The first scream came like thunder.
"What have you done!"
The voice tore through the air outside Seraphina's chambers, loud enough to shake the hanging lanterns along the corridor.
It repeated, again and again, echoing through stone, through walls, through flesh.
"What have you done!" The voice came again and inside the chamber, Seraphina staggered back, her breath uneven.
She pressed both hands over her ears, fingers digging into her temples as if she could claw the sound out of her skull.
"Stop," she whispered. "Stop it please… this is getting too much
But the voice did not stop.
It rang inside her head, sharp and accusing, carrying grief so heavy it felt like chains tightening around her chest. Every word struck her heart with the force of a blade.
"What have you done!"
"I said stop!" Seraphina shouted, spinning around the room. "Show yourself. Stop hiding behind that voice!"
