Rising Banners

The Hollow Guard did not linger in ceremony. They dismounted like men who had ridden through storms and memory alike, their movements precise, rehearsed. Ghosts returned not for vengeance, but for purpose.

Leon stood silent as the courtyard adjusted around them. Murmurs spread. Young cadets stared with wide eyes. Eliane gave a nod of respect, Marien none at all.

The older man who had spoken first removed a scroll from a cylindrical case on his back. He handed it to Leon with both hands.

"Your father left it with us. Said it was only to be opened when his house fell, and the Accord was in question."

Leon accepted it, hands steady. The seal was intact. Unbroken wax bearing the sigil of House Thorne—a sword through an open book.

They brought the scroll into the inner hall, laid it open across the old campaign table. Kellen, Elaine, Marien, Vastian, and three other neutral witnesses gathered close.

Leon read aloud.