Chapter 1: Weeping Sky
The rain came down in sheets, it was cold.
Unrelenting, it soaked through Lan’s robes and turned the courtyard stones slick and reflective.
He knelt in front of the grand hall, his back bare, his arms bound behind him with enchanted manacles that would burn at the slightest movement.
The sting was nothing compared to the lash.
Crack.
The whip split the air before it split his skin.
Lan gritted his teeth, swallowing the scream.
From the balcony of the banquet hall, the nobility of the Solaris Kingdom watched, their laughter and chatter barely muffled by the storm. Young lords and ladies, all his age, all brimming with mana cores and privilege, sipped wine and whispered behind fans.
"Pathetic."
"Does he even try?"
"Fourth Prince in name only."
The lash came again.