shadowsilk garments rippled around her form like liquid night, responding to the pure energy that coursed through her being. Every instinct I possessed screamed at me to kneel — to submit to the sheer magnitude of her power.

But I had made a promise.

To myself, to her, to the prophecies that had guided us for centuries.

I would be her equal, not her supplicant even if it meant resisting the gravitational pull of her presence.

"My Lord of Shadows,"she spoke, her voice carrying harmonics that made the remaining structure of the cottage tremble."How long you have waited?"

I maintained my position, though it took every ounce of will I possessed.

"The waiting was nothing," I replied, keeping my voice steady despite the storm of emotions raging within me. "The fear of losing you entirely was far worse."

She moved toward me with liquid grace, each step leaving crystalline patterns in the floorboards beneath her feet as she circled me with immense interest.With overflowing awe. The very shadows in the room seemed to hold their breath, caught between her power and mine.

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