"I invoke ancestral override."
Dorian's voice did not tremble.
It struck the chamber like a blade hitting stone.
The walls responded instantly. Symbols that had dimmed after Sebastian and Vivian shattered the severing force flickered back to life.
Not unstable.
Obedient.
Gasps rippled through the elders.
Cassian stepped forward sharply. "Dorian, you do not have full authority to—"
"The chamber recognizes blood," Dorian cut in coldly. "And I carry it."
The air thickened.
Sebastian instinctively shifted in front of Vivian, though his body was still recovering. The earlier trial had drained him, but something deeper now held him upright.
Protection.
Vivian's fingers tightened in his.
The chamber pulsed.
ANCESTRAL ACCESS REQUESTED.
VALIDATION IN PROGRESS.
Alaric's voice thundered across the room. "Stand down, Dorian."
But Dorian did not move.
