The cavern air was cold—too cold. Lena’s breath came in short, uneven gasps as she staggered forward, her boots skidding over loose gravel. The weight of the book in her arms felt unbearable now, pressing against her ribs like something alive.Cassian was at her side, his grip firm on her wrist as he guided her through the dimly lit tunnel beyond the collapsed chamber. Idris and Dorian were close behind, their footfalls hurried, tense.No one spoke.Not until they reached the next clearing—a vast, open space carved from ancient stone, where flickering torches lined the walls, casting strange, elongated shadows.Lena exhaled, bending slightly, her hands on her knees. The sensation from before—the pull of the Rift—hadn’t faded. If anything, it had deepened, thrumming in her chest like a second heartbeat.Dorian was the first to break the silence. “Okay, can we just—pause for a second? Because I’d really like to discuss how we just barely survived being crushed to death and that thing in
The weight of Idris’s words settled over the group like a storm cloud.Lena’s pulse thrummed beneath the glowing mark, the energy curling up her arm like tendrils of ice. She clenched her fist, trying to will the sensation away. It didn’t work.Cassian still held onto her, his grip firm but steady. “There has to be a way to stop this.”Idris exhaled sharply, rubbing a hand down his face. “There might be, but we don’t know what this mark means yet. If the Rift put it there, it’s not just a simple curse—it’s a tether.”Dorian let out a low whistle. “Great. So we’re dealing with a magic brand that may or may not turn Lena into a walking Rift portal.”Lena shot him a glare. “Helpful.”He held up his hands. “Just stating the obvious.”Cassian turned back to Idris. “What if we find something in the book?” His gaze flicked to the ancient tome Lena still clutched. “It reacted when she touched it. Maybe it has answers.”Idris hesitated, then nodded. “It’s our best lead.”Lena’s fingers curled
Darkness consumed everything.Lena gasped, reaching for something—anything—but there was nothing to hold onto. The ground beneath her had vanished, replaced by an abyss that stretched endlessly in all directions. A chilling wind howled through the void, carrying echoes of voices, whispers that slithered into her mind.She wasn’t alone.Cassian’s voice cut through the darkness. “Lena?”“I’m here!” she called, heart hammering. “Where are you?”No answer.Then, a flicker of light—a dim glow appearing ahead, revealing Cassian standing several feet away. But something was wrong. His stance was rigid, his expression blank, and his silver eyes burned with an unnatural light.“Cassian?” she whispered, stepping forward.He didn’t move.The light expanded, illuminating more figures. Idris stood beside Cassian, his face pale, his usual confidence absent. Dorian was there too, his hands clenched into fists, jaw tight. They weren’t looking at her. They were looking past her.Lena turned.Behind he
The cavern was deathly silent.Lena stood in the dim torchlight, her breath unsteady, her pulse thrumming with the remnants of power from the trial. The mark on her wrist still glowed faintly, its warmth no longer searing but alive, pulsing in time with her heartbeat.Cassian’s hands remained firm on her shoulders, his silver eyes scanning her face, searching for something—an answer, reassurance, maybe even a sign that she was still her.“What happened?” His voice was low, careful.Lena swallowed, the weight of the trial still pressing against her chest. “I fought myself.”Dorian let out a low whistle. “Well, that sounds… horrifying.”“It wasn’t just a fight,” Lena murmured, glancing down at her wrist. “It was a test. The Rift wanted to see if I would break—if I would give in to the part of me that it already owns.”Idris stepped closer, his eyes sharp with understanding. “And you didn’t.”“No.” Lena exhaled, steadying herself. “I took control of it.”A ripple of silence passed betwee
Lena’s breath came in sharp, ragged gasps as she steadied herself against Cassian’s grip. The cavern swam back into focus, the flickering torchlight casting jagged shadows along the stone walls. The mark on her wrist pulsed with renewed energy, a steady rhythm that echoed in her bones.She had passed the second trial.But something was wrong.The ground beneath them trembled, and a deep, guttural sound reverberated through the air—a sound that didn’t belong to any living creature. The Rift wasn’t retreating. It was responding.“Lena,” Cassian’s voice was tight with concern. “What happened in there?”She exhaled slowly, her fingers still curled into fists. “It showed me the worst of myself—the version of me that gave in to the Rift’s power. I had to destroy her.”Dorian let out a low breath. “You fought yourself again? Maybe we should start worrying about your self-esteem.”Lena shot him a look. “Not funny.”Idris, who had remained eerily quiet, finally spoke. “The Rift isn’t testing y
Lena barely slept.Despite the exhaustion weighing on her bones, her mind refused to rest. Every time she closed her eyes, she felt the Rift stirring inside her—not as a threat, but as a presence. It was quiet now, a steady hum beneath her skin, but she could feel it waiting. Watching.By the time the sun began to rise, she gave up on sleep entirely.She stepped out of her tent, wrapping her cloak tighter around her as the morning air bit at her skin. The camp was still, the others deep in much-needed rest after the chaos of the past days. Only Cassian was awake, standing at the edge of the clearing, sword in hand.Lena watched as he moved through his training, each strike and parry precise, controlled. He had always been disciplined, but this morning, his movements were sharp—like he was fighting something unseen.“You’re up early,” she said, breaking the quiet.Cassian stilled for half a second before lowering his blade. He turned, silver eyes sweeping over her. “So are you.”Lena o
Lena paced the length of the camp, her thoughts tangled in the crimson sky above. The Rift’s presence pressed against her senses, a silent, pulsing awareness she couldn’t escape. It wasn’t attacking her. It wasn’t resisting.But it was there.Cassian hadn’t spoken much since Idris left, his jaw tight as he sharpened his blade. Dorian, for once, wasn’t cracking jokes. The weight of what they had seen had settled over them all, thick as a storm.“We can’t just sit here,” Cassian said suddenly, breaking the silence.Lena turned to him. “What do you suggest?”He met her gaze, steady and unyielding. “We find out what the Rift is doing. We don’t wait for it to come to us.”Dorian exhaled. “Much as I hate agreeing with Cassian, he has a point. That sky isn’t just for show.” He gestured upward. “The last time something like this happened, entire cities collapsed.”Lena’s pulse spiked. “Then we need to move.”Before they could plan their next step, the trees rustled—and Idris emerged from the
The journey to Varelith was silent, each step heavy with unspoken tension. The once-great city lay in ruins ahead, its towering stone walls crumbling under centuries of neglect. Yet, as they neared, the air itself seemed wrong—thick with something unnatural.Lena could feel it thrumming against her skin, the Rift’s power responding to whatever lay within the city. The green flames Idris had seen flickered in the distance, casting eerie shadows against the shattered remains of ancient buildings.Cassian unsheathed his sword. “Stay close. We don’t know what we’re walking into.”Lena nodded, gripping the dagger at her hip. Power coiled inside her, waiting, but she wasn’t ready to unleash it just yet.Dorian’s usual smirk was gone. “I hate this place.” His voice was low, barely above a whisper.“You’ve been here before?” Lena asked.“Once.” He exhaled sharply. “Let’s just say it wasn’t abandoned back then.”Lena didn’t press. She had a feeling she didn’t want to know what had driven the p
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