Drystan remained imprisoned beneath the palace while above him Eryndor slowly began slipping out of his grasp piece by piece, though he could not see any of it happening from within the darkness of the dungeon where Alaric had ordered him confined after declaring him unstable following the war.
The wound in his chest had not healed completely and breathing sometimes came painfully to him, though what tormented him more was the memory of the guards holding him down while Alaric stood there watching without mercy in his eyes.
Above, the palace was already changing.
Alaric did not even waste a single moment. "The guards outside the western wing are to be replaced before morning," he ordered coldly while standing inside the throne chamber with several soldiers before him. "No one stationed there remains."
"Yes, your Highness," they answered immediately.
