Chapter 10: The Circle's Game
The chamber was carved from polished obsidian, lit only by thin veins of red light running through the walls like molten roots. Seven members of the Circle sat in their thrones—silent, calculating, dangerous.
Eron stood before them, his cloak dusted from travel, the Caelora pendant around his neck faintly glowing.
The man at the center—Lord Malric—watched him like a chess piece.
"You carry old fire, heir," Malric said. "But fire without direction becomes ash. What do you seek?"
Eron answered without pause. "Recognition. Territory. Respect."
One of the shadowed figures chuckled. Another drummed their fingers on the stone.
"And if we deny you?" Malric asked.
"Then you become my enemy," Eron said. "And I will still rise."
A long silence followed.
Then the woman in green robes leaned forward. Her hood was pulled low, but her voice was clear.
"You wear an AI-bound core," she said. "Older than you realize. Where did you find it?"
Eron didn't flinch. "It found me."
Malric raised an eyebrow. "Interesting. Very few still carry functioning AI links… especially ones that respond like yours."
He turned to one of the others and gave a faint nod. A screen flickered to life behind the table.
> [Projection Active: Caelora Reconstruction Data – Partial View]
[Detected: Vault Energy Spike – Eric Class AI]
[Historical Match: Pre-collapse Dynasty Tech]
Whispers echoed around the chamber.
"So it's true," one of them said. "The AI lives."
Malric steepled his fingers. "Then we must offer you a chance… before someone else tries to erase you again."
Eron narrowed his eyes. "You think I'll bow?"
"No," Malric said. "But you might bargain."
A parchment was placed before Eron. Sealed in wax, rimmed with gold.
> Invitation: Temporary Seat on the Circle
Term: Observer Only
Condition: Quarterly Tribute
Oversight: Restricted AI Disclosure
Forbidden: Private Territory Expansion within 50 km radius of Circle holds
Eron scanned the terms quickly.
"What if I refuse?" he asked.
Malric smiled. "Then we give your location to someone who won't offer paper. Only steel."
Eron looked at the seal again.
Behind him, he felt Eric pulse once in warning.
> [System Alert: This agreement limits expansion potential by 37.2%]
[Override Path Possible: Strategic Decline + Future Leverage]
Eron looked Malric in the eye.
"I will not bow. But I'll watch. For now."
He signed the parchment with a single stroke.
Malric nodded, pleased. "Wise. A spark that knows when not to burn… lives longer."
But Eron didn't miss the smirk behind the words.
As he turned to leave, the woman in green called after him.
"Your AI," she said. "It's not just rare. It's hunted. Be careful where it speaks. Some of us remember what it once commanded."
Outside, under the twilight sky, Eron walked alone.
His mind raced, but his pace didn't falter.
In the distance, a crow flew west—carrying news.
And in the vault beneath Caelora Hall, Eric whispered:
"They fear us already."
—