The sun had long since crept past the horizon, but the study at the Governor's Estate was still lit dimly. Only a lantern on the desk cast warm shadows across the shelves and scrolls.
The curtains were drawn. A faint breeze carried the scent of charcoal and old blood from the courtyard below.
Lan sat leaned back in a heavy wooden chair, his legs crossed, gaze distant.
The communication rune stone beating gently on the desk in front of him. Its dim, red glow pulsing with each syllable spoken from the other end.
"I got word it was going to be an ambush late," Iris said, her voice echoing from the runestone. "I kept trying to reach you through the damn thing."
Lan sighed, rubbing his brow. "Yeah, I know. But we were already there. By the time you were trying to get through, it was far too late to back out."
—
In the imperial city, hundreds of miles away, Iris reclined in a massive bath carved of pink stone, her body half-submerged in warm, petal-scented water.
