Queen_malikamp4

The dust of the savannah hadn't settled, but Queen Malika stood unmoving atop the highest terrace of the Azzazian citadel. Below her, the coalition of tribal leaders argued, their voices rising like the desert wind. They doubted the 17-year-old queen could hold the line against the encroaching Fire-Stalkers.

Malika didn't look back at her advisors. She focused on the horizon, where the smoke of burning villages stained the sky. queen_malikamp4

She ordered the falconers to dispatch the signal, not to retreat, but to advance. The dust of the savannah hadn't settled, but