They rode west beneath veiled skies.
The Icebound Citadel was far behind them, buried once more under snow and silence. But Aelira felt different now. With Riven awake, something had settled within her — as though a missing chord in her soul had returned to the harmony.
But the tension between her companions had only grown.
Kaelen was colder than usual, training harder, speaking less.
Theron watched Riven with half-lidded wariness, as if waiting for the wrong word or the wrong look to start a fire between them.
And Riven… Riven watched her.
Not with lust, nor longing.
With devotion.
It terrified and comforted her at the same time.
Their destination loomed like a broken crown — the Library of Solstice, a sanctuary of forgotten knowledge built into the cliffs of the Shattered Vale. It had once housed the Prophecy of Starfall, the last written words of the ancient Seers before the Veil cracked.
Aelira needed answers. About her powers. About the bonds. About the Queen's endgame.
But the Library greeted them with silence.
Its gates were torn down. Vines had swallowed its outer halls. Inside, dusty echoes lingered — of footsteps, of whispers, of magic long gone stale.
"We're not alone," Riven said quietly.
Theron frowned. "More spies?"
"No," Kaelen said. "Ghosts."
They passed murals faded by time — painted skies, constellations, the four sacred marks of the bonded. And in the center of the grand archive, half-buried beneath rubble, they found it:
A mirror.
Seven feet tall. Framed in star-iron. Its surface shimmered like liquid silver, untouched by time or dust.
Aelira stepped forward.
"This isn't the prophecy," she said.
"No," Lysenne's voice echoed from behind them. She had appeared without sound, her robes drifting like mist.
"It's older. It's the Mirror of Veyl'ar. A relic that shows not the future — but the truth within the soul."
Aelira turned to her. "Truths?"
"Desires," Lysenne corrected. "Hidden. Denied. Feared. The Mirror shows them all — and only those who can face what they see may read what lies beyond it."
Kaelen was the first to step forward. Without a word, he faced the Mirror.
His reflection shimmered, then shifted.
In it, he stood not as a guardian — but as a king. Crowned. Alone. Aelira stood behind him… but she was walking away. Always walking away.
He turned from the mirror, jaw clenched, saying nothing.
Theron stepped up next.
His reflection? Aelira in his arms, laughing, firelight in her hair. But behind them… he was burning. Always burning. His past consuming him, no matter how much she smiled.
He looked away with a bitter laugh. "Figures."
Then it was Riven's turn.
He hesitated — then faced it.
The Mirror showed a winter realm reborn. Aelira crowned in silver, light at her fingertips. And him… on his knees before her. Willingly. Not as a prisoner — but as a protector. A lover. A bondmate. One who had chosen her again, even across lifetimes.
Riven looked away with a breath like a prayer.
Then, it was Aelira's turn.
She stepped forward, unsure. The surface rippled.
And she saw herself.
But not the girl she had been. The Mirror showed a woman with eyes like galaxies, wings of light, and flame curled in her hands. Behind her stood Kaelen, Theron, Riven… and a fourth — shadowed, unseen.
She was whole. But her eyes… were sad.
Powerful. Loved. But burdened.
The vision faded.
And behind the Mirror, etched in stone, a door began to open.
Inside lay a single scroll — bound in starlight thread.
Lysenne's voice whispered:
"She who walks with bonded four shall either restore the Veil… or break it forever."
Silence. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
Aelira swallowed. "There's a fourth."
Riven stepped beside her. "And the Queen fears them most."
Kaelen's voice was rough. "Because they'll choose her. All of her. And that choice… will unmake what was fated."
Theron gave a crooked smile. "Looks like things just got interesting."