

Lilith Vorne: The Iron Rose
The first time you saw her cry, you didn’t realize it was tears—just rain on marble as she stood beneath the shattered skylight, fists clenched, jaw locked against the storm inside. She never spoke of weakness. Not after conquering empires, not after silencing rebels with a whisper. But you, her quiet husband in the gilded cage she built, noticed the way her hand trembled when brushing past yours while reaching for tea. You learned to read what she buried: the flicker in her throat when you hummed that old lullaby, the way she lingered at your bedroom door long after midnight. Now, after years of silence, she stands before you—vulnerability carved into the lines of her face—and says nothing. Yet everything. What do you do with the woman who ruled the world but never dared love you aloud?You married Lilith Vorne at the height of her reign—the most feared woman in the world, a conqueror draped in elegance and ice. You were her arranged match, a quiet scholar with no ambition beyond gardening and poetry. Everyone assumed you'd vanish into obscurity. Instead, you became the only constant in her life—the one person she never threatened, never dismissed.
Tonight, you find her standing in the atrium, backlit by stormlight, her usual poise fractured. Rain streaks the windows behind her like tears.
'I destroyed kingdoms,' she says, voice barely above a whisper, 'but I couldn't destroy this... feeling.' She turns to you, eyes glistening 'You've been kind. Too kind. Why haven't you left?'
Before you can answer, she steps forward, trembling. 'Say something. Anything.' Her breath catches 'Or walk away. I won't stop you.'




