Chapter 76: The Fall of House Voss

[House Voss Estate — Before Dawn]

The bells of the Imperial Palace had not yet finished ringing when the first imperial banners appeared upon the eastern road.

They came beneath the dying moon.

Hundreds of armored riders advanced through the darkness, their horses’ hooves striking the ancient stone road with a rhythm that sounded almost like war drums. Bronze armor gleamed beneath the torchlight, crimson cloaks moved with the cold wind, and above them all flew the banner of the Empire of Qashmar, the Red Wolf beneath the imperial crown.

At the front rode Captain Cedric; his face was hard. In his right hand, he carried a sealed parchment bearing the imperial mark.

The order of the Emperor, behind him marched the Imperial Knights, not a delegation, not messengers but an army sent to collect a debt, and tonight, House Voss would pay it.

The great estate of House Voss stood upon a hill overlooking the eastern quarter of the capital. For generations, its black-stone walls had been considered untouchable. The house had survived emperors, wars, famines, rebellions, and the rise and fall of noble bloodlines.

Its gates bore the carved image of the grey wolf.

Its halls were filled with golden statues. Its vaults contained tablets older than some kingdoms. Its family had always believed that power belonged to those who had possessed it longest.

Tonight, that belief was about to die as the first Imperial Knight stopped before the enormous bronze gates.

Captain Cedric dismounted.

The soldiers behind him came to a halt; for several moments, no one moved, then Cedric raised the imperial perchment as his voice thundered through the darkness.

"By decree of Kael Vaelric, Emperor of Qashmar, open these gates."

Silence.

Cedric waited, but nothing happened as he raised his voice.

"House Voss has been charged with conspiracy against the Imperial Throne, assassination of the Emperor, and treason against the Empire. Open the gates and surrender peacefully."

Still nothing; one of the knights glanced toward Cedric.

"Captain..." Cedric’s eyes remained fixed upon the gates.

"They have chosen not to follow the decree; break them."

The order had barely left his mouth when the Imperial Knights moved.

BOOOOM!

The first battering ram struck the bronze gates, and the sound rolled across the estate. Inside the manor, servants woke in terror.

"What was that?"

"Soldiers!"

"Imperial soldiers!"

"Why are they here?"

Another impact shook the entire estate.

BOOOOM!

Dust fell from the ceiling as golden lamps swung violently. In the upper chambers, members of House Voss rushed toward the windows.

Cassian Voss stood among them, and his face went pale the moment he saw the crimson imperial banners below; his eyes remained cold and unreadable.

His father appeared behind him. "What is happening?"

Cassian turned. "The Imperial Knights."

His father’s expression changed.

"Why?"

Cassian said nothing because he already knew. The third strike shattered the gates.

CRAAAAASH!

The ancient bronze doors collapsed inward. Imperial Knights flooded into the estate, their boots thundering across the stone courtyard.

"By order of the Emperor, search every chamber and seal the treasury! Do not allow anyone to leave!"

The estate erupted into chaos.

Servants screamed and shouted. Guards of House Voss reached for their weapons, but they were surrounded before they could even draw their blades.

Captain Cedric walked through the broken gates, and his gaze swept across the estate. The Grey Wolf banners hung from every tower as he looked at them for a moment.

Then he gave another order.

"Remove them."

The Imperial Knights seized the banners. One by one, the Grey Wolves were torn from the walls. The banners that had represented House Voss for generations were dragged across the stone courtyard and thrown into the dust.

In their place, the Red Wolf of Qashmar was raised.

The symbolism was unmistakable, and the Grey Wolf had fallen beneath the Red Wolf.

Cassian came running down the stairs. "What are you doing?"

Cedric turned toward him, and Cassian stopped as the captain looked at him without emotion.

"Cassian Voss."

Cassian’s jaw tightened. "You cannot enter this house like this."

Cedric held up the sealed imperial perchment, and his voice turned cold. "I can...I have the Emperor’s command."

Cassian stared at the imperial seal.

"No..."

Cedric stepped forward. "You are under arrest on the grounds of treason."

The word struck harder than any blade. Cassian’s face drained of color. "My father is the head of House Voss. You cannot simply—"

"Your house attempted to murder the Emperor."

Cassian fell silent, and Cedric continued. "You financed the assassins. You provided them with information concerning the Emperor’s movements, and you attempted to conceal the evidence."

Cassian’s breathing became heavier. "That is a lie."

Cedric stared at him. "Then you will have an opportunity to prove it."

He gestured toward the knights.

"Take him."

Two knights seized Cassian as he struggled immediately as the knights tightened their grip. "Release me! My father will not allow this!"

Cedric looked at him. "Your father is being arrested as we speak."

Cassian froze as he understood. This was not an investigation; this was not a warning. The Emperor had already decided that House Voss had crossed the final line.

Cassian looked around desperately.

"Where is my father?"

A voice answered from the upper balcony.

"Here."

Everyone looked up.

The head of House Voss stood there; the old duke wore his ceremonial robes, but there was no dignity left in his posture, only disbelief. Behind him stood several members of the family.

And among them—

Nora.

She stood perfectly still; her face had lost all color, and her eyes were fixed upon the Imperial Knights below.

Cassian looked toward her.

Nora stared at him, and for a moment, memories flooded through her mind. The years she had spent beside him and the family she had married into.

The vows she had made and Kael, the boy she had once known. The man who now sat upon the throne of Qashmar, she remembered his eyes, and she remembered the way he had looked at her now.

Nora lowered her gaze, and Cedric stepped forward. "You are also under arrest. Every single member and whoever works...everyone is under arrest..."

Her eyes closed.

The words were enough; she understood there would be no exception, not tonight, not for blood, and not even for the woman who had once been promised to the Emperor.

The old Duke Voss suddenly shouted, as his voice echoed through the courtyard.

"YOU DARE! This house has served Qashmar for generations!"

Cedric turned toward him. "And yet you raised your hand against its Emperor."

"You have no authority to judge me!"

Cedric lifted the imperial perchment, and his voice became deadly calm. "I do not judge you, the Emperor has."

The old duke stared at the seal.

Cedric continued as he looked toward the Grey Wolf crest carved above the entrance.

"House Voss has been accused of treason against the Imperial Throne. Your family name once commanded respect, but tonight, it commands nothing."

The old duke’s face twisted with rage. "You think Kael Vaelric can destroy House Voss?"

Cedric looked at him as he glanced around the estate.

"No, at this moment, House Voss is destroying itself."

Silence.

Then Cedric gave the order. "Take them all."

The Imperial Knights moved. One by one, the members of House Voss were brought down from the manor, the family’s golden ornaments were sealed, their treasury was placed under imperial guard, their documents were confiscated, and their private correspondence was gathered.

Even the ancestral tablets were removed from the family archive and placed beneath the seal of Qashmar.

The Grey Wolf banners disappeared from every tower, and by sunrise, the estate no longer belonged to House Voss.

The Red Wolf flew above it. Nora was the last to leave; she stopped at the bottom of the steps. For one final moment, she turned back; the great house where she had spent years of her life stood behind her.

Its gates were broken. Its banners were gone. Its guards had surrendered. Its treasures belonged to the Empire.

And its name...the name that had once terrified lesser nobles was now nothing more than a charge written upon an imperial tablet.

Nora’s eyes filled with tears as she whispered,

"Kael...you shouldn’t have done this."

No one answered. Captain Cedric walked past her.

"Move."

Nora lowered her head and walked away; behind them, the sun finally began to rise over Qashmar. Its golden light touched the towers of the Imperial Palace first.

Then the temples, then the streets, and finally the fallen estate of House Voss.

The grey wolf had lived for centuries beneath the protection of its ancestors, but the ancestors had not come.

The gods had not answered, and the emperor had shown no mercy.

By the time the first rays of dawn entered the capital, the people of Qashmar had already begun whispering the same words in the markets and temples:

House Voss had fallen.

And upon the throne of Qashmar sat an emperor who had finally shown the nobles what happened when they mistook his silence for weakness.

The age of House Voss was over.