The stars hung low and scattered like fractured shards of diamonds across a dark blue sky. A hush had fallen over the palace, for everyone was braced for war.
Cynthia Liora Aurelius moved through the courtyard with a soldier's grace, her long coat unbuttoned, revealing the burnished armor beneath. Sparks flickered at her fingertips, restless embers, as if her fire never fully slept.
She was halfway through a sparring sequence when Casimir stepped in front of her.
"I didn't think you'd be here not with a war meeting in less than two hours away," she said.
"I trust Arabella to argue with Cyrus in my absence," Casimir replied, folding his arms.
"Besides, I came to ask you something."
That got her attention. Cynthia stopped mid-motion, blades vanishing with a thought, her fire withdrawing with an audible sigh.
"What is it?"
Casimir looked toward the silent garden beyond the training square, where moonlight painted frost onto stone.
