The courtyard was quiet... a llittle too quiet.
The evening wind blew through the vines that curled up the obsidian pillars, and the faint shimmer of rune lights bathed the marble in pale gold. Somewhere far off, the wings of wyverns beat against the sky, but here, in this hollow stillness, even the sound of the wind felt intrusive.
Galisk sat upon a stone bench beneath the shadow of the twin dragon statues, statues of Sonoris and Alameck. His posture was steady, but his gaze was sharp, like tempered steel. Across from him, Alister stood, hands clasped behind his back, eyes lowered as though studying the cracks in the marble that stretched between them.
For a moment, neither spoke. Then Galisk broke the silence. "Earlier," he began, his voice low, controlled, but carrying the kind of weight that made even the air tighten, "you said something… unsettling."
