Morning arrived with quiet dignity, its first rays of sunlight slipping gently through the towering western windows and painting long ribbons of pale gold across the polished marble floor. The violent storm that had swept across the imperial capital throughout the previous evening had finally exhausted itself, leaving the sprawling city washed clean beneath the gentle embrace of dawn. Beyond the palace walls, life slowly awakened once more as merchants rolled open the shutters of their shops, stable hands prepared horses for another day's work, and the distant tolling of temple bells echoed softly through the crisp morning air.
Yet within the secluded western palace, time itself seemed reluctant to move forward.
