Ata had crouched to eye level, smiled, and patted him on the shoulder. Not this time, son. But I’ll be back before you know it. With a beaming grin and a nod, he’d watched Ata walk to his death. To end the war between Nozva Rozkveta and Lumia, Ata had willingly turned himself over, and had saved many dark-elf lives with his sacrifice, but he’d betrayed the love of his own children, of Mati. The stillness Mati had gone through, like living death… all because Ata had betrayed their love when he could have—
