[POV: Sofia Lanka]

"Is this supposed to be where I tremble, Valerius? Because from where I’m standing, your grand cathedral of glass looks remarkably like a cage. You’ve spent centuries pretending to be a god, but all I see is a frightened man hiding behind a curtain of static and stolen memories. Tell me, does the crown feel heavier now that the desert below has turned into a forest of my making?"

Sofia’s voice was a low, dangerous hum that seemed to vibrate the very air of the King’s inner sanctum. She stood at the center of the obsidian-glass deck, the soles of her boots clicking softly against a surface...