Semua Bab Ashes to Desire : Bab 1 - Bab 10

Chapter 2- Hail’s POV The cave loomed ahead, its jagged mouth glowing faintly from within. The light flickered and pulsed, too steady to be fire, too unnatural to be comforting. I tightened my grip on the hilt of my blade, scanning the shadows for movement. Nothing. Still, I didn’t fucking trust it. You never walked into a place like this without expecting fucking trouble. “Inside,” I said, keeping my voice steady. She didn’t move right away. Her golden eyes narrowed as she stared into the darkness, her expression a mix of defiance and unease. “And what’s in there?” “Answers,” I said, though the word tasted bitter. “And maybe more questions.” She didn’t like that. I could see it in the way her jaw tightened, the way her fingers twitched at her sides like she was imagining all the ways she could fight back if she had her fire. But in the end, she followed. The air inside was colder, and heavier. It carried the metallic tang of old magic, the kind that seeped into your bones and li

Chapter 4- Hail’s POVThe forest smelled wrong. Every step I took was deliberate, my hand never straying far from the hilt of my blade. The voices behind us weren’t rushing anymore. They were methodical, closing the distance at a pace that said they weren’t afraid of losing us. They wanted us to know they were coming. I glanced back at Ember. She kept up, her golden eyes darting to every shadow, her steps quick but steady. She didn’t trust me. She didn’t have to. She just had to keep moving.The ruins came into view just as the voices grew louder. The structure was half-collapsed, its crumbling walls covered in moss and vines, the doorway barely holding onto its frame. “Inside,” I said, not breaking stride. Ember hesitated, her body tense. “And what, wait for them to walk in and kill us?” “If you’ve got a better idea, I’m all ears,” I snapped. Her jaw tightened, but she didn’t argue. I didn’t expect her to. Inside, the air was heavy and damp, the scent of rot clinging to every surfac

Chapter 5- Ember’s POVThe night felt endless, the forest pressing in on all sides. I stumbled after Hail, my breath coming in shallow gasps. The ridiculous cuff on my wrist throbbed in time with my heartbeat, each pulse a reminder of what I’d lost. It wasn’t just my fire, it was my strength, my freedom, everything that made me… fucking me. The ground beneath my boots felt like it was tilting, the trees blurring together into a dark haze. I wanted to stop. I wanted to rip the damn cuff off, scream, burn everything around me to ash, but I couldn’t. Not yet.Hail didn’t speak as we moved, his steps quick and purposeful. His blade was still out, the edge catching the faint light of the moon, and his shoulders were tense, ready for another attack. I hated how calm he looked. Like this was all just another job for him, another night spent running from the people who wanted him dead. But it wasn’t just his fight anymore. Now, they wanted me too.“Stop,” I said, my voice sharper than I int

Chapter 8- Hail’s POVThe city had a pulse. You could feel it the moment you stepped past the outer edges, into the streets where shadows stretched long, and the air reeked of smoke and desperation. It wasn’t alive, not the way cities used to be, but it wasn’t entirely dead either. People clung to it, scavenging what they could from its ruins, surviving on scraps and stolen moments of safety. But survival wasn’t life. It was something colder, emptier. And in a place like this, everything had a price.We found the market near what used to be the city’s main square, its once-pristine fountain now cracked and dry. Vendors lined the edges, their stalls cobbled together from scrap metal and rotting wood. The goods were as pitiful as the vendors themselves: dented cans of food, faded cloth, and rusted tools. And water. Always water. The sight of it made my throat tighten. “Stay close,” I said to Ember, my voice low. Her golden eyes darted around the square, taking in the stalls, the people

Chapter 10- Hail’s POVThe rain came harder now, a relentless downpour that drowned out everything but the crackle of the fire. We’d barely escaped the subway alive, and the creatures that had chased us felt closer with every gust of wind. Even here, hidden away in the ruins of a forgotten city, the weight of the hunt pressed against my chest. I glanced at Ember. She sat cross-legged near the fire, her fiery hair casting a faint glow in the flickering light. Her golden eyes darted to the window now and then, her body coiled like she was waiting for something to go wrong. “What are you thinking?” I asked. She didn’t look at me. “That this place feels like a graveyard.” “It is,” I said, my voice low. Her lips quirked into a faint, humorless smile. “Comforting.”I leaned back against the wall, my blade resting on my lap. Ember had been quieter than usual since we’d left the subway. Quieter, but not calm. Her hand rested on the cuff at her wrist, her fingers tracing the glowing runes abs