TALIA*
The dream lingered.
Long after I'd woken, its echo haunted the edges of my mind. The woman's voice. The burning word. The flash of silver trees.
"Awaken."
I touched my chest as I padded down the stairs. I could still feel the energy pulsing under my skin like a second heartbeat.
Cara and Caleb were already in the kitchen. Cara was nursing a mug of coffee. Caleb had a map spread over the table, marking demon sightings. His pen moved mechanically, eyes far off.
"Morning," I muttered.
They both looked up. Cara blinked. "Whoa. You look like hell."
"Ugh Thanks. I feel worse."
I slumped into a chair. "I had a dream."
"What kind of dream?" Caleb asked, looking up for the first time.
"The kind that didn't feel like a dream." I described the forest, the symbols, the veiled woman, the word she spoke. Everything.
Cara listened intently. Caleb said nothing. But I noticed the way his jaw tightened.
"Do you think it's linked to... you know," Cara said carefully, "your gifts?"
"I don't know. But it felt like something ancient. And powerful."
Caleb tapped his pen against the table. "Dreams can be influenced. Especially if you've been near high-level demons. Maybe that Kael guy left a mark on you."
I opened my mouth to argue but the thought made my skin crawl.
Just outside the kitchen ,Ruth paused, listening to their conversation. She'd come downstairs to get coffee as well and caught the last part about the dream. Her hand gripped the stair rail, knuckles white. Her face turned pale, but a storm brewed behind her eyes.
She turned without a sound and climbed back up, her thoughts already racing.
----
KAEL*
The obsidian doors of the Incubi Court opened with a groan that echoed through my bones.
My footsteps fell silently on the black marble floor. Above me, murals of our ancestors twisted in shadow and flame. It had been nearly a century since I walked these halls, Not since Tanya died.
Not since I walked away.
The guards stiffened but didn't stop me. They knew who I was.
Saelis was there on his throne. He dismissed the demon in front of him when he saw me approaching.
My cousin.
His smile was thin, eyes calculating. Dressed in a tailored obsidian suit, he looked every bit the heir-apparent.
"Kael," he drawled. "Back from exile? How quaint."
"I didn't come to trade insults."
"Good. You'd lose."
I brushed past him. He followed.
"Uncle Veyros won't just hand it back to you, you know. You left. You rebelled. You broke Court law."
"I did what was right."
He scoffed. "You let love make you weak."
I stopped. Turned. "And you let power make you cruel."
The door to the inner sanctum opened.
High Lord Veyros sat atop a stone throne, surrounded by shimmering veils of dark magic. He hadn't aged a day. Still sharp-featured, still composed. Still dangerous.
"Nephew," he said. "What a surprise."
"I want it back."
He raised a brow. "Want what back?"
"My right. My title"
"And what sparked this change of heart, you scoundrel?" he asked with a hint of annoyance, eyes glinting. "Don't tell me it's another mortal girl."
I didn't answer. He hinted at the fact Tanya was half-human.
He sighed, tapping a clawed finger on the armrest. "This isn't a decision for me alone. The Council will vet your request. And given your... history, I expect they'll be harsh. You disgraced your bloodline. You challenged high command. You protected a woman whose death was necessary."
My fists clenched.
"Tanya wasn't a threat. She was a prophecy. One you feared."
He didn't flinch. "The Court fears chaos."
"Then it should fear me."
There was a flicker of something behind his eyes.
"You were easier to control once. Saelis is obedient. You, Kael, are... inconvenient."
I turned to leave. "Then it's time to remind them who I am."
The title of heir was never ceremonial. It was earned... bestowed only upon the strongest and most powerful of royal blood. That was why I'd been chosen in the first place. Not just for blood, but for strength. My power could rival even Veyros'. And that was exactly why he feared me now.
---
Later, in the shadows of my old quarters, I summoned the one demon whose sight went beyond the veils of time.
The air bent inward, folding like paper.
A ripple formed.
And then a figure stepped out... tall, wrapped in layered robes that shimmered like oil on water. His eyes were unfocused, staring past me into some unseen world.
Vaelith the Veilwalker.
"You called, dream-bleeder," Vaelith whispered, his voice echoing with layered tones. "The past is screaming, and the future... too loud. Too many doors."
"I need your vision," I said carefully. "Look into the girl's future. Talia. Tell me what's coming."
Vaelith tilted his head. "Her thread is tangled. The future blinks like a dying star. So many paths. So many crashes. She burns at the center of it."
His hands shook slightly. A low hum filled the air.
"Can you see clearly?"
Vaelith grinned, a twitch at the edge of madness. "I can see enough. But when I stare too long, other things stare back."
I held up a black crystal sigil. "Then see what you can. And keep it between us."
He nodded once. "The dream comes tonight. I'll walk it. I'll listen to its screams."
And with a flicker of shadow and flickering laughter, he vanished.