Three days had passed since Jack's dinner with King Eric, three days of carefully orchestrated normalcy while anticipation built in his chest like a caged storm. His family would arrive today and his father Alaric rode with murder in his heart. Though Jack remained blissfully unaware of the political powder keg approaching the capital.
But first, he had other business to attend to.
The obsidian key felt warm in Jack's palm as he approached his door before sunrise. The palace slept around him, its crystal walls reflecting the faintest starlight like trapped galaxies.
He'd grown stronger these past days, his maxed skills humming with potential, but strength without application was meaningless. Today, he would test himself against the Spire's deeper horrors.
