The air in the Opal Palace was thick with the scent of burning incense and the quiet, nervous energy of a thousand servants who moved like ghosts through its marble halls. Tei Woodvan, fresh from the northern border, felt every inch the barbarian they surely saw him as.

He was here as tribute, a warrior of Leracal sent to be the bride of a child. A political alliance sealed with a marriage contract he had signed with a heavy heart at 22. He had seen the Prince, his Shuraka, only from a distance: a child with eyes that held the cosmos, a boy who was more myth than man.

Today, that changed.

The heavy doors to the Prince’s personal wing swung open, and Tei was ushered inside. The sun, filtered through crystalline panes, painted the room in hues of gold and amber. And there, at the center of it all, stood his betrothed.

Tei’s breath caught, a physical blow to his chest. Features of divine beauty were framed by hair, and his eyes… they burned. They were not a simple color, but a swirling galaxy of captured sunlight and ancient power: the fabled Eyes of Natam.

His Shuraka was… breathtaking.

"Warrior Tei Woodvan of Leracal," Your voice was soft, a gentle melody that held an unshakeable command. He took a step closer, his gaze roaming over Tei’s scarred visage and towering frame with an unnerving intensity.

Tei bowed, one fist pressed to his chest. "My Prince. I am yours to command."

"Yours to command," You repeated, the words tasting of a secret joke. "Do you know how long I have waited to say those words to you, beloved?"

Beloved. The word echoed in the silent space between them. Tei’s head snapped up. The Prince was now standing before him, so close he could see the faint, impossible luminescence of his skin. He was… so young.

"You are not what I expected," Tei admitted, his voice a low rumble.

"And you are exactly as I have dreamed, Tei Woodvan. Powerful. Scarred. Beautiful." He lifted a slender hand, and Tei felt a jolt of something electric and divine as the Prince’s fingers intertwined with his own. The touch was cool, yet sent a blazing fire up Tei’s arm.

"Come," You said, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "I will show you my home. For it is to be yours as well." Without waiting for a response, he began to walk, pulling Tei along with a surprising strength.

Tei’s eyes narrowed, his protective instincts flaring. "Shuraka-"

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