Page 41 of The Shattered Rite
The guard hesitated. His gloved hand hovered near the cuffs at his belt… but he didn’t reach for them.
Instead, his voice came out quiet, unsure—meant to sound certain butwasn’t.
“The cuffs wouldn’t hold her anymore,” he said, voice low. “She’s… beyond them.”
A ripple moved through the room like a dropped stone in water.
Her smile faltered. She glanced around as unease slithered across the chamber, the survivors watching her now not like a threat… but like something worse.
Eliryn’s throat went dry.
She lowered her hands slowly. “Right. That’s… interesting.”
Vaeronth stirred, molten gold in the back of her mind.
Dragonblood cannot be leashed.
“Oh, that’s comforting.”
It should be.
She barely held back a snort. “For you, maybe.”
One of the chosen near the wall spat. “Dragonblood.”
Eliryn flinched harder at that than she should have.
Vaeronth’s voice coiled gentle and cold.
Let them wonder what you are. Let them wonder what it means.
“Fantastic,” she muttered. “I'm reaching a whole new level of outcast.”
She felt the shift, the unspoken verdict settling into the air like dust after collapse; she was different and now there was no denying it.
One by one, the guards motioned for the contestants to follow them—no words, only sharp gestures and the occasional grunt of command. Heavy doors at the far end of the Hall of Holding creaked open, revealing a dim corridor lined with tall torches and iron sconces.
“Come. Your rooms are ready,” said a captain from the front.
The group was herded forward, the clink of enchanted cuffs echoing like dull chimes in the dark.
The guard hesitated beside her as the others were led away. For a moment, Eliryn stood awkwardly, unsure whether to follow.
She glanced up at him, nerves tightening her throat.
“So…” she said softly. “Do I… go with you? Or am I just supposed to… stand here and radiate menace?”
The guard near her startled slightly. She could hear the shift of his armor.
“I—uh… right. No. You’re supposed to come with me.” His voice cracked at first, then steadied, and he cleared his throat. “If… you want.”
She huffed, trying to mask her exhaustion. “If I want? Is it optional? Honestly, even if there was a choice, a nap sounds pretty good right now.”
That earned a small, surprised sound from him. Not quite a laugh. But close.
He gestured toward the side hall. “Rooms are this way.”
She cleared her throat. “So... what happens now?”
