Eclipse of Shattered Throne

The forest air hung thick with the scent of iron and ozone as Payune wiped black ichor from her face. Her muscles burned, but Dragonrend's whispers kept her alert.

"It's not dead yet," the blade murmured, its voice like grinding bones.

A low growl rumbled through the trees. The Eclipse Hound emerged again, its three-jawed maw dripping corrosive saliva that ate through the earth. One of its glass-like eyes was shattered, but the remaining two fixed on Payune with eerie intelligence.

From the shadows, a silken laugh echoed.

"Tsk, tsk. You're making a mess, little dragon."

Hayuni stepped into the moonlight, her foxfire charms casting flickering blue light across her exposed skin. Her outfit, what remained of it, was a masterpiece of calculated provocation:

A corset of woven shadow silk, barely containing her curves, the laces deliberately loosened to reveal the fox spirit mark between her breasts

High-cut pantaloons that showed every inch of her muscular thighs, the fabric slit to hide throwing knives

Knee-high boots lined with monofilament wire, perfect for garroting

She twirled a ribbon between her fingers, the enchanted silk humming with contained power. "Shall we finish this properly?"

The Hound lunged.

Hayuni moved like liquid fire, her ribbons lashing out to entangle the beast's limbs. But instead of attacking, she danced back, letting Payune deliver the killing blow.

"Why do you always hold back?" Payune growled as black blood sprayed across her chest.

Hayuni's smile didn't reach her eyes. "Someone has to keep you on your toes."

As the Hound collapsed, its body dissolved into swirling shadows that coalesced into a small, nine-tailed fox spirit. Unlike Hayuni's usual playful companion, this spirit's eyes burned with ancient malice.

"Foolish children," it hissed, its voice layered with echoes. "You think this victory matters? The Eclipse comes, and your father has already chosen his favourite."

Payune raised Dragonrend, but Hayuni stepped between them.

"Now, now," she crooned, stroking the spirit's flickering tail. "Is that any way to speak to your mistress?"

The spirit yowled as Hayuni's ribbons tightened around it, absorbing its power. The blue foxfire in her charms flared crimson.

From his obsidian throne, the Dragonlord watched through the eyes of his mechanical raven. His fingers drummed against the armrest in a rhythm that matched Hayuni's breathing exactly.

"Good," he murmured. "Let her play the rebel. It makes the leash tighter."

As the sisters retreated to their hidden pavilion, neither noticed the child's bracelet glowing faintly in the blood-soaked earth.

Far away, in a lightless cell, a woman with Hayuni's eyes smiled as her restraints began to crack.

The pavilion's silk curtains billowed as the sisters stepped inside, the scent of blood and foxfire clinging to them. Hayuni collapsed onto a pile of cushions with exaggerated grace, her ribbons slithering back into their hidden sheaths.

"Ugh," she groaned, stretching her arms above her head, the movement making her corset strain dangerously. "I need a bath. And wine. Preferably together."

Payune didn't answer. She was too busy staring at her reflection in Dragonrend's blade where, for a heartbeat, her eyes had looked black and hollow, just like the Horror's.

Hayuni's playful smirk faded. "...Payune?"

A knock at the door.

Both sisters froze.

"Lady Hayuni?" A servant's voice, muffled through the wood. "Your father requests your presence."

Hayuni's fingers twitched toward her hidden daggers, but her voice was syrup-sweet. "Tell him I'm indisposed."

A pause. Then 

"He said you'd say that." The servant's tone shifted, colder. "He also said to remind you of the white lilies in the western garden."

Hayuni went very, very still.

Payune had never seen her sister look like that like a rabbit caught in a snare. "Hayuni? What's "

"Get out." Hayuni didn't raise her voice, but the command cracked like a whip. "Now."

The servant fled.

For a long moment, the only sound was the foxfire charms clinking softly in the breeze. Then

"He knows," Hayuni whispered.

"Knows what?"

Instead of answering, Hayuni yanked open a hidden panel in the floor. Inside lay a single white lily, its petals edged in frost despite the summer heat.

"When we were six," she said, voice hollow, "Mother tried to escape with us. She hid us in the western garden, under the lilies. Father found us, of course." Her fingers trembled as she touched the flower. "He made me watch as he cut the memories out of her. Then he planted these lilies where her blood fell."

Dragonrend shrieked in Payune's mind 

 but it wasn't the sword's voice.

It was their mother's.

"Find the others," it wept. "Before the Eclipse drinks them all."

Outside, the moon began to bleed.