---
I woke up in a bed of silver-threaded silk, but the air was frozen.
Frost clung to the edges of the dark stone walls. Shadows flickered across the ceiling like smoke, and distant whispers curled in the corners, haunting but soft. I didn't recognize this place—though strangely, my heart beat like I should.
Then I turned—and he was there.
Ravon sat silently at the edge of the room, bathed in moonlight from a high stained-glass window. His back was to me. His long obsidian hair fell loose, dripping water from the rain outside, and his bare shoulders glistened faintly. A white bandage was wrapped around his side—where Celestus had struck him.
> "You're awake," he said without turning.
His voice was low. Rougher than usual. Tired, maybe.
> "Where… where are we?" I whispered.
> "My chambers," he replied. "In the upper keep of Veyrath."
> "Veyrath?"
> "The capital of the demon realm."
I swallowed. I didn't know what to expect. Fire? Lava? Screams?
But instead, I saw quietness. Cold, vast beauty. Blackened spires and silvery runes. This place felt ancient... almost sacred.
> "Why did you bring me here?" I asked.
He finally turned to face me.
His eyes—those dangerous, crimson eyes—looked duller now. Not angry. Not cruel. Just… distant. Guarded.
> "Because you saved me," he said simply. "And because you're not ready to face what comes next."
He rose and walked toward me.
I tried to shrink back—but he didn't come close. Instead, he knelt before a carved altar at the far wall. A strange sigil glowed there: half angelic, half demonic.
> "You felt it too, didn't you?" he asked quietly.
I hesitated. Then nodded.
> "When you touched the sigil in the ruins," he continued, "a fragment of your past awakened. It's only the beginning."
> "What was that memory?" I asked, my voice shaking. "That place. That version of me… and you…"
He looked up at me, something pained and haunted in his face.
> "We were bonded once," he said.
My heart stopped.
> "In the last age. You were the Guardian of the Celestial Flame. And I… was the one sworn to protect you."
Silence.
> "But something went wrong, didn't it?" I whispered.
> "Yes," Ravon said. "You were betrayed. By your own."
His gaze darkened.
> "By Celestus."
The name hit me like ice.
> "He said he was trying to protect me…"
> "He was trying to control you," Ravon snapped. "He always has."
---
Lightning cracked outside the window.
I rose shakily from the bed. My legs trembled, but Ravon didn't move to help me. He just watched. Waiting.
> "Why do I feel drawn to you?" I asked suddenly.
His eyes met mine—finally, truly.
> "Because some bonds," he said, stepping closer, "do not break. Not by time. Not even by death."
He stopped inches away.
I could feel the heat of him—wild and stormy, like fire barely leashed.
> "And if I fall again?" I whispered. "If I choose wrong?"
He reached out—hesitated—then touched my cheek with a finger that trembled ever so slightly.
> "Then I'll fall with you."
---
But before I could speak, the room shuddered.
Ravon's expression turned grim. He backed away.
> "They found us," he muttered.
> "Who?"
> "The Council of Ash," he growled. "And they've brought a Reaver."
Outside, the sky had turned crimson.
> "You'll need to fight now, Seraphina," Ravon said, as a long black blade appeared in his hand. "Not for me. Not for love."
He turned, his eyes glowing fiercely.
>But for you.