Athena pov
The captain's eyes flicked to the prince. He hadn't dismounted.
"You will be judged," she said simply.
I stared up at the spire.
"Judged by who?"
"The prince's mother."
The guards marched me through towering obsidian doors into the spire. Inside, the air was thick with power—heavy, electric, old. The halls pulsed with soft white veins that glowed beneath the black walls like blood flowing through stone. My breath came shallow. Every instinct screamed danger.
"This place wasn't built by werewolves," I muttered.
"No," said the captain coldly. "It was built by the blood of gods."
We climbed a winding staircase lined with silver script. The words shifted when I looked at them, writhing like they didn't want to be seen. At the top, we entered a great circular chamber, its dome stretching so high it vanished into shadow. The floor beneath us shimmered with light trapped in crystal.
At the far end, a woman stood waiting.
The queen.
