The Academy did not regain its breath after the Ember Convergence. Instead, the silence that settled over the halls felt sharper than any blade—an engineered quiet, a silence demanded rather than earned. Every pillar hummed with and against the tension, each rune flickering with a strange, watchful intelligence. The air itself seemed to narrow, as if the building had begun to take sides.
Sandra moved along the central pathway with careful steps, golden threads still pulsing under her skin, though fainter after the exertion of the previous hours. Her senses were sharper, more detailed, more intrusive; she could hear distant whispers behind closed doors, the faint click of surveillance sigils resetting, even the measured heartbeat of a student two corridors away. This new clarity wasn't exhilarating—it was heavy, as if the world had become too present.
Tristan walked two paces ahead, shoulders squared, silver aura dimmed but stable, every step calculated. Sebastian stayed close on Sandra's right, body held with predatory tension, his tail curving low like a warning. His sharp amber gaze tracked movement before it occurred—anticipation ingrained, instinct sharpened by the night's chaos.
The Academy was watching them. That much was certain.
Lyra stood in the far corner of the atrium, her expression unreadable, her dark cloak fluttering despite the still air. She raised her hand, signaling them forward. "We move to the Hall of Verdicts. The Council has summoned you."
Sebastian snorted. "Summoned? They're lucky we're even walking in voluntarily."
Lyra's eyes—cold, analytical—narrowed. "They're not giving you a choice." She studied Sandra with clear precision. "Your activation has cornered them. They will try to control the narrative."
Sandra inhaled slowly. "What do they want from me?"
"The same thing every authority wants from a threat," Tristan said quietly, voice sharper than usual. "Compliance or elimination."
Sebastian's jaw tensed. "And we're not giving them either."
Sandra's steps faltered. "They think I'm a threat?"
Lyra's steps echoed as she approached. "Sandra, you destabilized infiltration vectors from three different factions in under half an hour. You disrupted high-ranking staff without touching them. You neutralized Null Fang devices by instinct alone." She paused. "To them, that is not a student. That is a weapon."
Sandra's pulse tightened painfully. The golden threads around her flickered.
Tristan turned. His silver eyes softened, anchored. "Stay with us. Don't let them dictate what you are."
Sebastian leaned closer. "If they try anything, we end it."
The Hall of Verdicts loomed ahead—massive doors carved with ancient Beastman glyphs, usually reserved for trials, oaths, or political declarations. Today, however, the carvings glowed faintly, as if awakened for something far heavier.
Lyra placed her hand on the rune. The doors groaned open.
Inside, twelve Council members sat in an arc, each positioned on a raised plinth. The room smelled of incense and intimidation. Runes glimmered overhead like constellations trapped in stone, shifting patterns that tracked Sandra's every movement.
At the center sat High Chancellor Vaelor—sharp-eyed, silver-maned, posture immaculate. "Sandra Avelis," he began, voice echoing in the cavernous chamber, "you have been summoned to address the events of last night."
Sandra stepped forward, but Tristan and Sebastian instinctively moved with her, one on each side. A few Council members frowned at the sight.
Vaelor's gaze dropped to the triad formation. "Your… attachment seems to have strengthened."
Sebastian didn't blink. "It's called protection."
"Or influence," another Council member countered. "Triad bonds create dependency. Instability. Obsession."
Sandra clenched her jaw. "I'm standing here of my own will."
Vaelor raised a hand, silencing the murmurs. "We have reviewed surveillance of the Ember Convergence. Your abilities are far beyond standard parameters for your stage. Far beyond even advanced Heirs."
Sandra felt cold. "I didn't ask for this."
"No one ever does," Vaelor replied, voice smooth as stone polished over centuries. "But it is our duty to determine whether your presence endangers the Academy."
Tristan stepped forward, eyes blazing. "She saved the Academy."
Sebastian mirrored him, voice low, dangerous. "Twice."
"From threats she may have attracted," Vaelor said calmly.
Sandra's breath caught.
Lyra moved subtly behind them, positioning herself strategically. Protective. Calculated.
Vaelor continued, "We request a demonstration of your current resonance state."
Sebastian instantly snarled. "Absolutely not."
Tristan's shoulders tensed. "You want to test her like a lab specimen?"
Vaelor leaned back. "We prefer cooperation. But refusal indicates volatility."
Sandra's fists tightened. Stage Four flickered weakly, as if it shared her agitation. "What exactly do you want me to do?"
"Extend your lattice," Vaelor said. "Replicate the gold-thread formation you produced during the Convergence."
Sandra shook her head. "I'm not a machine. I can't force it."
Another Council member leaned forward. "But the triad bond can. And will."
Tristan growled under his breath.
Sebastian's tail hit the floor with a sharp crack.
Lyra finally spoke. "Triggering Stage Four forcibly will damage her nervous system. Possibly permanently."
Vaelor's expression did not change. "Collateral risk is noted."
Sandra stepped forward before Tristan could snap. "Fine. I'll show you."
Tristan spun toward her. "Sandra—"
"I said it's fine." Her voice trembled, but her resolve didn't.
Sebastian reached for her wrist. "You don't have to prove anything to them."
Sandra swallowed. "If I don't, they'll decide for me."
Tristan's jaw tightened, but he stepped back, reluctantly.
Sandra inhaled, letting the golden threads unfurl cautiously from her palms. They shimmered, weaving through the air like strands of living light. The chamber dimmed as the threads intensified, illuminating the faces of the Council with harsh clarity.
The runes above began reacting—glowing, spinning, aligning with her energy.
The Council leaned forward.
Sebastian and Tristan tensed—because something was wrong.
Lyra's eyes widened.
Sandra gasped.
The golden threads suddenly flared, brighter than before, burning with a force she couldn't regulate. They snapped outward, hitting the runes overhead.
The runes cracked.
The Council's faces shifted from curiosity to alarm.
"Sandra, stop!" Tristan's voice cut sharply.
"I—I can't—"
Sebastian grabbed her shoulders, grounding her. His presence steadied her pulse.
Tristan took her hands, guiding her breath. "Look at me. Focus."
Sandra tried to reel the threads back, but the lattice had connected to something hidden behind the Council chambers—another energy, ancient and massive.
A locked presence.
A sealed force.
Lyra whispered, horrified, "They kept it from her… you idiots."
The Council panicked.
Vaelor rose. "Break the connection—now!"
But Sandra couldn't.
The golden lattice ripped through the last layer of the seal—unveiling a massive glyph hidden behind the stone. Symbols of the Primordial Bloodline glowed, ancient and undeniable.
The Council froze.
Sandra's body jolted as the glyph responded to her presence, reading her, recognizing her.
Tristan wrapped his arms around her to anchor her. "Hold on—don't let it consume you."
Sebastian pressed against her side, grounding her instincts. "Stay with us."
Sandra's vision blurred, golden threads swirling around her like a storm.
Then—
The glyph shattered.
Its energy surged into her.
Sandra screamed as the force tore through her body, rewriting everything. Tristan held her tighter, eyes fierce. Sebastian locked his arms around her waist, refusing to let her fall.
The golden lattice collapsed inward—fusing into her skin.
Silence fell.
Sandra trembled violently, chest rising and falling with uneven breaths.
Tristan touched her cheek. "Talk to me."
Her voice emerged faint, shaken. "I—I felt it. Something old. Something meant for me. They locked it away."
Lyra stepped forward, face grim. "Yes. And they nearly killed you by forcing the connection."
Vaelor's voice was colder than ice. "You were never meant to see that chamber."
Sebastian snapped. "Then why hide a Primordial seal right behind the Verdict Hall?"
The other Council members exchanged wary glances.
Vaelor exhaled slowly. "Because the prophecy was never meant to awaken."
Sandra's pulse tightened painfully. "What prophecy?"
Vaelor met her gaze.
"The prophecy of the hidden heir—the one who can end our species or reignite it."
Sandra's breath caught.
Tristan's grip tightened on her hand.
Sebastian's tail froze mid-motion.
Sandra stepped forward, golden glow still faint beneath her skin. "And which one am I supposed to be?"
Vaelor looked at her with something between fear and awe.
"That is what we now must determine."
The Hall's doors sealed behind them with a heavy, echoing boom.
And the reckoning had only begun.