Chapter 26 Cast The Flame

• The war room buzzed with tension as council members filled the circular chamber, robes swishing, eyes sharp with suspicion. The scent of burnt cedar still clung to the air, a cruel reminder of Selene’s pendant, charred, lifeless, and damning.
• “She vanished under your nose,” Elder Brivan snapped, slamming a clenched fist on the table. “First a prophecy, now the priestess is gone. And who’s at the center of it all?”
• All eyes swung to me.