Chapter 80

• The council chamber was eerily silent as Amara stood at the head of the table, her hands braced against the polished wood. Around her sat representatives from the alliance—vampires, witches, fae, and werewolves—each wearing expressions of skepticism and fatigue. The recent attack had left scars, both physical and emotional, and the cracks in their fragile unity were beginning to show.
• Amara’s voice cut through the tension, steady but laced with urgency. “I won’t pretend the last battle wasn’t devastating. We lost warriors, resources, and—worst of all—trust. But if we let that divide us, Rita will have already won.”
• Lord Darius, the vampire leader, leaned back in his chair, his crimson eyes narrowing. “It’s easy to talk of unity when your artifact is the centerpiece of this alliance,” he said coldly. “But what happens when that artifact falters, as it did in the last fight? What happens when it breaks entirely?”