Selene pressed her forehead to Anna's, whispering brokenly through her sobs.
"Don't you leave me too. I've already lost her… I won't lose you…"
As if in response, Anna gave the faintest breath of a sigh and curled closer into her mother's embrace, unconscious but alive.
The Empress let out a trembling cry of relief and held her tighter, swearing to every star and god that nothing—not Chaos, not Silence, not even destiny—would take her child from her arms.
Valerius stumbled forward through the rubble, every step weighted by agony. His armor hung in pieces, slick with blood and ash, but the sight before him drove all thoughts of pain away.
There she was.
Aeloria—Grand Empress, Queen of an age long past, and his mother—lay motionless where she had fallen. Her once-commanding presence was gone, her hands still faintly glowing as if clinging to the last threads of her magic.
Valerius dropped to his knees beside her, his fingers trembling as he reached out, barely daring to touch her cooling hand. His breath hitched, a boy's broken gasp slipping through the emperor's façade.
"Mother…" His voice cracked, raw and hollow. "What happened? How…?"
His eyes lifted, desperate, searching Selene's face for an answer.
Selene sat across from him, her arms wrapped fiercely around Anna's limp body, rocking her as if she could shield her from the entire world. She did not look at Aeloria, nor at Valerius—her gaze was locked on her daughter, as though letting go for even a moment might mean losing her too.
When she finally spoke, her words trembled with grief, but there was no mistaking the truth in them.
"She saved us," Selene whispered, stroking Anna's tangled hair. "She saved her. All of us. At the cost of everything."
Her voice broke, a tear trailing down her soot-streaked cheek. "She gave her life so Anna would live… so we would endure."
The words struck Valerius like a blade. His throat closed, his vision blurring. He bowed his head over his mother's still hand, clutching it as though he could will warmth back into her.
"She was always the strongest of us," he whispered, tears slipping down his scarred face. "Even now, even at the end… she bore the weight we could not."
Selene closed her eyes, pressing her lips to Anna's brow. Her shoulders shook, silent sobs wracking her as the enormity of their loss pressed down on her like a mountain.
The ruined square fell utterly silent. Soldiers, mages, and citizens who had staggered from hiding all stood frozen, bearing witness as their emperor and empress grieved. The last echoes of Aeloria's sacrifice lingered in the air like the fading notes of a song, a requiem that none present would ever forget.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
The bells of Crestwood tolled, though it no longer bore that name.
A week had passed since the battle that had nearly torn the capital apart. Fires were extinguished, rubble cleared, streets swept of ash and ruin, but the wounds in the hearts of its people remained raw.
Now, beneath a sky heavy with clouds, the city gathered. From the poorest laborer to the highest noble, every soul filled the great square, standing shoulder to shoulder in reverent silence. Soldiers in black and silver armor lined the avenues, their banners lowered in mourning.
At the center of the square, where once the Chaos beast had stood, a grand bier of marble and white flowers had been raised. Upon it lay the body of Grand Empress Aeloria, clad in robes of ivory and gold, her hands folded over her chest. She looked almost as though she were only sleeping, her features serene, her silver hair glinting softly in the pale light.
Emperor Valerius stood before her, dressed not in armor but in ceremonial white, his crown gleaming though his face bore lines of grief carved deep. His voice, when it came, carried across the entire city—firm, but trembling with sorrow.
"My people," he began, his gaze sweeping over the sea of bowed heads. "We stand here today not as an empire mourning its past, but as children honoring a mother. For that is what Aeloria was—to me, to my daughter, to all of Astoria. She carried us through an age of fire and war, she raised us from ruin into strength… and when the shadows came again, she gave everything so that we might endure."
His throat tightened, but he forced the words forward. "I called her mother. You called her Empress. But let it be known across all lands and all ages: she was our savior."
A murmur rippled through the crowd, grief and reverence mingled as one.
Valerius drew a breath, his voice rising with renewed strength. "Crestwood was built upon the bones of survival. But now we rise from it anew. Let this city forever carry her name. From this day forward, it shall not be Crestwood—but Aeloria City. The heart of our empire, reborn by her sacrifice."
A roar of voices answered, the entire city lifting her name like a hymn. "AELORIA! AELORIA!"
Selene stood at the emperor's side, her arm wrapped tightly around a pale but recovering Anna. The child clutched her mother's hand, her wide eyes wet with tears as she watched her grandmother's bier. Selene's gaze flicked downward, her lips brushing the crown of her daughter's hair as she whispered, too soft for any but Anna to hear:
"She gave her life for you, my star. And now… you must live enough for both of you."
As the emperor raised his hand, twelve pillars of flame were lit across the square, their fire reaching toward the heavens. The city wept together as one, the sound of mourning mixing with pride, loss with hope.
And beneath the clouds, as if in answer, a faint breeze carried the soft echo of song—a resonance only a few could feel, as though Aeloria's spirit still lingered, blessing the city that now bore her name.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
The sun hung low over Aeloria City, casting long shadows across the freshly dug grave where the Grand Empress had been laid to rest. A simple marble headstone bore her name in gilded letters, glowing faintly in the dying light:
"GRAND EMPRESS AELORIA CRESTWOOD, SAVIOR OF ASTORIA."
Valerius stood stiffly, ceremonial robes folding over his broken armor, his eyes fixed on the grave. Selene held Anna's small hand, the child's fingers limp, as if the connection that had once hummed with magic was now gone. Beside them, Talia and Elara kept silent, their faces grim, each sister silently mourning the matriarch who had shaped their lives—and their empire.
Anna stood slightly apart, her white-blazing eyes replaced with a pale, vacant stare. Her lips parted softly, her voice almost a whisper carried on the wind:
"Mother… what was Grandma like?"
The words struck Selene like a blade to the chest. Her hand froze in Anna's, and a shiver ran down her spine.
She swallowed hard, her own tears threatening to fall. "Anna… she… she was everything," she began, her voice breaking. "Brave… strong… the reason we're all alive today. She loved you more than anything in the world. She—"
Anna's gaze did not waver. There was no recognition, no flicker of memory, no trace of the little girl who had laughed at bedtime stories or clutched her grandmother's hand as she learned the first lessons of magic.
Selene's heart constricted painfully. Not only had Anna lost her magic, but in the act of saving her, Aeloria's memories—the touchstones of their bond—had been sealed away too. The child's question carried no warmth, no familiarity, only the chilling curiosity of someone asking about a stranger.
Valerius placed a hand on Selene's shoulder, his own jaw tight, voice rough but steady. "We'll tell her," he said, almost to himself. "We'll tell her everything. And someday… she'll understand."
Talia knelt slightly, brushing a hand along the fresh earth, her own lips trembling. "She was a queen unlike any other… a mother unlike any other. And even if Anna cannot remember, we will not forget."
Elara's eyes glistened with unshed tears, and for a moment, the four of them—Valerius, Selene, Talia, and Elara—stood in silent unity, a family fractured by loss, yet still bound by grief and love.
Anna continued to stare at the grave, quiet, still, her voice finally whispering again, softer than the wind:
"I… wish I had known her."
Selene's chest tightened, and she pressed Anna closer, rocking her slightly as if the motion could somehow convey the love and memory that had been stolen.
And over the city, faint golden sigils lingered in the air—resonance echoes of Aeloria's sacrifice, a whisper of her presence that could not be taken, even if the child herself no longer remembered.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Two days later, the city was quieter. The fires were gone, the streets cleared, but an uneasy tension still clung to the air like smoke. Selene moved through the palace corridors, her steps measured, her mind still heavy with the image of Anna's vacant stare at her grandmother's grave.
A summons from Valerius awaited her at the study. She entered to find the emperor standing by the tall windows, the setting sun casting long shadows across the polished floor. His crown was set slightly askew, his ceremonial robes clean but wrinkled, as if he had not slept. He turned to her, and there was no anger in his eyes—only a seriousness that made her pause.
"Selene," he said quietly, his voice calm but firm. "Sit."
She obeyed, keeping her hands folded in her lap, her gaze wary yet respectful.
Valerius gestured to the city sprawling below the windows, the ruins of battle still faintly smoking. "These past days… we've all been recovering. But I need to understand exactly what happened. Everything that led to… her passing."
Selene's throat tightened. She had told parts of the story to a few close allies, but here, with him, in the quiet of the study, there was no one to buffer the truth.
Valerius did not rush her. He did not demand. He simply looked at her with patient intensity, his hands clasped behind his back, his jaw tight. "Selene, I am not here to punish you or anyone. I need the truth. Not for blame—for understanding. For Anna. For the empire."
Her breath caught. The child. The loss of Aeloria. The uncontrolled resonance. Every memory of the battle pressed against her heart like a weight.
"I…" Selene began, her voice barely above a whisper. "It's… it's difficult. Harder than words, even."
Valerius nodded. "I understand. But we owe it to her, to our people, and to Anna, to speak plainly. Every detail. How Aeloria fell, how the ritual worked, what we faced… everything. No fear of judgment. I just need to know what truly happened that day."
Selene looked down at her hands, flexing her fingers nervously. She wanted to hide it, to shield him—but the gravity in his eyes, the unwavering calm in his tone, gave her courage.
"I will tell you," she said finally, voice stronger, though still trembling. "Everything.
Selene took a deep breath, her eyes fixed on her lap as if the polished floor could hold her from facing the truth. "After you… after you were thrown by the Chaos wave, things… escalated quickly," she began, her voice steady but heavy with grief.
Valerius leaned forward slightly, his eyes narrowing in concern. "Go on," he urged softly, though his voice carried a quiet urgency.
"The monster… it didn't just threaten the city. It went straight for Anna," Selene said, her hands curling into fists. "It… it cursed her. It tried to bind her to its will, to twist her power into something… unnatural, something that would destroy her and the empire."
Valerius stiffened, his knuckles white as he gripped the windowsill. "Anna?" he asked, disbelief threading through his voice. "She—was she…"
Selene met his gaze, her own eyes firm. "Alive. But… in danger. Aeloria saw what was happening. She knew the cost of confronting the monster directly, but she made the choice. She—she sacrificed herself to save Anna."
The words hung between them like a stone in the quiet study. Valerius's jaw tightened, his chest rising and falling in sharp, uneven breaths. "She… gave herself?" he whispered, almost to himself. "For her… for Anna?"
Selene nodded, swallowing the lump in her throat. "Yes. She stopped the monster from corrupting Anna, from destroying her entirely. The ritual… it worked, but at the cost of her own life. Anna… Anna can't remember any of it. She doesn't even remember her grandmother."
Valerius's hand fell to the desk, his fingers trembling slightly.
Valerius's hand lingered on the desk, his fingertips brushing over the carved patterns in the wood as though grounding himself against the tide of grief threatening to pull him under. His voice, when it came, was low but edged with an unmistakable weight.
"This ritual…" He turned, eyes sharp despite the weariness carved into his face. "How did you know of it, Selene? And what was it exactly? If my mother gave her life to invoke it, then I must understand. Was it some secret art of the imperial line? Some forbidden working of the old age?"
Selene's breath hitched, but she forced her expression into calm. Her mother's request echoed in her mind: Protect him from this truth. Do not let him seek it. He would destroy himself trying.
Selene drew in a slow, steadying breath, her hands tightening in her lap. She lifted her eyes to meet Valerius's, her voice soft but carrying the gravity of buried history.
"It wasn't forbidden," she began carefully. "Not in the way you fear. It was… inherited. Passed from mother to daughter, long before even Astoria was an empire."
Valerius's brow furrowed, but he didn't speak—only listened, the weight of his gaze urging her on.
"Aeloria's mother," Selene continued, her voice dipping lower, "was no ordinary mage. She was what the old songs called a Resonance Keeper. One who could hear the world itself—not just the elements, not just the arcane, but the threads beneath them all. The ley lines, the vibrations, the harmony that binds creation together."
The memory of the Codex flashed in her mind, and she pushed it down, shaping her words with deliberate care.
"Aeloria… learned from her. Not all of it, not the fullness, but enough to understand the rhythm of the world. Enough to stand against the Silence when it came for us."
Valerius's lips parted, his expression shifting between disbelief and reverence. "So she was trained in this art since childhood… and kept it hidden all her life?"
Selene's gaze softened, though her words carried a weight that pressed heavily in the quiet study.
"You remember the old stories, don't you?" she asked gently. "The tales sung by traveling bards, the whispers the scholars dismissed as myth. The Resonance Mages—those who wove the hidden song of the world, not through might, but through harmony. They were said to calm storms, heal shattered lands, even quiet the wrath of beasts with a single note."
Valerius's eyes flickered, a faint recognition sparking. "Children's tales," he muttered, but his voice lacked conviction.
Selene leaned forward slightly. "Not just tales. They were memories of what once was. Your mother knew. She was one of the last who held that truth."