Aeris Valtheris knelt in the center of the coliseum, wrists bound behind her back with chains of Celestian silver. The Mark of the Oathbreaker burned against her collarbone—a cruel, inky brand that pulsed with every frantic heartbeat.
Thousands of eyes watched from the marble stands, but none with sympathy.
The High Oathkeeper, draped in ceremonial white, stood before her, his hands raised as he recited the words that would seal her fate.
"Aeris Valtheris, once Oathbound in the service of the empire, now condemned as a traitor. You swore to uphold the Celestial Law. You swore to protect the Emperor's throne. And yet, you have broken that vow."
His voice rang out like a funeral bell. The crowd jeered.
She kept her head high, but inside, her mind raced. They were wrong. I never betrayed the empire.
But no one would believe her. The moment her brother, Castien, had been branded a traitor, she had been doomed alongside him.
"For the crime of Oathbreaking, your soul shall be severed."
The executioner approached, his blade glowing with holy fire. A Soulrend Blade, a weapon crafted to cut not just flesh, but existence itself.
Aeris clenched her fists. She had prepared herself for pain. For nothingness.
But as the sword came down, a surge of heat erupted in her chest. A blinding crack split the air, as if the world itself had shattered.
The High Oathkeeper stumbled back, horror on his face.
The executioner's sword had vanished—no, it had broken apart into dust.
Gasps rippled through the crowd. Aeris's chains snapped open, falling uselessly to the ground.
And for the first time in centuries, an Oath had been shattered.