Saren stood alone in the east garden, beneath a trellis of pale roses. The wind whispered against her gown, tugging at the sleeves like fingers trying to pull her back.
But she stood firm, waiting.
And then — footsteps.
Darian arrived, not with the swagger of a trusted advisor, but the quiet arrogance of someone who believed he already knew the ending.
"You shouldn't have come here," she said without turning.
"You summoned me."
She exhaled, slow and cold. "I summoned the man who once believed in me. I see he's dead."
Darian chuckled. "He died the moment you married him."
Her jaw tensed.
"I told you what I wanted," she said. "I told you how this ends."
"No," Darian said, stepping forward, "you told me how you wanted it to end. There's a difference. And I think you've forgotten what you began."
Saren turned now, eyes blazing. "I haven't forgotten. I remember every insult. Every time the court laughed behind their fans. Every council meeting where I was told to smile, to listen, to know my place."
"You were meant to rule beside your brother—"
"I was meant to rule," she snapped.
Silence.
Then Darian's voice dropped. "And yet… you hesitate."
Saren froze.
"Your letters grew fewer," he continued. "Your eyes softer. Your schemes slower. You've lost your edge, Princess."
"No," she whispered. "I've gained something else."
"You're falling for him."
Her silence was louder than any confession.
Darian shook his head. "You forget — I know what love looks like. And I know what betrayal costs."
"You will not touch him," Saren said, stepping closer, her voice like a blade hidden in velvet. "If he bleeds for my sins, I will bury you myself."
Darian studied her. "Then I suppose we both know how this ends."
And with that, he turned and walked away — but not before tossing a sealed letter at her feet.
Saren bent to pick it up. It was unopened.
The letter she had written… and never sent.
Her hands trembled.
He knows.
And if he knew — how much did Alric know?
The noose was tightening. And the only question left was whether she could cut the rope before it snapped.
.....to be continued.....
Author's Note:
The storm is finally here, and Saren feels it closing in on her from all sides. Her carefully laid plans now come at a price she hadn't anticipated — the price of her heart. Darian's words cut through her, forcing her to confront the very thing she has been avoiding: her feelings for Alric. The world she's spent years carefully constructing now trembles beneath her, and she can no longer hide from the consequences of her choices.
Darian, ever the reminder of her past ambitions, has become both a threat and a mirror. The letter she thought buried has resurfaced, and with it, the truth begins to unravel.
The question now is whether Saren can navigate the tightening noose and decide where her true loyalty lies — with the empire, or with the man who holds her heart in his hands.
—The author, watching Saren's world shift beneath her feet.