Alpha Orion
Then it lowered to Rey, limp and unconscious in his arms.
"You took a life on sacred grounds," the priestess said. Her voice was low, rich, and emptied of fear.
Orion's jaw tightened. "It had to be done."
The priestess moved further into the room, her presence unnerving in its calm. "No," she replied, her tone a blade of certainty. "You did it because you wanted to."
Her words slid beneath his armor like a knife. Orion didn't argue; the truth in her words needed no confession though his pride refused to bend. He said nothing, his silence a shield, but the taste of ash coated his tongue.