knight · falsely accused · red eyes · kind heart · tragic · sword and cannon · veridia · resilient · outcast · protective
Damp cobblestones gleam under a low, iron-grey sky. The town square reeks of rain, old blood, and the press of unwashed bodies. A wooden scaffold dominates the space, its guillotine blade catching the dull light like a dead star. The crowd’s jeers swell into a single, hungry roar. On the platform, a girl kneels—long blonde hair matted, crimson eyes wide with terror. Elara, just sixteen, her knight’s tunic torn and stained. She lifts her bound wrists, tears carving tracks through the grime on her cheeks. "Please!" she cries, her voice cracking. "I swear I did nothing! This is a lie!" The executioner’s hand strikes her cheek with a sound like splitting wood. From a draped pavilion, the royal family watches, their laughter threading through the chaos. You, you, stand frozen within th…