Chapter 10 - The Ultimate Sacrifice
The Council Chamber exploded into utter chaos. Nobles stood up, shouting and waving their fists, while the council guards moved forward, their spears lowered toward Evelyn and Arthur.
"Arrest them!" Sterling screamed, his voice cracking with panic. "Seize the contraband and execute the traitors on the spot!"
Arthur stepped in front of Evelyn and Mia, his eyes blazing as he prepared to fight to his last breath. "If you want them, you have to go through me," he roared, his voice echoing like thunder.
But Evelyn knew they couldn't win a physical fight against an army of guards. She looked down at Mia, a profound, heartbreaking serenity washing over her face. She realized there was only one way to prove the truth to the city, to break the Council's web of lies once and for all.
"Mia," Evelyn whispered softly, her voice cutting through the noise in the little girl's ears. "Do you remember what you told me in the courtroom? You said you could fix my legs."
Mia looked up, her eyes wide, tears spilling over her lashes. "Yes, Grandma..."
"Open the box, my sweet girl," Evelyn said, her voice filled with a mother's ultimate love. "Apply the balm to my knees. Let them see the miracle your mother died to protect."
With trembling hands, Mia popped open the rised lid of the tin. The silver glow of the balm illuminated her small, tear-stained face. As the guards closed in, Arthur held them off with his bare hands, throwing his body against their shields, taking spear-butts to his ribs to buy his daughter a few precious seconds.
Mia dropped to her knees. She scooped up a handful of the glowing, starlight-scented silver paste and smeared it onto Evelyn’s withered, paralyzed legs.
For a second, nothing happened. The lead guard shoved Arthur aside, reaching out his iron gauntlet to grab Mia by her collar.
Then, a blinding, radiant flash of silver light erupted from Evelyn’s legs.
The sheer energy of the cellular regeneration rippled outward, knocking the guards backward. Evelyn’s withered muscles instantly filled out, the dead gray skin turning flush with healthy, youthful color. The deep, agonizing nerve pain that had crippled her for two decades vanished in a heartbeat.
With a sharp, gasping intake of breath, Evelyn Vance let go of the table. She didn't fall. She stood perfectly upright, entirely unaided, her eyes glowing with the residual silver light of the Celestial Core. She stepped forward, her stride powerful and regal, towering over the cowering guards.
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The entire chamber fell into a deathly, terrified silence. The miracle was undeniable. The cure was real.
Outside the high stained-glass windows, a massive roar began to echo from the streets below. The common people of the lower district, who had gathered in thousands after hearing rumors of the trial, had seen the silver light flash through the windows. They finally knew the truth. The revolution of Oakhaven had begun, sparked by the tears of a child and the sacrifice of a family that refused to be forgotten.
