The chamber exploded with fury.The castle itself screamed, the magic woven into its very foundation fracturing under the sheer weight of the entity’s rage.Towers above them cracked, the stone splitting apart as if the very bones of the fortress could no longer withstand the force of what had been unleashed. The great warning horns of the city rang out, a desperate call for warriors to take up arms, for the innocent to run, flee, escape before it was too late.But in this chamber, there was no escape.The Demon God’s form twisted, its shadowed body shifting, growing impossibly large, expanding until the darkness swallowed the last remaining torches, leaving only the faint, pulsing glow of the shattered Grand Stone to illuminate the void.It no longer shifted like a specter in the dark.It had taken shape.A monstrous being, its body formed of writhing shadows and endless malice.Its head was crowned with jagged horns, piercing through the air like the twisted roots of a cursed tree.
The moment the golden light faded, Kane knew something was wrong.The chamber stood still, thick with the lingering echoes of power that had just torn through reality itself. The last remnants of the Demon God’s existence had been obliterated, its monstrous form reduced to nothing but dust and shadow. The battle was over.And yet something was off.. Lyra collapsed.Kane lunged forward, catching her just before she hit the cracked stone floor.Her body was limp in his arms, her hair falling in a tangled mess over her face. He could feel the rapid, shallow rise and fall of her chest, but it was too weak - as if something inside her was slipping further and further away.His heart slammed against his ribs, a soundless snarl tearing through him as he shook her gently."Lyra," he called, his voice steady, but beneath it, there was a razor-sharp edge of fear. "Wake up."Silence.He tried again, gripping her tighter."Lyra!"Nothing.She wasn’t responding.Not through their bond.Not even
Kane POV The night was too quiet.Kane sat by Lyra’s side, his fingers curled tightly around her wrist, as if his touch alone could anchor her to him.But she didn’t stir.Not once since they had left the ruins of the castle.She had always been a fighter - fierce, untamed, unwilling to yield even in the face of gods. Yet now, she lay motionless, her breathing soft, steady, but… wrong.Not once had her Lycan stirred.Not once had she reached for him through their bond.The firelit chamber in the northern stronghold was warm, but Kane felt cold.Briane hovered over Lyra, her brows furrowed in concentration as she murmured incantations under her breath. Symbols of ancient magic pulsed at her fingertips, flickering across Lyra’s skin before fading like dying embers.Nothing worked.With a frustrated sigh, Briane pulled back, wiping sweat from her brow."I don’t understand," she muttered. "Her body is… stable. No wounds, no curses, no poisons. But something is keeping her from ...""From
Lyra POVThere was nothing.No light. No sound. No sense of up or down. Only a vast, endless void.Lyra drifted, her body weightless, her mind unanchored.She tried to move, but there was no ground beneath her feet, no air in her lungs. It was like she had been ripped from existence itself.Then - a pulse.Faint at first, like a whisper through the dark.Then again. Louder. Stronger. A rhythm she recognized. Her heartbeat.The void trembled, a ripple coursing through the blackness like a stone cast into still water.And then - a presence. Low. Powerful. Ancient.“You were never meant to wake.”The voice was cold, steady, a whisper of command laced with undeniable authority.The darkness rippled again.And suddenly - Lyra was falling. The impact rattled through her bones, though there was no visible ground beneath her. Gasping, she pushed herself up, her limbs trembling.And that was when she saw her.A golden glow flickered in the distance, illuminating a figure standing still in the
Lyra POVThe chamber door opened.A presence - strong, unwavering, familiar.Lyra’s gaze lifted, and there he stood. Alpha Killian. Her father.Despite everything - the battle, the wounds, the exhaustion - he was still the mountain of a man. Power clung to him like a second skin, his aura crackling with dominance. His broad shoulders were squared, his sharp golden eyes scanning her with a mixture of relief and something deeper - concern.But there was something else. Something guarded. As if he had already guessed why she had summoned him.Lyra sat up, ignoring the way her muscles ached. Kane remained beside her, ever-watchful, his silver gaze flickering between her and her father.Killian exhaled, stepping closer. "You're awake."Lyra swallowed hard. Barely.She didn't say it.Instead, she met his gaze head-on. "I need answers."A muscle in Killian's jaw twitched. "I had a feeling you might say that."He pulled a chair closer, his heavy boots echoing against the stone floor as he sat
Lyra POVThe weight of her father’s words clung to the air like a storm waiting to break.We prepare.For what?A war against gods who had existed before time itself? A battle against something no mortal could ever hope to understand?Lyra’s fingers curled into fists against her lap, her nails biting into her palms. Every instinct in her screamed that something was wrong, something beyond the devastation left behind by the Demon God.She had survived. But at what cost?The presence inside her had not faded.The First Queen still lurked in the shadows of her soul, coiled like a predator biding its time. Lyra could feel her - not an overwhelming force taking control, not yet, but there. A whisper at the back of her mind, a weight that had settled into her very bones.A force that did not belong to her.Kane’s grip on her hand was steady, grounding. But even he couldn’t quiet the turmoil inside her.Across from her, her father watched, his sharp amber eyes filled with something unreadabl
Lyra POVThe flickering lamps lining the corridor cast elongated shadows on the stone walls as Lyra followed her father into the war room. The weight of what she had asked settled heavily on her chest, but she did not waver.She needed answers.Kane walked beside her, silent but present, his silver eyes watchful. He had been there when the First Queen had taken over her body - he had spoken to her - and now, he would hear the truth alongside her.Killian dismissed the guards stationed outside the chamber before stepping in, his presence commanding as ever. The heavy wooden doors groaned shut behind them.The room was dimly lit, with a large, circular table in the center, covered in old maps and ancient texts. The scent of parchment and aged leather filled the space, mingling with the faint traces of smoke from the brazier in the corner.Killian remained standing, arms crossed over his chest. "What do you know of the First Queen?" he asked.Lyra inhaled sharply. "Only what the historie
Lyra’s POVThe chamber was silent after her father’s final words, but inside her mind - inside her soul - there was no silence.The First Queen was awake.She could feel her, a whisper in the back of her thoughts, a presence curling around her consciousness like smoke."You are not ready."Lyra stiffened, her nails digging into her palms.She had spent her life believing she was in control of her own destiny. That her choices, her victories, and her losses were her own. But now?Now, she wasn’t just herself anymore.The First Queen’s presence had been lingering since the moment she woke after the battle with the Demon God. At first, it had been subtle - a whisper here, a flicker of something in the corner of her mind. But now, it was like an ember catching fire, waiting to consume.Lyra closed her eyes, exhaling slowly."You are my heir."The words weren’t just memories. They were hers - the Queen’s voice brushing against her thoughts, curling into her mind like it belonged there.No.
The sky cracked open.Darkness poured like a flood across the Hollow Grounds, swirling in violent eddies, twisting with the force of the Harbinger’s will. The shattered remnants of the barrier flickered behind them - dying magic, breaking apart.There was no more protection. No more walls. The city’s last shield had fallen.Lyra’s heart pounded as she stared at the figure standing at the edge of the Hollow Grounds. The Harbinger.His golden eyes gleamed like dying stars, hollow and endless. His form, once lost to time, now stood before them in terrifying clarity. The First Lycan King. His power pulsed like a second heartbeat in the air, thick and suffocating.Kane hadn’t moved.Lyra glanced at him - his face was carved from stone, his grip white-knuckled on his sword. But she knew what he was feeling. The weight of his bloodline. The horror of looking into the past and seeing it twisted into something unrecognizable.The Harbinger tilted his head, his gaze locking onto Kane like a pre
The fire burned low, casting flickering shadows over the tense figures gathered around it. The night stretched long and restless, the air thick with unspoken fears. Lyra sat at the edge of the circle, fingers flexing against the hilt of her sword. Kane stood beside her, unmoving, his gaze locked on the barrier’s glowing arc in the distance.The weight of the inevitable pressed down on all of them.Nyxar hadn't moved since the Harbinger’s last whisper faded into the night, his golden eyes watching the horizon beyond the barrier, where the Hollow Grounds lay in waiting. The witches murmured amongst themselves, their magic lingering in the air like a silent, unseen hum.Then - the barrier pulsed. Slightly weaker now. No one spoke the words, but they all felt it in their bones.The next attack would not be a test. It would be the final breach. The realization settled over them, thick and suffocating.Kane was the first to break the silence. "We can’t wait for him to come to us." His voice
Lyra’s POVA deep, guttural sound reverberated through the stone beneath Lyra’s feet, sending a tremor up her spine. The lamps lining the walls flickered violently, their light bending unnaturally as if disturbed by an unseen force. The council chamber, already thick with tension, fell into an uneasy silence.Then came the second tremor - stronger this time. Dust trickled from the high-arched ceiling, and the heavy wooden table at the center of the room groaned under the sudden shift.Kane’s hand was on his sword before Lyra had the chance to speak. His body tensed beside her, muscles coiled as his sharp eyes scanned the chamber.The council members stirred uneasily, their anxious whispers breaking into urgent murmurs.“What in the gods’ name was that?” One of the elders, Lord Ildren, leaned forward, his weathered face pale with uncertainty.“The city is protected,” Lady Corva said sharply, though her fingers curled against the armrest of her chair. “Nothing should be able to-”Anothe
Lyra POV Lyra walked with purpose through the dimly lit corridors of the castle, each step echoing softly against the ancient stone walls. She could still feel the weight of the council’s words pressing down on her, their doubts clinging to the edges of her mind like shadows that refused to be shaken off. But she wasn’t going to let them consume her.She had made her decision. Now, she needed to be ready.The chamber that held the First Queen’s belongings was deep beneath the castle, hidden away from the world. Lyra was once here with her father. The torches lining the walls flickered as Lyra and Kane descended the spiral staircase, the air growing colder the further they went.At the bottom, massive doors of black iron awaited them, etched with ancient runes that pulsed faintly under Lyra’s fingertips as she pressed her palm to the cold metal. The seals recognized her blood, her power, and with a deep groan, the doors unlocked, swinging open to reveal the chamber beyond.A hush fell
The grand hall of the council chamber was eerily quiet as Lyra and Kane stepped inside. The room, bathed in muted light from the high, arched windows, seemed to hold its breath. The members of the council - elders from every corner of the kingdom, each of them powerful, respected - sat at their long, polished table. Their eyes were trained on her, but it wasn’t just curiosity that lined their gazes. It was a heavy, suffocating mix of concern, fear, and suspicion.Lyra felt the weight of their stares, each one an invisible pressure on her chest. The air seemed thick with unsaid words, too many emotions coiling together in a silent storm. As she walked further into the room, her silver eyes flickered over the council members - each a pillar of power in their own right - and she couldn’t help but notice the way they recoiled from her presence, as though her very being unsettled them.The whispers were already starting.“I told you it would come to this,” Elder Varick muttered from the fa
Lyra POV The air in the corridor felt thick, pressing against Lyra as she ran. Her feet barely made a sound on the stone floors, but her mind was roaring, the heavy weight of what she had just witnessed haunting every step. The shadows above the city - something had shifted. The magic in the air had twisted, turned darker, and for the first time, she had felt the very essence of fear curling around her bones.Lyra didn’t stop to question the urgency in her movements. She only had one thought - Kane. She needed to find him, needed to feel his strength, his calm presence to steady the growing panic inside her.As she reached the door to their quarters, her breath hitched. Her hand was shaking as she pressed it to the handle, pushing the door open just enough to slip inside. The familiar warmth of their shared space embraced her, but the air in here felt different now - tense, like a storm was gathering just beneath the surface.“Kane?” she called softly, stepping further in, her voice
Lyra’s POVThe air in the chamber was thick with something unseen, something pressing. Lyra exhaled slowly, trying to shake the restless energy curling through her veins. Across from her, Nyxar stilled, his dark eyes narrowing as if he, too, had felt it.It wasn’t just unease. It was something else - something shifting beneath the surface of reality.A slow, pulsing force.Ancient. Wrong.Lyra’s fingers twitched at her sides. She turned to Nyxar, meeting his gaze. “You feel it too.”Nyxar didn’t answer immediately. He tilted his head slightly, as if listening to something just beyond the reach of mortal hearing. Then, quietly, “Yes.”Her pulse quickened. “What is it?”For a moment, he didn’t respond. Then, with measured slowness, he turned toward the archway leading to the terrace. “Come.”Lyra followed, her steps brisk but silent as they moved through the halls. The further they walked, the heavier the air became, charged with something unnatural. It wasn’t just her imagination - eve
Nyxar’s POVThe council chamber emptied in slow, uncertain waves.Some left in silence, their faces unreadable. Others lingered in hushed groups, murmuring behind hands and cloaks, their whispered fears curling through the air like smoke. Nyxar didn’t need to hear them to know what they were saying.She’s changed.She’s unnatural.She cannot be trusted.His lips curled in the barest sneer as he leaned against a shadowed pillar, arms crossed. Fools. Cowards.They sat in their high seats and clung to their old ways, blind to the tides shifting beneath their feet. Did they truly believe the Harbinger would spare them if they turned against Lyra now? Did they think they had another choice?He watched them scatter like frightened birds, saw the doubt etched into the lines of their faces, the hesitance in their step.Weakness.This was the rot that always seeped into kingdoms before they fell - the hesitation to do what was necessary, the fear of the unknown outweighing the threat already a
Lyra’s POVThe corridor was long behind them now, swallowed by the cold stone walls of the ancient passageway. After Nyxar's warnings and the unsettling energy that still buzzed beneath her skin, Lyra had returned to their quarters with Kane, her thoughts a storm of questions and instincts she could barely contain.Now, wrapped in the soft embrace of their bed, the room dimly lit by the moonlight filtering through gauzy curtains, she lay beside him, tangled in a quiet stillness.Kane’s arm draped around her waist, his thumb brushing lazy circles along her hipbone as if grounding her to the present. But Lyra’s mind wandered - back to the runes, the sealed door, and the low thrumming that echoed beneath the castle floors like a warning or a heartbeat."You're quiet," Kane murmured beside her. His voice was low, still slightly rough from sleep, but it held a softness only she ever heard. "Too quiet. That usually means you're thinking something dangerous."Lyra let out a breath. Not quite