More days passed.
Still no signs of Darkness or their associates. But news from the capital city painted a different picture—things were getting messier by the hour.
Election season had arrived, and with it, rising tensions that crackled through every news broadcast.
Samantha had stayed off the grid so far, but one text came through:
After the election, Darkness would move to the next phase. That gave me a narrow window—just enough time to finish the outer walls of my fortress and prepare for the worst.
For now, I focused on what I could control: my army, my defenses, and myself. I'd even started mass recruiting Seekers, binding them to my will one by one.
Being isolated out here had its advantages. News traveled slowly. Our activities stayed under the radar.
Perfect.
My hands moved across the stone floor, fingers tracing intricate patterns as I embedded rune after rune into the chamber.
