Reign of Ash and Blossom

Chapter 1 - The Shimmering Garden.

The moon wore a crown of silver that night, and Eldoria slept beneath it as though nothing in the world could touch its walls.

But the garden was awake.

Beyond the palace grounds, past the forgotten gates where the guards dared not walk, blossoms shimmered in the dark like constellations fallen to earth. Their light was not the pale glow of lanterns, but something richer – alive, shifting as though each petal breathed. They breathed a scent that wound through the air in unseen ribbons, curling into the lungs of any who drew near.

The stories said it was only perfume. The wise knew it was a summons.

Kael Voss – Captain of the High Guard, sworn protector of the king – had resisted that call before. He had turned his back on it once, years ago, when it had crept into his dreams and whispered of power.

He should have turned away now.

Yet the night was still, the watchfires burned low, and the moons pale light seemed to draw a path for him through the dew-slick grass. His boots whispered over the earth, his hand never far from the hilt on his side.

The closer he came the brighter the blossoms burned.

Then, through their glow, she stepped into view.

Selvara.

Her hair spilled like liquid shadow, catching the moonlight in strands of silver. The gown that wrapped around her moved like smoke in water, clinging one moment and drifting the next. Her eyes the colour of storms fixed on his, and for a moment Kael felt himself weightless, unmoored, as though the garden’s breath had stolen his own.

“I thought you would come,” she said, her voice a melody that seemed to weave through the flowers themselves. “You left me once, Captain. Did you think the garden would forgive?”

“I came to see it closed,” Kael answered, though the words felt far away. “Its magic is a danger to the realm.”

Her smile was soft – too soft for the chill in her eyes. “The garden is no danger to those who take what it offers. Only to those who run from what they truly want.”

She stepped closer, and the blossoms leaned toward her like worshippers toward their queen.

“Tell me, Kael Voss…” her voice lowered, a whisper brushing the edge of his thoughts, “What is it you desire?”

The scent of the flowers wrapped around him, warm and suffocating. His mind filled with images – his wife’s smile, the weight of his oath, the gleam of the crown swore to defend.

And behind them all, Selvara’s eyes, waiting for his answer.

Kael’s hand fell to his sword. “I desire a realm free of your poison.”

The garden stilled.

Her smile did not fade, but something in her gaze sharpened. She drifted closer until her voice was the only sound in the world. “Poison?” she whispered. “No captain. I am the cure. You will see it…in time.”

Her fingers brushed the back of his hand, and for a moment, the weight of his oath seemed to slip away like water though his grasp. He tore himself back, breath sharp, steel hissing from its scabbard.

“I will not be yours”

A single blossom fell between them, glowing as it touched the ground. She watched him retreat, the light of the flowers painting her in silver fire.

“You will be,” she said, her voice carrying like a vow through the night. “And when I take you Kael Voss… I will take all of Eldoria with you.”

Kael did not look Back. He dared not.

But the garden’s scent followed him all the way to the palace gates.