In a divided kingdom where magic is feared and those who wield it are hunted, Ariana, the daughter of a powerful councilman, lives a life of privilege and duty. But her world unravels when she encounters Kiran, a fugitive with the power to command...
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The moment I stepped through the grand doors of the Council Hall, I knew I’d made a mistake. My boots echoed on the polished marble floors, the sound far too loud in the vast, silent chamber. The air felt heavy, as if the walls themselves were holding their breath.
My father was waiting for me.
He stood at the head of the long council table, his hands clasped behind his back, his posture rigid. The golden insignia on his chest gleamed under the soft glow of the hanging chandeliers. His face was a mask of control, but the fire in his piercing gray eyes betrayed him.
“Where have you been?” His voice was calm, almost deceptively so.
I stopped in my tracks, my heart hammering against my ribs. “I—”
“Don’t,” he interrupted, the single word slicing through the air like a blade.
I swallowed hard, my throat dry. He took a step forward, his polished boots clicking against the marble.
“You left without authorization,” he said, his tone growing colder with every word. “You disappeared into the forest, leaving your post during a critical time. Do you have any idea what could have happened? What you’ve jeopardized?”
I opened my mouth to respond, but the words wouldn’t come. How could I explain it to him? How could I tell him that I’d been suffocating, that I needed to escape, if only for a moment? He wouldn’t understand. He never did.
His eyes narrowed at my silence. “This is not the behavior of a Council heir,” he said, his voice sharp. “This is recklessness. Disobedience. A betrayal of everything we stand for.”
The word *betrayal* hit me like a slap.
“I wasn’t betraying anything,” I said, finding my voice at last. It came out quieter than I intended, but firm. “I needed time to think.”
“To think?” His laugh was bitter, void of humor. “While you were off ‘thinking,’ Ariana, the Council has been dealing with the aftermath of the bombing. The unrest it has stirred. Do you understand how fragile our position is right now?”
I clenched my fists, the anger rising in my chest. “The bombing shouldn’t have happened in the first place,” I said, the words tumbling out before I could stop them. “Those people—”
“Were traitors,” he snapped, cutting me off again. “Every one of them harbored or aided the magic users. They defied us. Do you think we could allow that? Allow them to destabilize the city?”
“They were families,” I shot back, my voice shaking. “There were children.”
“Collateral damage,” he said, his tone as unyielding as steel. “Necessary sacrifices for the greater good. You know this. You were raised to understand this.”
I stared at him, disbelief mingling with the anger twisting in my gut. How could he speak so easily about lives lost, about innocent people reduced to nothing more than a tactical calculation?
“This isn’t order,” I said, my voice trembling. “This is destruction. Control at any cost. You’re not protecting the city—you’re tearing it apart.”
His expression darkened, and for the first time, a flicker of genuine anger broke through his composed façade.
“You dare question me?” he said, his voice low and dangerous. “After everything I’ve done to secure your future, to ensure this city survives?”
“This isn’t survival,” I said, my breath coming faster. “It’s fear. It’s tyranny.”
The words hung in the air like a challenge.
For a moment, the only sound was the distant ticking of the massive clock on the far wall.
When he spoke again, his voice was icy. “You are my daughter, Ariana. My heir. But if you ever speak to me like that again, if you ever undermine me again, I will not hesitate to remind you of your place.”
I felt the blood drain from my face.
“My place?” I repeated, my voice barely above a whisper.
“Yes,” he said, stepping closer. “Your loyalty is to the Council. To me. Not to the people, not to your whims, and certainly not to your misplaced guilt.”
He leaned in, his gaze burning into mine. “Do you think they care about you, those people you pity so much? Do you think they’d hesitate to turn against you if given the chance? The only thing standing between you and chaos is me. Is this Council.”
His words felt like a vice tightening around my chest, squeezing the air from my lungs.
“I didn’t—”
“You didn’t think,” he said, his voice rising. “That much is clear. And now I’m left to clean up your mess.”
“What mess?” I asked, my own anger flaring again.
“The patrol,” he said sharply. “The one that spotted you in the forest.”
I froze.
“What?”
“Did you think you could sneak out without anyone noticing?” he asked, his tone laced with scorn. “Ariana, you are being watched at all times. You carry the weight of the Council’s reputation with every step you take. When you falter, we falter. Do you understand what that means?”
My stomach churned. They’d seen me. How much had they seen? Had they noticed the figure in the shadows?
“I—no one else was there,” I said quickly, trying to cover my tracks.
“Don’t lie to me,” he said, his voice deadly quiet. “The patrol reported movement in the area. If there’s a chance you were seen by anyone—”
“I wasn’t,” I said, my voice firm despite the panic bubbling beneath the surface. “I was alone.”
He stared at me, his eyes boring into mine as if searching for a crack in my resolve.
Finally, he straightened, his expression cold once more.
“From this moment forward,” he said, “you are to remain within the Council Hall unless explicitly permitted otherwise. Do you understand?”
My heart sank, but I nodded. “Yes, Father.”
He turned away, dismissing me without another word.
I stood there for a moment, my mind racing. The encounter in the forest felt like a fragile thread, one that could unravel everything if pulled too hard.
As I left the chamber, the weight of my father’s expectations pressed down on me heavier than ever.
And for the first time, I wondered if I would ever be able to bear it.
