The forest was eerily silent, the air thick with an unspoken tension as Lena steadied herself. The weight of what she had seen still pressed against her ribs, but she forced herself to focus. She wasn’t that version of herself. Not yet. Not ever.Cassian remained close, his presence a grounding force as the group regrouped. Dorian was the first to break the silence.“So, we’re just going to ignore the fact that Lena basically had a one-on-one with her evil twin?” He ran a hand through his hair, eyes sharp with something between concern and curiosity. “Because, personally, I think we should be panicking a little more.”Lena shot him a dry look. “You panicking isn’t exactly new, Dorian.”He pressed a hand to his chest in mock offense. “Excuse you, my panic is usually justified.”Cassian exhaled, crossing his arms. “Enough. We need a plan.” He turned to Lena. “You said you saw a future. One where you’d embraced the Rift’s power. Do you think it was a vision of what will happen, or just w
Lena’s pulse thundered in her ears as she sat up, her breath shallow. The forest was the same, yet everything felt different. The Rift’s energy still clung to her skin, cold and electric, like a whisper that refused to fade.Cassian’s grip on her arm was tight, his expression a storm of worry and restrained panic. “Lena, talk to me. What happened?”She swallowed, her throat dry. “I—I saw something.” Her own voice felt foreign, like it belonged to someone else. “A future. A throne. The world at my feet.”Dorian let out a sharp breath. “So, y’know, just the usual apocalyptic nightmare?”Lena ignored him, turning to Cassian. “It felt real. Like a memory that hasn’t happened yet.”Idris knelt beside her, his sharp eyes scanning her face. “And the other you?”Lena shuddered. “She’s waiting. Watching.” She exhaled shakily. “And she thinks I’ll choose to become her.”Silence settled over them, thick and suffocating.Cassian ran a hand through his hair, his jaw clenching. “That’s not going to
Lena stood at the edge of the camp, the fire’s glow flickering behind her as the cold night pressed in. The weight of the Rift’s whispers still clung to her, a presence just beneath the surface of her thoughts.She exhaled, forcing her hands to stop shaking.It wasn’t real. It couldn’t be real.Yet, the memory of that power—the absolute certainty of control—lingered like a drug she hadn’t realized she craved.A rustle in the underbrush made her stiffen.She turned just as Idris emerged from the shadows, his gaze sharp even in the dim moonlight.“You shouldn’t be out here alone,” he said, his voice unreadable.Lena gave a short, humorless laugh. “Not much difference between out here and in there.” She nodded toward the camp. “Either way, I can’t sleep.”Idris studied her for a moment before stepping closer. “You felt it, didn’t you?”Lena’s heart stuttered.Felt what?Idris didn’t elaborate. He didn’t need to. His knowing expression told her he already had the answer.Lena hesitated, b
The ground trembled beneath Lena’s feet as she stood at the edge of the clearing, staring at the swirling mass of energy that had torn through reality. The Rift was different now—larger, more unstable, it is violet and indigo tendrils writhing like living things.Mira stood nearby, arms folded, her expression grim. “It’s growing.”Dorian let out a sharp breath. “Yeah, I was hoping we’d all just ignore that part.”Cassian stepped closer to Lena, his presence grounding despite the chaos around them. “We need to move. If it’s opening again, that means something—or someone—is calling it.”Lena nodded, but a chill slithered down her spine. She could feel it, humming beneath her skin—the Rift’s presence, an insistent pull, like an invitation she wasn’t sure she could refuse.Idris studied the swirling energy with narrowed eyes. “The last time we were this close, it tried to take you.”Lena inhaled sharply. “And this time, we don’t let it.”No one spoke for a long moment. Then Mira exhaled a
Lena’s body felt weightless as if she had been unmoored from reality itself. Darkness surrounded her, thick and suffocating, yet filled with whispers—her own voice, echoing back at her from all directions.“Why do you fight it?”She turned sharply, but there was no ground beneath her, no sky above—just an endless void. And in the centre of it stood her again.The other Lena.But this time, she wasn’t alone.Figures emerged from the shadows—Cassian, Mira, Dorian, Idris. They were wrong—their eyes blank, their faces emotionless. They weren’t real. They were reflections, twisted versions of the people she loved.Her own voice came again but from the other Lena’s lips. “This is what you fear, isn’t it? Losing them.”Lena’s heart pounded. She clenched her fists. “This isn’t real.”The other Lena stepped closer, tilting her head. “Isn’t it? Every choice you make pulls you closer to the Rift. They see it. They feel it. And one day… they’ll turn on you.”The copies of her friends began moving
Lena barely had time to brace before the Rift swallowed them whole.The world folded around her, pulling her through layers of time, space, and something else—something ancient.For a split second, she saw flickering images: a ruined throne, a city in flames, Cassian reaching for her with blood on his hands—her blood.And then—Silence.Lena hit the ground hard, breath knocked from her lungs. Around her, the others groaned as they landed one by one.Cassian was the first to move. “Lena?” His hands found hers, grounding her.“I’m fine,” she said, even though her head spun.The Rift’s energy still crackled around them, but this place was different.It wasn’t a void anymore.It was a temple.Massive obsidian pillars stretched toward a sky that didn’t exist, suspended in a place between worlds. The air was thick with magic—ancient, pulsing, alive.At the temple’s centre stood an altar. And on it—A heart.Not a human one, but something carved from shimmering crystal, pulsing in sync with
Lena surged forward, her dagger tight in her grip, every instinct screaming at her to act now before it was too late. The other Lena moved to block her, shadows curling at her feet. “You don’t understand what you’re about to do.” “I understand enough.” Lena feinted left, then twisted, dodging a tendril of Rift energy as she sprinted for the altar. The crystal heart pulsed, beating in sync with the Rift itself. Behind her, the battle raged. Mira, despite her injury, fought off her dark twin with gritted teeth and raw determination. Dorian hurled bolts of light, clashing with his shadowed reflection. Idris had his counterpart locked in a brutal standstill, their flames colliding in midair. And Cassian— Lena dared a glance back. Her Cassian was still locked in battle with his twisted double, their swords clashing violently. But she could see the way Cassian faltered, the way the Rift’s version of him fought without hesitation. Lena turned back to the altar. No more distractions.
The silence stretched around them, heavier than the Rift had ever been.Lena wasn’t sure how long they stood there, surrounded by the remnants of a battle that had defined their lives for so long. The field where the temple had been was quiet—too quiet. No wind, no whisper of magic lingering in the air. Just… nothing.Freedom.It should have felt victorious. Should have felt like triumph. But all Lena could feel was the numbness of the moment, the sheer weight of everything settling onto her shoulders.Mira was the first to break the silence. She let out a slow, shaky breath and sheathed her sword. “So… that’s it, then?”Dorian ran a hand through his hair, still catching his breath. “Feels like it.” He exhaled sharply, a grin tugging at his lips. “Honestly, I half expected some dramatic final curse. A this isn’t over speech.”Idris scoffed. “You’ve been reading too many stories.”Lena barely heard them. Her eyes were locked on the place where the crystal heart had been, where the othe
The cavern felt wrong.Even though the Riftgate had disappeared, something lingered in the air—an unnatural stillness, thick with expectation. The Riftfire still simmered inside Lena, coiled like a beast waiting for permission to strike. But it wasn’t just hers anymore.It belonged to her.And she belonged to it.A cold shiver crawled up her spine, but she forced her body to move. One step. Then another.Behind her, Cassian exhaled sharply, shaking his head as he slid his daggers back into their holsters. “Alright. I have questions. Many, many questions.” His voice was light, but his eyes were sharp as they flicked toward her. “Starting with what the hell just happened?”Lena flexed her fingers, watching the faint traces of violet fire dance along her skin before flickering out. The Riftfire wasn’t resisting her anymore. It wasn’t raging. It was waiting.The realization made her stomach twist.“I don’t know,” she admitted, her voice quieter than she meant it to be. “I—I felt it. The R
Lena’s pulse roared in her ears. You were meant to open it. The King’s words curled around her mind like smoke, insidious and inescapable. She wanted to deny them, to cast them away like a lie. But the Riftfire inside her didn’t reject them. It recognized them. She staggered back, breath ragged. “You’re wrong.” The King only watched her, his golden eyes steady, unreadable. “Am I?” Lena clenched her fists, nails biting into her palms. “I came to close this gate, not—” A sharp pulse of power cut through her words. The Rift trembled. And suddenly, she wasn’t alone. Not just with the King. But with the echoes of something long buried. The vision struck like a lightning bolt to the skull. A battlefield. The air thick with Riftfire, burning violet against the endless night. Creatures—monstrosities—crawling from the gate, their shrieks tearing through the void. And at the center of it all— Her. Or rather— The woman who wasn’t her. The woman who was. A w
The pull tightened around Lena like invisible chains, wrapping around her ribs, her spine, her mind. It wasn’t violent. It wasn’t forceful. It was patient. A silent whisper, a presence at the edges of her thoughts, waiting. "Lena?" Ronan’s voice cut through the haze, grounding her. She blinked. The tunnel stretched before her, Cassian and Ronan already a few steps ahead, both watching her now—Cassian with wary confusion, Ronan with something closer to understanding. She forced herself to move. One step, then another, until the pull loosened its grip. It didn’t leave. But it let her go. For now. She exhaled slowly and followed them into the narrowing passageway. The tunnel walls pressed in, rough stone scraping against her arms. The air smelled of damp earth and something older—something untouched by time. Their footsteps echoed, the sound swallowed too quickly, as if the Rift itself was listening. No one spoke. Cassian led the way, navigating the uneven terrain wi
The cavern still hummed with the remnants of Lena’s power, the air thick with the scent of scorched flesh and magic. The Riftfire coiled around her fingers like a living thing—no longer wild, no longer resisting. It had chosen her. Lena’s breath came in ragged pulls, her heart hammering against her ribs. She wasn’t just standing in the aftermath of battle; she was standing at the edge of something irreversible. She could feel it. The Rift’s presence, no longer just a force that haunted her, but a part of her. Her. Cassian took a hesitant step forward, his daggers still in hand, though his grip had loosened. “Lena… what the hell was that?” Lena swallowed hard, but the words tangled in her throat. She didn’t know how to answer. Because she didn’t fully understand it herself. Ronan was watching her closely, his jaw clenched. His sword was sheathed, but his stance hadn’t relaxed. “Your fire—” He cut himself off, then exhaled sharply. “It’s different.” Lena flexed her fingers, st
The ground trembled beneath Lena’s feet. Not with violence, but with recognition. The Rift knew her now. And it wanted her back. Lena’s breath came in sharp, uneven pulls as the air around her thickened, reality bending at the edges. She could feel the Rift pulling, not with brute force, but with something far worse—familiarity. She was sinking into it. Becoming part of it. No. Lena clenched her fists, summoning every ounce of willpower to push back against the weight pressing on her chest. Riftfire surged at her fingertips, flickering wildly, caught between obedience and rebellion. The King watched her struggle, his burning gaze unreadable. “You still resist.” Lena swallowed against the rising panic. “I don’t belong to this place.” The King tilted his head slightly. “No,” he agreed. “But it belongs to you.” The words struck something deep inside her, something she wasn’t ready to face. Because part of her felt it. The Riftfire inside her wasn’t just reacting
The cavern trembled as the Rift’s energy expanded outward, swallowing the air, pressing against Lena’s skin with a force so dense it was almost suffocating.The King stepped forward.He wasn’t like the mindless creatures that had come before. He wasn’t grotesque or malformed.He was whole.His form was cloaked in shadows that moved like living smoke, shifting around him in slow, deliberate waves. Beneath the darkness, glimpses of something ancient and inhuman flickered—jagged obsidian armor, silvered veins pulsing with Rift energy, a face that was too sharp, too perfect, too unnatural to belong to anything mortal.His eyes—twin voids of fire and stars—settled on Lena, and the cavern dimmed, as if the very world was bracing for what came next.A voice, low and endless, rumbled through the chamber."You are the one."Lena’s pulse pounded in her ears. Her Riftfire reacted violently to his presence, rising in defense or recognition—she wasn’t sure which.But she forced herself to stand he
The world tilted.Lena’s breath caught in her throat as the weight of realization slammed into her. The Rift’s power thrummed beneath her skin, but it was nothing compared to the force radiating from the woman standing before her.Her mother.No. That couldn’t be right. Her mother had died when she was a child. She had no memories beyond fleeting warmth and a lullaby whispered in the dark.And yet—The woman’s presence felt familiar.Ronan shifted closer, tension coiled in his frame. “Lena…?”Cassian didn’t speak, but his fingers tightened around the hilt of his blade.Lena swallowed hard. “Who—who are you?”The woman smiled, stepping forward. The edges of her form flickered, like she existed between realms. “You already know, child. You’ve always known.”Lena’s pulse roared in her ears. “That’s not possible.”“And yet, here I stand.”The Riftfire in Lena’s veins surged, responding to the woman’s presence like a long-lost tether being pulled taut.“No.” Lena shook her head. “You can’t
Lena exhaled, steadying herself as the cavern pulsed with anticipation. The Herald stood motionless, hand still outstretched, its offer tangible in the air. The Rift’s power thrummed beneath her skin, no longer just a whisper but a steady, insistent call.This was the moment.She reached forward—then clenched her fist, drawing her hand back. “No,” she said, her voice stronger than she expected.The Herald’s expression didn’t falter, but the cavern trembled in response. “You refuse?” it asked, tilting its head.Ronan let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding, but his stance remained guarded. Cassian edged closer, his eyes never leaving the Herald.Lena swallowed hard. “I’m not a pawn in whatever game the Rift is playing.”The Herald regarded her with something that almost resembled amusement. “A pawn? No, Riftborn. You were never a mere piece. You were meant to be the one who shapes the board.”The cavern walls pulsed again, and the Rift’s energy surged forward like a wave.Le
Darkness swallowed them whole.Lena’s breath caught in her throat as the air rushed past her, cold and unrelenting. The abyss stretched endlessly below, an empty void that felt like falling through time itself.Ronan’s grip on her wrist was iron-tight. He refused to let go.Cassian was just ahead, his body twisting midair, trying to prepare for whatever awaited them below.But there was no ground.No end.Just falling.The Rift’s presence coiled around Lena’s mind, whispering in a voice that sounded so much like her own.You are home.You were never meant to run.The air shimmered.Lena gasped as reality split apart.For a single, horrifying second, she saw it—the Rift in its true form. A world between worlds. A chasm of shifting energy, pulsing with life and death, beginning and end.And at the center—a throne.A throne waiting for her.Her blood burned. The mark on her skin pulsed in time with the Rift’s heartbeat.It was trying to pull her in.No. No, I won’t—“Lena!”Ronan’s voice