Elias woke up three minutes before the bell. It was a biological reflex now, a synchronization of his internal clock with the thrum of the bond.
His body had learned the schedule of the Crown before his mind had even fully accepted it. He lay still for a moment, staring at the ceiling, feeling the hum of the connection. It was quiet—a distant, cooling vibration that indicated Cassian was likely still asleep or deep in the morning rituals of the palace miles away.
There was no longing in the sensation. There was no spike of grief or the frantic urge to reach out. There was only the assessment.
Resonance: Level One. Pressure: Minimal. Stability: Absolute.
He sat up, his movements graceful. He did not linger in the warmth of the blankets and didn't look at the empty space beside him. Those were the habits of a person, and Elias Thornbloom was currently a system in a state of high-functioning equilibrium.
