The palace bells continued ringing across the capital.
Heavy.
Violent.
Endless.
Their sound rolled through the frozen city like a warning carried by the storm itself while snow fell harder against rooftops, palace towers, and crowded streets below. Beyond the western audience hall windows, distant fires had already begun staining the white night with flickering orange light.
The southern faction breached the outer capital gates.
The words still echoed through the room like the beginning of catastrophe.
Selene stood motionless near the shattered windows while the pulse beneath her ribs grew stronger with every passing second. The awakening inside her no longer felt dormant or unfamiliar.
It felt restless.
Hungry.
As though the wolf sleeping beneath her skin recognized war approaching through the snow.
Kael moved first.
"Seal the inner palace districts," he ordered coldly.
The kneeling guard straightened immediately. "Yes, Your Highness."
