⚔️ Ashes of the Crown
Chapter 4 – The Crypt of Silence (Seris's POV)
The air beneath the palace was cold enough to bite.
Seris pulled her cloak tighter, the fabric still faintly scented with myrrh and smoke from the chapel. The stone stairs groaned beneath each step, slick with age and moisture. Torches flickered in ancient iron sconces, casting long, clawed shadows on the walls.
It smelled of dust, rust, and secrets.
She whispered, "Are we the first in years to walk this path?"
Kael gave a low grunt ahead of her. "First in years to survive it, maybe."
That wasn't comforting.
The Crypt of Silence was no myth. Every royal child heard the stories—an underground warren of forgotten halls and sealed chambers meant for the dead. But in truth, it had been a prison. A place where rebels vanished. A place where the old kings buried their mistakes.
And now she walked it. In silk-stained boots and a defiant heartbeat.
"How did you even know this path still existed?" she asked.
"I used to train down here," Kael said. "The Shadowguard kept a cache under the chapel vaults. I learned to kill in this silence."
She slowed. "And you still chose to save me."
He didn't turn. "You're not the first noble I've watched burn."
"But I'm the first you pulled from the fire."
He stopped then, turned to face her.
His eyes burned like coals in the torchlight. "You weren't burning, Seris. You were the fire."
For a second, she forgot how to breathe.
He stepped closer, close enough for his hand to brush hers—but he didn't take it. He never did, not unless she reached first.
So she did.
Their fingers touched. Twined.
It was a small rebellion. A silent vow.
And then the crypt shook.
Stone groaned. Dust rained from the ceiling.
Kael pushed her back, blade out. "Run."
But it was too late.
A wall of steel and shadows surged from the corridor ahead—cloaked figures with halberds and chained hounds, their eyes glowing red from the tincture they drank for night vision. Not royal guards. Not rebels.
"Hunters," Kael muttered. "Godsdamned Blood Hounds."
Seris's blood froze.
The Blood hounds weren't soldiers. They were cleansers. Used only when the crown wanted someone erased so thoroughly even the bones were forgotten. She'd only heard of them in whispers.
Now they were here. For her.
"How many?" she asked.
"Too many."
"Options?"
Kael glanced behind them—more figures closing in, their steps careful, trained. Trapping them.
"Just one," he said. "Fight."
He kissed her then. Fast. Rough. Like a man who knew it might be the last time.
And then the shadows fell.
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🔥 End of Chapter 4