"You should have a rest…"
"I do not want to rest—"
"You should sleep here. In my room."
Aurelia's words were soft, but they held a chilling finality that made Sorana still.
The offer felt less like kindness and more like a quiet command—a way to keep her close, to keep her silent, to keep her from thinking too much.
"But you haven't taken your bath, my lady. I should help…"
"I can take care of myself," Aurelia said, her violet eyes steady in the dim light. "Sleep. It helps."
It was not a suggestion.
It was more of a boundary—one built from fear, from distrust, from the raw understanding that even the hand that tended your wounds could hold a knife.
Sorana nodded slowly, her silver-scarred cheek pale.
She did not argue. Instead, she moved to the small divan near the fireplace—a servant's place, but within sight. Within reach.
Aurelia watched her settle, then turned toward the washbasin. The water was cold. She didn't mind.
It was a feeling she could control—unlike the heat of Calvus's touch, the chill of Tenebrarum's mask, the confusing warmth of Kaelen's quiet gaze.
She washed slowly, methodically, as if scrubbing away the leavings of hands and promises.
In the stillness, she could hear Sorana's breathing ease into sleep. Or the careful imitation of it.
Who actually is Calvus?
She thought her head resting at the side of the tub.
But how on earth would she have known Calvus is Gaius, a brother she thought she lost.
Why would he play game with her like this?
Perhaps grudges are deep and are really hard to forget.
Aurelia parents killed his parents, so maybe this was pay back.
When she was done, she wore a simple white shirt over her skin, the fabric thin against the chill of the room.
Sleep would not come for Aurelia.
She lay her head down, only to twist and turn upon the pillows.
A relentless tension hummed in the air; everything in this vast palace seemed designed to forbid true rest.
Driven by a need for air, she went to the window. As she watched the moon scale the dark spires, her mind filled with phantom shapes: Potens, witches in the tales, and the chilling decree of Tenebrarum. Master. The word itself was a chain, impossible for her to feel in.
She couldn't forget Calvus movement, it was crazy.
He acted like he owned her.
A cold breeze slipped through the casement, stirring her hair. She paused, then turned slowly, her bare feet silent on the stone.
Her gaze fell upon the book Sorana had given her—the elegant, leather-bound journal with its delicate silver key still hanging from a silk ribbon.
Aurelia took it in her hands, tracing the smooth cover. It felt solid, honest.
Empty pages waiting for her words.
CLACK!
She unlocked the clasp and opened it.
The pages were blank, untouched, smelling faintly of wood and possibility.
For a moment, she simply held it, feeling the weight of what it offered: a space for her own voice.
This was her time. It had been too long since she had put ink to page.
She drew a wooden stool near the window, prepared the inkpot, and took up the quill with a steadiness she did not feel.
Then she began, her script clean and measured, like one recording events for a chronicle.
( It has been many days since I last wrote.
I do not feel like myself anymore.
These are my first words in this journal, and I find I have little to say that does not taste of ash.
I know I have failed—in purpose, in clarity. My own heart is a country I do not know.
I shall begin with what matters.
I killed Marcus, the betrayer. A human who sold his own kind.
He sold sold me to this monsters.
I only wish I had made his death slower.
Perhaps, more bloody.
He murdered my father in a manner most cruel. Some debts are not paid quickly.
Now I have learned who killed my brother.
The all mighty Tenebrarum.
I do not know why this knowledge troubles me so much.
But I believe all evil must be answered.
Maybe the heavens still care?
Yet what blade, what power, can bring down a prince of darkness?
He has taken nearly everything from me.
My innocence. My brother. And he wears the crown to this court of beasts.
What am I to do?
Vanadium does not harm him. Silver surely will not burn him.
Is there actually nothing to kill him.
Every door I turn to ,seems locked.
I thought I would escape today, but the path closed before it opened.
Velmara has betrayed humanity. Our end draws near.
Why did she agree for an alliance?
Humans will end.
This maid speaks of me being in the safer ground—but is there truly safety in a den of wolves?
No, there is nothing as a safe ground.
Here I am surrounded: Tenebrarum. Kaelen. Calvus. Camilla. And whispers that cling to the walls like rot.
I cannot even wield a blade. My first attempt was useless—and it cost my father his life.
I should have been stronger than this. Perhaps if I were, I wouldn't have fallen for Tenebrarum—for every one of his touches.
This is pure stupidity. I should be using this moment to learn how to fight, and here I am, chasing butterflies. Forgetting that I am nothing. That no connection can exist between a nobody and Tenebrarum.
Yet I can't stop wondering what he looks like behind that mask. A monster? Or something far more disturbing.
I wouldn't be shocked if he was so ugly.
I shouldn't forget someone also important.
Calvus hands on my lips was confusing.
I feel I know him before but can't just tell.
He was close to Gaius, maybe that's why?
But is all this actually important to care for, Today it self has been layered with only disturbance.
I fear there is no peace left to feed on.
What will happen to humans, I have to escape.
I feel that destiny has more for me beyond this doors.
I feel I have something much power, but can't tell why. Like I'm important ...just don't know why. )
She set the quill down, the ink still wet.
Her words felt like stones dropped into still water—they sank quickly, leaving only ripples of truth behind.
For a moment, she simply stared at the page, at the record of her own helplessness.
Then she closed the journal, locking it away with the small silver key.
It was not a diary.
It was a witness to her world now.
But does she truly have to escape?
Or do destiny have better plans for Aurelia?
------------------------
To be continued...