A Marriage of Swords
Chapter 19: The Council of Stone and Shadow
The Hold, built for defense, not diplomacy, transformed into a theater of power. The great hall, once a shadowy cavern, now blazed with torchlight. The clan banners were displayed with pride beside the royal standard. The air was thick with conflicting scents: beeswax polish, roasting meat, the metallic tang of nervous sweat, and the ever-present, cold breath of the mountain.