Aetherion — Dominator's Citadel, Sovereign Wing
Three days.
That's all that remained before the secret coronation.
Three days until the Eternal Sovereign would be crowned King of All Realms.
Three days until Kaelen's life — and everyone else's — would change forever.
He didn't know.
But everyone around him did.
And it was getting harder to hide.
Morning — The Veil Begins to Thin
Kaelen walked the crystal corridors of the Sovereign Wing,
eyes scanning construction plans for the next dimensional gate.
He didn't notice Aria pause mid-sentence when he smiled.
He didn't hear the catch in Mira's voice when she said his name.
He didn't feel Selina's touch linger a second too long when passing a scroll.
But everyone else did.
Aerin.
Damon.
Even Liora and Auriana exchanged looks and rolled their eyes.
"He's powerful enough to collapse dimensions," Liora muttered.
"But too dense to see a girl's heart melting in front of him."
The Coronation Council — Pressure Builds
In a sealed garden chamber below the Citadel,
Aria, Elena, Seris, Mira, Selina, Lyra, and Lyanna gathered.
Preparations were almost done.
The throne's true crown had been completed — forged from soulsteel and Sovereign crystal
The Oath of Realms had been written
Invitations had been sent under illusioned seals
Only one thing remained uncertain.
His reaction.
"He'll resist," Aria said.
"He never asked for a crown."
"But he deserves it," Selina whispered.
"He is it."
"We'll stand by him," Mira added.
"Even if he tries to walk away."
Midday — Emotional Tension Rises
Kaelen visited the Hall of Eternal Flame,
where the Sovereign bloodline pulse kept Aetherion in harmony.
Aria joined him.
They stood in silence for a long time.
Then Kaelen said quietly:
"You've changed."
She blinked.
"Since when?"
"Since I came back.
You're stronger.
And quieter."
"Only because I feel more," she whispered.
He didn't respond.
But he didn't walk away.
And Aria had never wanted to scream so badly in her life.
Later — One-on-Ones Intensify
Mira
"You ever wonder if you're too powerful to be understood?"
"Sometimes," Kaelen answered.
"Then let someone try," she said.
And walked away.
Selina
She found him watching children train in the courtyards.
He smiled.
"They remind me of us," he said.
Selina's breath caught.
"Back when we didn't know how heavy the sky was."
He looked at her.
For a long, quiet moment.
Then nodded.
"Exactly."
She walked away before her emotions could escape.
Lyra
She challenged him to a race.
He won.
Barely.
She tackled him at the finish line and laughed in his arms.
"Next time," she whispered,
"I won't hold back."
He blinked.
"You were holding back?"
She grinned.
You're holding back too, she thought.
You just don't know it's your heart.
Night — The Sky Burns Quietly
Kaelen stood alone atop the Sovereign Spire.
The Dimensional Flame swirled above.
He felt something coming.
But not danger.
Something… fated.
He didn't know that below, in velvet chambers,
his family and companions were rehearsing the words they'd speak…
…when they would crown him.
Final Line
In the garden, Aria whispered to herself under the moonlight.
"Three days."
"Then he'll finally know."