The throne room of the Arvandorian Palace was a place of silence and spectacle.
Twin pillars carved with golden dragons lined the hall. The imperial banners—black phoenixes on crimson silk—hung heavy from the vaulted ceiling. Every step on the obsidian floor echoed like thunder.
At the far end, atop seven steps of polished bone-marble, sat Emperor Kaelis Arvandor.
Eyes closed. Hands folded.
He hadn’t spoken for several minutes.
The advisors fidgeted. The guards exchanged uneasy glances.
Then his eyes opened—icy and sharp.
“Who opened the vault?”
No one answered.
Not yet.
Then from the crowd, Commander Talrik, shoulder bandaged, knee stiff, limped forward and bowed.
“Your Majesty,” he said, “the Third Prince—Ryu—breached the seal.”
“Ryu,” the Emperor repeated. Not with anger. With curiosity. Like he’d just remembered he had a third son.
Elsewhere – Hidden Chambers
Meanwhile, Ryu sat cross-legged in a quiet stone chamber deep beneath the Outer Gardens—a place Seris claimed had once been used by monks during the early dynasty.
The candlelight flickered on his skin, casting soft shadows across his bruises. The Black Phoenix Talon had taken its toll. His blood still felt hot. His breathing came slow and forced.
[Black Phoenix Talon – Level 1 → Progress: 45%]
[Status: Incomplete Mastery. Backlash risk remains high]
Seris sat across from him, kneeling, her back straight.
“You fought well,” she said softly.
“I survived,” Ryu replied. “Barely.”
She looked at him for a long time before speaking again.
“You asked what I really was, the night we met.”
Ryu nodded.
Seris unfastened the clasp at her collar and lowered her robe just enough to reveal a mark burned into her skin. A phoenix—split in two, one side gold, the other black.
“That’s not a noble sigil,” Ryu said.
“No,” Seris whispered. “It’s older. My family belonged to the Flamewing Sect. The one Emperor Vireon destroyed a hundred years ago… when he stole the very technique you used.”
Ryu’s brows furrowed. “The vault scroll.”
She nodded. “My ancestors created the Black Phoenix Talon. They called it divine. The empire called it dangerous.”
“And now,” she said, “the descendants are hunted. Branded. Forced underground.”
The Ember Veil
Seris stood and opened a hidden panel behind the stone wall. A staircase descended into darkness.
“What is this?” Ryu asked.
“A place the empire forgot,” she said. “The heart of something older than the throne.”
They moved carefully down the narrow steps until the space widened into an underground temple lit by flickering blue lanterns. Figures emerged from the shadows—hooded, armored in mismatched leathers and silk. Some were young. Some weathered. All of them watched Ryu with wary eyes.
One stepped forward.
A broad-shouldered man with a limp, a burned arm, and an eagle-shaped scar across his chest.
“This is him?” the man asked Seris.
“Yes,” she said. “He fought Talrik and lived. He’s the reason we have the scroll back.”
The man nodded.
“Then the Ember Veil welcomes you, Prince Ryu.”
****The Ember Veil
The Ember Veil – A secret martial resistance formed by descendants of ruined sects, outlawed warriors, and disgraced cultivators. Their goal: to recover lost techniques, expose imperial lies, and rebuild the sacred arts destroyed during the Sect Purges under Emperor Vireon.
Their members train in forbidden styles.
Their knowledge is older than the empire itself.
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