In the chambers of rest, the first light of dawn had yet to touch the world. Ashborne, son of Duke Edras, slept quietly, unaware that the fate of his lineage, and perhaps the universe itself, was being whispered over his slumber.
Maelira, his mother, stood at the threshold, her eyes narrowing as she watched him. Beside her, the High Measure, Aurelia Voss, murmured softly, almost to herself,
"The Kaedryn al-Voth… perhaps this one. The catalyst of transformation, for all beings, for the universe."
The words dissolved into the cold morning air, leaving only a faint chill.
Ashborne stirred awake before dawn, a gentle but firm hand on his shoulder.
"Get up," Maelira whispered, her voice tight, careful not to wake the rest of the household. "The Concord has sent word. The High Measure calls for you."
"Now?" he asked, sleep still heavy in his voice.
She nodded. "You are to go alone."
Ashborne hesitated in the corridor, glancing toward the private chambers he had seen from afar so many times. "Mother… who is she?"
Maelira's eyes softened, a faint shadow of memory crossing her face. "The High Measure? She was my mentor, my teacher. I owe her more than I can ever repay."
Ashborne's brow furrowed. "Is she… the reason why we got Cindralith? Since the Concord is as powerful as the Empire…"
Maelira cut him off gently, her voice firm but calm. "Do not question matters beyond your understanding, Ashborne. Some things are better left… unexplored."
He opened his mouth to argue, but she shook her head. "Hurry. Do not keep her waiting."
Ashborne nodded, a mix of curiosity and unease settling in his chest as he stepped forward.
Together, they moved through the pale corridors of the hall. Their footsteps echoed softly against the stone, swallowed almost entirely by silence. When they reached the final door, Maelira stopped. Two Stewards barred her path.
"No further," one said, eyes lowered.
Ashborne turned. "Mother—"
Maelira forced a smile, one that did not reach her eyes. "Listen to me," she said softly. "Whatever they ask of you… remain human."
The doors closed between them, leaving Ashborne alone in the chamber. It was sparse, save for a pedestal at its center, upon which rested a silver scale.
A woman in white waited, her hands folded behind her back, her gaze calm but piercing.
"Ashborne," she said. "I am Aurelia Voss. I assume your mother already told you about me."
"You sent for me," he replied.
"Yes," she said, gesturing to the scale. "Place your hand upon it."
Ashborne hesitated. "What is this?"
"A question," she said evenly. "And your answer."
He stepped forward and laid his hand upon the scale. The world collapsed inward.
Visions tore through him—cities burning so that others might live, children saved at the cost of thousands unnamed, choices that left no path unbloodied. His knees trembled, his jaw clenched, his mind screamed, but Aurelia's voice cut through the chaos:
"Do not withdraw. Endure."
"You call this justice?" Ashborne whispered.
"I call it necessity," she replied. "When the cost is human lives… who decides?"
Pain coursed through his thoughts—the deaths of billions compressed into seconds. Outside the chamber, only moments had passed, but for Ashborne, it was an endless torment, each life passing like a knife through his mind. He felt the fear, the despair, the fleeting last thoughts of every soul. Every scream, every loss, every regret—he lived it all, yet he did not remove his hand from the scale.
Finally, he lifted his eyes to her and whispered, voice raw with both anguish and resolve,"Then let it be me who bears the cost."
For the first time, the High Measure, Aurelia Voss, did not speak. She simply watched, letting the silence stretch, heavy with the weight of inevitability and the enormity of Ashborne's choice.
Aurelia finally spoke, explaining the trial. The scale, she said, weighed choices against consequences. One side bore the weight of action, the other of inaction. If the scale tipped, it showed which path prevailed—not morally, but inevitably. The test was not to choose "right," but to endure the weight of reality itself.
When the trial ended, Aurelia ordered Ashborne to leave. Maelira was then summoned into the chamber. Her composure was flawless, but the High Measure's words cut through it like a blade:
"The unpending doom of House Vaelric nears," Aurelia said.
Maelira's lips pressed into a thin line, hiding her worry.
"I'll do whatever it takes to stop that," she muttered quietly to herself, before leaving the room.