Mira

**The Ashen Crown** Beneath cracked obsidian towers, the kingdom of Varyndel sleeps, its glory smothered by ash. Once, Queen Lysara ruled with a voice that commanded rivers to rise—until ambition birthed hubris. She forged a crown from a fallen star, igniting a fire that consumed her soul and scorched the realm to cinders. Now, the crown glows in the rubble, its whispers luring the desperate. A thief, Mira, clasps it, craving power to avenge her kin. The metal sears her brow; visions erupt—Lysara’s laughter, cities burning, eternity as flame. Mira flees, but the crown’s mark lingers, a smoldering brand. Varyndel’s ruins sigh, patient and hungry. Some curses refuse to die.