The storm arrived without warning.
Thunder cracked across the sky like the world was being torn open, and rain beat violently against the windows of the small bedroom.
Aella Rowan was wide awake.
She lay still under her thin blanket, staring at the ceiling, her heart beating too fast for no reason.
It was her eighteenth birthday.
She should've been asleep. She needed to be asleep. Tomorrow meant school, cake, fake smiles, and pretending she felt normal.
But she didn't feel normal.
She felt… watched.
The air felt heavy, thick, like it was pressing down on her chest. Her room—normally safe, familiar—felt wrong. The shadows in the corners of the room stretched longer than they should.
The clock read 12:00 AM.
The moment her birthday began.
She swallowed and sat up slowly, brushing dark hair away from her face.
It's just anxiety, she told herself. You're just overthinking.
Then—
she heard it.
A soft cracking sound.
Not thunder.
Not floorboards.
Something… else.
Aella froze.
Her eyes drifted toward the wall opposite her bed.
At first, she thought it was a shadow.
Then she saw the line of light.
A thin crack running down the center of the wall, glowing faintly silver, like it had been struck by lightning from the inside.
Her breath got stuck in her throat.
The crack widened.
The wall didn't break.
It opened.
Like glass splitting.
A burst of cold air rushed in. The curtains flew violently from the open window. The light in the room flickered.
And then—
he stepped through.
He was tall — taller than any human had the right to be. His hair was dark like midnight. Strange, glowing markings burned faintly across his skin, like symbols carved by lightning itself.
The air bent around him.
The shadows bowed toward him.
His eyes lifted slowly—and locked onto hers.
Silver.
No — not silver.
Stars.
He stared at her like he had been searching for her his entire existence.
Aella's body went numb.
Her voice barely worked.
"W-who are you…?"
The man stepped closer.
The floor didn't creak beneath his feet.
The storm outside grew louder.
The crack in the wall sealed itself behind him.
There was no escape.
He stopped only a step away from her bed.
His gaze dropped briefly… to her wrist.
His jaw tightened.
"…You're alive."
Aella's heart slammed against her ribs.
"What are you talking about?" she whispered. "How did you get into my room?!"
His eyes softened for just a fraction of a second — something raw, broken flashing through them.
Then it vanished.
He lifted his hand.
Lightning gathered around his fingers like they obeyed him.
Aella tried to move.
She couldn't.
Her body felt frozen, pinned under invisible weight.
"Don't be afraid," he said quietly.
Which somehow made it worse.
His fingers gently wrapped around her wrist.
His touch was cold—then burning hot.
Aella cried out as light burst beneath her skin.
A glowing symbol appeared on her wrist — intricate, divine, beautiful… and terrifying.
The man released her slowly.
His eyes traveled back to her face.
"You escaped me once," he said, voice low and rough.
Aella stared at him in shock, tears burning behind her eyes.
"I don't even know who you are!"
The man leaned slightly closer, close enough for her to feel the unnatural cold and heat that surrounded him.
His voice dropped to a whisper that felt like a vow.
"You will."
Thunder exploded outside.
Rain crashed harder against the glass.
The mark on her wrist pulsed softly with light.
And for the first time in her life—
Aella felt that her world had just broken apart.
The man straightened.
The air grew heavy again.
"My name," he said, turning back toward the cracked space in the air…
"Is Kaelion."
The wall split open again behind him.
Before stepping through, he paused.
He looked at her over his shoulder.
And said the words that stopped her heart.
"You were mine before death, Aella Rowan."
The light swallowed him.
The wall sealed.
The room fell silent.
Aella stared down at the glowing mark on her wrist, hands shaking, heart racing.
What did he mean?
Before death?
Outside, the storm slowly began to fade.
But inside her chest, a war had just begun.