Chapter 3 · free to read
The magistrate did not need proof. He needed a platform with one way off it.
Two platforms climbed. Eight above me. And now a magistrate who has started counting the same steps I am.
Nine coppers a night. No questions, no lock, and a door that has not shut properly since the last tenant kicked it.
Summons. The boy called Ash will present proof of lineage before the third bracket, or forfeit his blade, his name and his place upon the sand.
Artwork and narration generated with AI.