They stood in the vault, frozen in an impossible moment. Adrian held the Mirror of Souls, Kieran stood ready to fight, and Bael waited with the patience of something ancient and evil.
"We need to leave," Kieran said finally. "Now. Whatever game you're playing, Bael, we're not interested."
"It's not a game. It's a warning." Bael made no move to stop them as Kieran grabbed Adrian's arm and pulled him toward the exit. "But go ahead. Return the mirror to Asmodeus. Watch your futures crumble. I'll be here when you need somewhere to hide from the consequences."
They ran—vampire speed carrying them through the building, past security that suddenly seemed blind to their presence, out into Seoul's midnight streets where Wei waited with her pack.
"Did you get it?" Wei asked.
Adrian held up the mirror, careful not to look at it. "Got it. We need to leave. Now."
They didn't speak until they were back at their hotel, secure behind wards and protections. Wei's wolves patrolled outside while Kieran set up additional barriers.
Adrian sat on the bed, the mirror in his lap, his mind still reeling from the visions.
"Talk to me," Kieran said gently, sitting beside him. "What did you see?"
"Futures. Terrible futures." Adrian's hands shook. "I saw myself killing you. I saw you killing me. I saw us both becoming monsters. Every possibility ended in tragedy."
"The mirror shows possible futures, not certain ones. Demons use it to manipulate, to create doubt and fear."
"But what if it's true? What if giving this to Asmodeus really does start something catastrophic?"
Kieran was quiet for a long moment. "Then we need to know what he's really planning. Before we return it, we investigate. Find out who he's looking for and why."
"How? He's a demon lord. He's not going to just tell us his evil plan."
"No, but he has enemies. Rivals who might know what he's up to." Kieran pulled out his phone. "I know someone who owes me a favor. An information broker who deals in demon secrets."
"Another demon?"
"Worse. A fallen angel."
Adrian's eyes widened. "Angels are real?"
"Fallen ones, anyway. The ones who sided with Lucifer and were cast out of heaven. They hate demons, which makes them useful for gathering intelligence about demon activities."
Kieran made a call, speaking in a language Adrian didn't recognize—something ancient, biblical. When he hung up, his expression was grim.
"We have a meeting. Tomorrow night. A fallen angel named Sariel will tell us what he knows about Asmodeus's plans."
"In exchange for?"
"Another favor. Apparently, I'm very popular with supernatural beings who want things."
Despite everything, Adrian smiled slightly. "You are pretty useful."
"I contain multitudes."
That night, Adrian couldn't sleep—not that vampires needed sleep, but meditation usually helped quiet his mind. Instead, he kept seeing those futures, those terrible possibilities playing out over and over.
Kieran found him on the balcony, staring at Seoul's lights.
"You're thinking too much," Kieran observed.
"I can't stop thinking about it. What if we're wrong? What if every choice we make leads to those futures?"
"Then we make different choices." Kieran wrapped his arms around Adrian from behind. "The future isn't fixed. Every decision creates new possibilities, new branches. The mirror showed you possible outcomes, not inevitable ones."
"How do you know?"
"Because I've lived for over a thousand years, and nothing has ever been inevitable. I was cursed to live until your soul returned—that seemed inevitable. But we found each other again. Viktor seemed unbeatable—we beat him. The old lords seemed impossible to stop—we stopped them. We've defied inevitability repeatedly."
Adrian leaned back against him. "You're saying we make our own fate."
"I'm saying fate is what you choose, not what's chosen for you." Kieran pressed a kiss to his neck. "Whatever Asmodeus is planning, whatever Bael warned us about—we'll face it together. And we'll change the outcome. Like we always do."
"Together," Adrian echoed, letting the blood bond between them pulse with reassurance.
They made love that night with desperate intensity, both trying to erase the visions of futures where they destroyed each other. Kieran was gentle and fierce simultaneously, his hands mapping Adrian's body like he was memorizing it, like he might lose it.
"Mine," Kieran whispered against Adrian's skin. "You're mine. In every future, in every possibility, you're mine."
"Yours," Adrian agreed, arching into the touch. "Always yours."
Afterward, as they lay tangled together, Adrian asked, "Do you ever regret it? Choosing to wait for me? You could have moved on, found someone else, built a life without the curse."
"Never," Kieran said immediately. "Not once in a thousand years did I regret choosing you. Loving you has been the defining purpose of my existence. Without it, I'd be nothing. A monster with no direction, no meaning. You gave me reason to survive, to become better, to hope."
"That's a lot of pressure."
"You handle it well."
Adrian laughed softly. "I try."
They fell into comfortable silence, the bond between them humming with contentment. Outside, Seoul continued its endless motion, unaware of the supernatural drama unfolding in its midst.
"Whatever happens," Adrian said finally, "whatever Asmodeus wants, whatever those futures hold—we face it together. Promise me."
"I promise. Together, always."