Chapter 21
1252 Words
The King's Daughter
The voice followed Isabella long after it disappeared.
Not loudly.
Not violently.
Quietly.
Like a whisper buried beneath her thoughts.
Come home.
Those two words terrified her more than any threat.
Because threats came from enemies.
Enemies wanted something.
Power.
Control.
Victory.
But the first king...
He sounded like he believed he had a right to her.
Like she belonged to him.
Like her life had been waiting for him to arrive.
And Isabella hated that feeling.
She had spent too much of her life being treated like something that belonged to someone else.
First Damien.
Then her pack.
Now an ancient king from seven hundred years ago.
No.
She belonged to herself.
And nobody was taking that away.
The council chamber remained silent after Isabella explained what she had heard.
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
The first king had awakened.
And now he was calling for her.
Seraphina looked troubled.
More troubled than Isabella had ever seen her.
"What?"
The older woman hesitated.
"That should not be possible."
Isabella frowned.
"What shouldn't?"
"The connection."
Everyone looked toward Seraphina.
She continued.
"The first king should not be able to reach you."
"Why?"
The elder's expression darkened.
"Because his bloodline ended."
Silence.
Again.
Isabella was starting to believe silence was the official language of this kingdom.
"So how can he speak to me?"
Nobody answered.
Until Lucian did.
"Because he isn't connected to you through his blood."
The room turned toward him.
Isabella studied his expression.
Something about the way he said it bothered her.
"You know something."
Lucian looked at her.
A long pause followed.
Then:
"Yes."
Her stomach tightened.
Of course.
Of course he did.
Another secret.
Another truth hidden from her.
She was beginning to lose count.
"What is it?"
Lucian looked at the council.
Then back at her.
"The first king wasn't only the creator of this kingdom."
A pause.
"He was your ancestor."
The room became completely still.
Isabella stared.
"What?"
Seraphina closed her eyes.
As though she had hoped this moment would never come.
"The royal bloodline has always been more complicated than history records," Lucian explained.
"The first king had two children."
Isabella's heart began beating faster.
"Two?"
"Yes."
A pause.
"One child inherited his ambition."
Another pause.
"The other inherited his compassion."
Isabella already knew where this was going.
"The compassionate child..."
Lucian looked at her.
"Was the beginning of Queen Elara's bloodline."
The truth settled heavily.
Her entire life.
Her entire identity.
Everything she thought she knew...
Was changing again.
"So the first king is..."
"Your ancestor."
The words echoed.
The man who wanted to open the Gate.
The man who nearly destroyed the world.
The man who had been waiting beneath the mountain.
Was part of her bloodline.
Isabella stepped back.
"No."
Everyone watched her.
"No."
She shook her head.
"That can't be right."
Lucian moved closer.
"Isabella—"
"Do you understand what you're saying?"
Her voice cracked slightly.
"He is the reason my family suffered."
Silence.
"He destroyed everything."
Her hands clenched.
"And you're telling me he's part of me?"
Lucian's expression softened.
"Blood does not decide who you become."
She looked at him.
"The first king chose his path."
His voice became firm.
"You choose yours."
The words struck deeper than she expected.
Because they were exactly what she needed to hear.
Later that night, Isabella returned to the library.
She needed answers.
Not from others.
From herself.
Ancient books surrounded her.
Family records.
Royal histories.
Forgotten documents.
She searched through everything.
Until she found it.
A hidden record.
One that had never been shown publicly.
The title alone made her stop.
The Lost Daughter of the First King.
Her hands trembled as she opened it.
The pages were old.
Fragile.
Almost destroyed.
But the words remained.
The first king's daughter rejected his darkness and chose the path of the moon.
She sacrificed her name to protect future generations.
Her descendants would carry the power to seal what was opened.
Isabella read the words again.
Then again.
The lost daughter.
The forgotten princess.
The beginning of her bloodline.
A woman who chose differently.
A woman who proved that blood did not decide destiny.
A strange feeling filled Isabella.
Not fear.
Not anger.
Pride.
Her ancestor had not inherited the first king's darkness.
She had defied it.
And perhaps Isabella could do the same.
A sound interrupted her.
A page turning.
She looked up.
Lucian stood across the room.
"You really need to stop appearing silently."
A small smile touched his lips.
"I've been told."
"By me."
"Frequently."
Despite everything...
She almost smiled.
Almost.
Then she remembered.
"How long have you known?"
Lucian became serious.
"About your ancestry?"
She nodded.
"Since the beginning."
The answer hurt.
Even though she expected it.
"Since the beginning?"
"When I found you."
She stared at him.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Lucian looked away.
"Because I didn't know if you were ready."
The answer angered her.
"That's not your decision."
"I know."
His immediate agreement surprised her.
No argument.
No excuse.
Just acceptance.
"I was wrong."
The honesty stopped her.
Lucian rarely admitted mistakes.
"I spent centuries trying to protect people by carrying everything myself."
His voice lowered.
"I thought hiding pain was the same as preventing it."
A pause.
"I was wrong."
The admission was quiet.
But powerful.
Isabella looked at him.
Really looked at him.
The king everyone feared.
The man everyone respected.
The person who had spent centuries believing he had to stand alone.
"You don't have to protect me from the truth."
His eyes met hers.
"No?"
"No."
She stepped closer.
"Because I am tired of being protected like I am fragile."
Something shifted between them.
The air changed.
The distance felt smaller.
Lucian looked at her with an intensity that made her forget everything else.
"You are many things, Isabella."
His voice was low.
"But fragile is not one of them."
Her heartbeat quickened.
Annoyingly.
Dangerously.
Before either of them could say more—
The entire palace shook.
Not like before.
Different.
Stronger.
A deep crack echoed through the mountain.
Then every light in the kingdom went out.
Darkness swallowed everything.
The library windows shattered.
A cold wind rushed inside.
And then...
A voice.
The first king.
"My daughter."
Isabella froze.
Not descendant.
Not heir.
Daughter.
The voice continued.
"You carry the blood of my lost child."
A pause.
"You are closer to me than you know."
Lucian immediately moved in front of her.
Protective.
Ready.
The darkness gathered around them.
Then the voice became softer.
Almost loving.
"I do not want to destroy you."
The words made everyone uneasy.
Because somehow...
That was worse.
"I want to restore you."
The darkness disappeared.
The lights returned.
But nobody moved.
Because the message had changed everything.
The first king wasn't calling Isabella his enemy.
He wasn't calling her his descendant.
He was calling her his daughter.
Far beneath the mountain, the first king stood before the Gate.
Malakar watched from the shadows.
"You spoke to her."
The king smiled.
"Yes."
"And?"
The ancient ruler looked toward the surface.
"She is stronger than Elara."
Malakar frowned.
"That concerns you?"
The first king smiled.
"No."
A pause.
"It excites me."
He placed his hand against the ancient Gate.
"Because unlike Elara..."
His eyes darkened.
"Isabella will not betray her family."
Malakar remained silent.
Because he understood the danger.
The first king did not see Isabella as an enemy.
He saw her as his salvation.
And that made him far more dangerous.
- Writer
