A Heart Left Outside

Celeste sat back, her fingers lightly tracing the edge of her cup as she listened to Tiel speak. His voice was measured, almost detached, as he recounted the story of how he came to be: the treachery, the heartbreak, and the insurmountable weight of never feeling content with who he was.

He never looked up as he spoke, his eyes fixed on a point in the distance that only he could see. It was as if an invisible wall separated them.

"Nirmala," he began, the name slipping from his lips with reverence. "The queen of shadows. She commanded respect like no one else. For a time, the Sharks bowed only to her."

He paused, and Celeste caught the faintest flicker of emotion cross his face before it disappeared. "That… that was the beginning of Erickson's unrest. The illusion of being the head of the Brightwells was shattered when he realized that the Sharks weren't his to command. They were hers."