C204 THE WEIGHT SHE WAS NEVER MEANT TO CARRY

The first thing Aria felt was tiredness that stretched beyond her body.

It rested deep in her bones, heavy and unyielding, as something ancient had settled inside her and refused to leave. She had not slept. Even when her eyes closed, the images returned—the throne soaked in blood, the sense of being watched, the certainty that something far away knew her name without ever hearing it spoken