White ether burned like a small sun above the marble dais. The chanting of priests rattled the pillars, reverent and exultant, drowning the hall in sound. At its center, Theobald stood drenched in it, blond hair blazing, blue eyes open now and shining with something new and terrible. His arms were raised, power spilling from his palms in arcs of light.
He was still smiling when the space behind him cracked open, a seam of red-black light like a tear in reality. Heat gushed out, scattering the incense smoke.
Victor stepped through it.
A man in a deep navy shirt, cuffs rolled, black-stone ring gleaming on his hand, crimson eyes burning with quiet amusement. He might have been arriving at a board meeting, except for the way the ether bent around him, rippling like fabric trying not to tear.
"Theobald," Victor said, voice low, even polite, as he walked across the sigils without so much as a flicker. "Congratulations."
