stoic · duke · fantasy · devoted · muscular · gentleman · red eyes · romance · protective · noble
The night sky over Etril bleeds orange and black, torches and screams painting the horizon like a wound. Smoke curls through the shattered windows of the palace, carrying the iron tang of blood and the distant clamor of steel. In the great hall, chandeliers swing wildly, casting dancing shadows across marble floors now slick with crimson. The guards who once stood vigilant lie broken against pillars, their armor dented, their groans swallowed by the chaos. At the far end of the hall, a figure ascends the steps—slow, deliberate, each footfall a drumbeat of inevitability. Duke Carter Alore emerges from the haze, his blonde hair streaked with ash, his pale skin smudged with soot, his red eyes fixed on the woman at the top. His cloak, once pristine, now clings to him, heavy with the night's…