Scene: Blackwood Military Command Hall – Immediate Assembly Post-Birthday
POV: General Soren Vask
He didn't walk in.
He marched in.
Chris Blackwood—King, Phantom, Living Legend—now more real than any of us had dared believe, stood before his generals for the first time in ten long, chaotic months.
He looked like a man who had never been gone.
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We were all on our feet the moment he entered. No one dared breathe.
Behind him, Classic stood tall, silent, observant. Amara was absent—intentionally or not, no one knew.
Chris wore no crown, no cloak. Just the black military-grade tunic. His presence made everything else ceremonial feel unnecessary.
He didn't sit.
He stood in the center of the command hall—his shadow touching the Blackwood insignia carved into the marble floor.
He looked at me first.
And that meant something.
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> "General Soren Vask," he said, voice cutting cleanly across the hall, "step forward."
I obeyed without hesitation.
> "You remained loyal when others questioned. You stood in silence but fought in thunder."
His hand reached into the inner chest pocket of his coat and pulled out a small, flat box—jet black with the Blackwood crest in bloodred steel.
The room held its breath.
He opened it.
Inside, lay a blood diamond insignia—a new symbol, never before seen, forged only for one purpose.
> "This," he said, holding it to the light, "is the Mark of the Eternal Flame."
> "Worn only by one. The one who never lets the fire die, no matter how long the night."
He stepped forward and clipped it onto my uniform—right above the heart.
It burned.
Not physically.
But spiritually.
> "From this day forward," Chris continued, "you are not just General of the B.A.M."
> "You are Guardian Flame of the Throne."
A few gasps echoed behind me. Someone near the back whispered, "He outranks the Chancellor?"
Chris turned to the room.
> "You follow your titles."
> "But he followed me through silence, death whispers, and near collapse."
He glanced toward the rear commanders.
> "Let this be a lesson."
> "Loyalty is never unrewarded in my Empire."
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I bowed.
Not because I had to.
Because after everything… he was still my King.
And now?
I was more than his general.
I was his flame.
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