The grand courtyard of the upper sanctuary hung in an agonizing, fragile silence as Elara stared across the smooth stone floor at the woman who had birthed her.
"Mother..." Elara breathed out, her voice barely carrying through the quiet chamber. Her fingers clutched the hilts of her twin water-daggers so tightly her knuckles turned white.
The woman standing by the reflecting pool did not wear the traditional robes of the merfolk sovereign. She wore an immaculate, layered gown of midnight blue silk and white velvet, adorned with gilded epaulets and a pristine silver brooch shaped like a three-leaf clover. Her long, pale blue hair drifted regally around her shoulders, completely untamed by the water.
"I told you never to return to these depths, Elara," Grand Duchess Selena said softly. Her deep blue eyes held no malice, only a cold, noble detachment that cut deeper than any blade. "You always possessed a stubborn heart. A tragic flaw for a girl born of high blood."
