[Silthara Palace — Imperial Training Grounds — Moments Later]
Silence...an impossible...unnatural...silence. The wind no longer howled across the shattered palace; the earth had stopped trembling; the corruption...the suffocating darkness that had haunted Zahryssar for months...had vanished.
Gone.
As though it had never existed, only the moon remained above Silthara Palace, watching, witnessing, and remembering.
. . .
. . .
Two ruined halves of Slyvarakh's serpent body lay motionless upon the battlefield. No darkness escaped them, no black mist lingered, and no corrupted whispers echoed through the night.
Only silence...a silence so complete...that even the snow seemed afraid to fall. Far above...upon the broken balconies...no noble spoke, no servant moved, and no knight dared breathe.
Every eye remained fixed upon the lone silver serpent standing amidst the destruction. Blood covered him. From the tip of his eyes...to the end of his enormous tail.
