Declarations of Intent

Morning light spilled through the enchanted glass dome of the Grand Council Chamber, painting the circular marble floor with dancing colors. Seven ornate chairs formed a perfect arc before the elevated silver throne of the House of Moonlight. Today, only two seats had occupants.

Princess Elena of Thornvale waited, her back straight as an arrow. Like all elves of the Seven Tribes, she carried an otherworldly beauty—but hers was distinctly Thornvale. Forest-green markings curved beneath her slanted eyes, eyes that held the dangerous wisdom of centuries. Her auburn hair fell down her back in intricate braids woven with living vines and tiny white blossoms, while emerald leaf cuffs adorned her pointed ears. Her dress seemed to breathe with her, layers shifting like forest undergrowth, embedded with flowers that opened and closed with each breath she took.

At Elena's side stood Commander Maria, her face hardened by countless battles. Unlike the soft features common to Thornvale elves, Maria's face was all sharp angles and fierce determination. A thin scar ran from her right temple to her jaw, cutting through her forest markings. Her armor, crafted from ancient tree bark and enchanted leather, moved with her like a second skin. A longbow of rare heartwood hung across her back, twin daggers at her hips with handles worn smooth by years of use. Her amber eyes missed nothing, watching the room with predatory focus.

The chamber doors swung open as Princess Elysia entered, her presence filling the room instantly. Her silver and midnight blue robes caught the light with every step, embedded moonstones pulsing gently against the fabric. Silver markings—the birthright of Moonlight royalty—traced elegant patterns across her porcelain skin. Her white-blonde hair formed an elaborate crown of braids that showed off the full length of her pointed ears, each adorned with silver moonstone earrings that seemed to gather and amplify the light around her.

Beside her walked Lyra, towering even for an elf, her ceremonial armor gleaming in the filtered light. The silver markings on her face stood out against her determined expression, one hand never straying far from her sword.

Elysia approached Elena and bowed her head slightly—just enough for an equal, no more.

"Princess Elena of Thornvale," she said, her voice flowing through the chamber like clear water over stones. "The House of Moonlight welcomes you to our sacred Council Chamber. May wisdom guide our words and honor bind our agreements."

With the greeting given, Elysia glided to her throne, her eyes never leaving Elena's. The mask of courtesy began to slip away.

Elena nodded slightly. "Princess Elysia of Moonlight. I accept your welcome and return your wish for wisdom." She paused, her words taking on a sharper edge. "Though I wonder if honor still exists where promises have been broken."

The air between them crackled with unspoken tension.

"You speak of broken promises while your rangers trespass on Moonlight territories," Elysia said, dropping all pretense. Her voice hardened. "Three incursions in the past month alone. Explain yourself, Elena of Thornvale."

Elena's eyes flashed like emerald fire. "I don't explain myself to usurpers. Those lands belong to Thornvale by ancient right. My rangers walk their ancestral paths, nothing more."

"Ancestral paths lost by your grandmother's failed rebellion," Lyra cut in sharply.

Commander Maria stepped forward, her movement fluid and dangerous. "You will address Princess Elena with respect, Commander, or not at all," she warned, her voice like steel wrapped in velvet.

"Enough," both rulers commanded at once, their voices bouncing off the chamber walls.

Elysia's eyes narrowed. "The southeastern territories are Moonlight lands by right of conquest, treaty, and three centuries of stewardship. This is not negotiable."

"Not negotiable?" Elena rose from her throne, power radiating from her slender form. "You dictate terms as if I were a subject, not a sovereign equal. Thornvale will reclaim what was stolen, Elysia. The forests remember their true masters."

Elysia stood as well, unflinching. "And I remember the blood spilled to secure those borders. Moonlight blood. Blood that purchased those lands for all time."

"Blood can be spilled again," Elena countered, her voice dropping dangerously low. "Does your house wish to pay that price once more? Thornvale archers have only improved their aim in three centuries."

"And Moonlight blades have only sharpened," Elysia responded coldly. "Don't threaten what you cannot deliver, Elena."

The two rulers stood mere paces apart now, centuries of power concentrated between them like a physical force.

"I don't make threats, Elysia. I make promises." Elena's voice sliced through the chamber. "The southeastern territories will return to Thornvale control before the next full moon, or we will take them by force. Your choice determines only the count of your dead."

"Then you choose war," Elysia declared without flinching. "So be it. When your warriors fall beneath Moonlight steel, remember that you forced my hand."

Elena's laugh was cold and sharp. "Forced your hand? You've held what isn't yours for three centuries. Time doesn't transform theft into ownership."

"The Accord—" Elysia began.

"The Accord was signed with Thornvale arrows at our throats!" Elena's voice rose, commanding the space. "A document created under duress has no standing. But if you respect ancient law so much, perhaps we should settle this as our ancestors did—single combat between rulers. Unless the House of Moonlight has grown too comfortable behind its walls and treaties."

A dangerous silence fell over the chamber.

"When Thornvale forces cross our borders," Elysia replied, her voice level but vibrating with power, "they will be met with the full might of the Moonlight Tribe. This is your only warning."

Elena turned to leave, unhurried and deliberate. At the threshold, she paused and looked back, her eyes finding Elysia's with deadly precision.

"Regarding your newborn daughter," she said, her voice suddenly soft though no less menacing, "I do hope she lives to grow and know her mother very well. Children should witness the consequences of their parents' choices... however brief that opportunity might be."

The threat hung in the air like a poisoned arrow.

"You dare threaten the royal heir?" Lyra's hand closed around her sword hilt, her voice shaking with fury.

Elysia raised her hand, a gesture both restraining and commanding. When she spoke, her voice carried the weight of mountains.

"Hear me well, Elena of Thornvale. Should any harm come to my child—should a single Thornvale arrow fly within a league of the royal nursery—I will personally ensure that Thornvale burns to ash. Not a tree will remain standing, not a seed will survive to sprout. Your Tribe will become a memory, and your name a cautionary tale told to frighten children."

The absolute certainty in her voice seemed to chill the air in the chamber.

Elena's face remained calm, but the slight widening of her eyes betrayed her surprise at the ferocity of Elysia's response.

"Then we understand each other perfectly," she replied. "When next we meet, it will be on the battlefield." She nodded to Commander Maria, and both Thornvale representatives departed, leaving only the echo of their footsteps in the vast chamber.

After they had gone, Elysia remained standing, her face set with grim determination.

"Summon the war council," she commanded Lyra. "And double the guards on the royal nursery. I don't trust Elena she might have spy all around."

Lyra nodded, her hand still on her sword. "It will be done, Mother. Thornvale has made their choice."

"No," Elysia corrected, her voice hardening further. "They have forced ours. The southeastern forests will run red with Thornvale blood before I yield a single tree."

She turned to look out the vast windows of the council chamber, where the Tribe of Moonlight stretched below, unaware of the storm about to break upon it.

"Prepare our forces," she ordered. "War comes with the dawn."