Chapter 7

The royal crypt was beneath the tower, carved from black granite and lit by eternal flames that burned without fuel. It was where the Valdric kings were laid to rest. No human had ever been brought here. I was the first. They placed my body on a stone altar in the center of the main chamber. The white linen glowed against the dark rock. Candles were lit — hundreds of them, arranged in concentric circles around the altar. Caspian stood at the foot of the altar. He had changed out of his...