Page 48 of Fourth

A Council summons came through speakers hidden throughout the house, requiring Riv’en to attend a sessionat his earliest convenience. Reading between the lines, that meantnow.

He exhaled once, steadying. Pressing a final kiss against her temple he pulled back completely, heading toward the bathing alcove off the main room. The water there wasn’t harsh or mechanical. It streamed down in a warm, steady cascade from living vines above, scentless and clean.

Riv’En pulled her beneath it with him, his hands moving over her skin, slow and efficient but never rushed. Maya’s breath caught as she let herself lean into him, fingers tracing the planes of his back as the water slid over both of them. There was no need for words. Each touch was intentional, meant to wash away the lingering heat and tension without breaking the quiet connection still pulsing betweenthem.

When they finished, he dried her with the same quiet skill before they dressed in silence, both pulling on the soft, layered Elaroin robes folded neatly nearby. Maya’s hands shook as she tied the silver thread around herself, the fabric cool and unfamiliar against her skin. It seemed heavier than it should have, areminder this wasn’t just about clothing. It marked her place here, beside Riv’En. The robes carried a history she didn’t fully understand yet, but she wore them anyway. For him. For whatever camenext.

Riv’En’s movements were exacting as he fastened the deep violet sash. By the time he faced her again, robed in quiet authority, he looked calm. Self-possessed.

But as they stepped toward the door together, it slid open to reveal two Elaroin guards. Both wore pale silver robes threaded with muted violet, their skin shimmering faintly beneath layered veils. Their faces were impassive, but their presence carried clout.

The shift in the air came immediately, like walking into a room already waiting for judgment. Neither guard moved beyond standing directly in their path, blocking both of them with silent authority.

“The human may not pass,” one said, voice cool and stripped of anything resembling warmth.

It wasn’t anger or judgment. It was law, delivered with the kind of finality that left no room for argument. His stance shifted subtly, feet planting wider as if anticipating challenge, the shimmer of containment lines flickering faintly across his skin. The air tightened between them, like even the walls held their breath.

Riv’En’s robe flared red at the edges, astark, pulsing light that bled into the quiet around them. His eyes narrowed, the movement subtle but unmistakable, aflash of restrained violence simmering just beneath the surface. He visibly fought the urge to act. The heat radiating from him intensified, as if the entire space held its breath alongsidehim.

“Only Fourth is summoned,” the guardsaid.

Maya laid a hand against Riv’En’s chest before he could speak, her fingers spread wide, the sharp burn of heat still echoing beneath his skin. Her touch wasn’t just to calm him. It was to anchor herself too, to remind them both that they weren’t stepping apart because they wanted to. Her gaze met his, steady despite the ache building low in her throat.

“It’s okay,” she whispered. “Go. I’ll be here.”

Riv’En’s hand closed over hers once, brief and hard, his grip lingering longer than it should have, as if securing both of them to that single point of contact. His gaze held hers for a breathlonger, black eyes steady and burning with something quiet and unspoken. Something she sensed more than understood.

It wasn’t just anger or frustration. It was promise. Asilent vow that no matter what waited beyond that door, he would return to her. Then, without releasing the tension connecting them, he stepped past the guards in one fluid motion, his posture rigid, constrained, though his robe still bled with whisps of angryred.

The door sealed behindhim.

And Maya was left alone.

She stood there for a moment longer, her hand still raised as if the door might open again. But it didn’t. With a sharp breath, she turned away from the sealed entrance and let her gaze drift across the space Riv’En had calledhome.

The silence grew more demanding now. Thicker. The living walls glimmered faintly, their pulse subtle and slow, as if the entire residence had quieted in his absence. Her fingers brushed along the edge of a nearby table, tracing the curve of its living vine surface without really seeingit.

The motion was automatic, aprotective move against the rising panic knotting in her stomach. The room became too big, too quiet, the pulse of the living walls slow and faint like a heartbeat she could not quite match. She focused on the texture under her fingertips, grounding herself in that small, tangible detail rather than the chaos building in her thoughts.

Her stomach clenched with an echo of heat that wasn’t hunger but close. Still, she crossed to the food alcove and pulled a piece of fruit from the display there. It was cool beneath her fingers, bumpy and dark yellow-skinned, and when she bit into it, the bumps exploded with a delicious tangy juice. The tastewas crisp and faintly floral. It woke her senses just enough to remind her she was still standing, still here. But there was no real appetite behind it. Just motion. Just doing something to keep from standing still.

Her steps took her through the quiet rooms, each surface pulsing faintly beneath her touch. And then she found it, asmall recessed panel near the far wall in a huge gathering area, half-hidden beneath the curve of a flowering vine. Her brows pulled together as she brushed her fingers along its edge. The surface lit beneath herhand.

A pulse. Awhisper of light.

Before she could fully think it through, the room around her changed.

Light unfurled from the panel, rising and expanding until the entire space in the gathering room filled with shifting figures.

She wasn’t looking at a viewscreen. She twirled in a swift circle.

She was standing inside a formalroom.

All around her, the Council chamber unfolded in perfect, three-dimensional clarity. Three Councilors stood at the forefront, two males and one female. The males, tall and broad-shouldered, wore robes patterned in harsh silver and deep green. Their faces were carved with rigid lines, expressions set in stone.

Between them stood Vaeyra, Second of Elaros Council, her presence quieter but no less commanding. Her silver eyes flickered with something Maya couldn’t name. Concern, maybe, or quiet defiance. Vaeyra’s robe shimmered subtly at the hem, asofter silver threaded with paleblue.

Riv’En stood before them, shoulders squared, head lifted high, his stance unwavering and powerful, radiating composed strength. It wasn’t a projection in the air. It was like stepping from one room into another. Had she somehow been transported to the Council chambers?

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