Fire in her veins
377 Words
Aria ran through the twisting gardens, her breath ragged, her heart thundering against her ribs. Behind her, Helena’s footsteps followed like a predator stalking prey — quick, silent, and sure.
But Aria was changing.
The moment the dagger had glinted in Helena’s hand, something inside her had snapped — a pressure that had been building since the bite, since the wedding, since the whispers of prophecy.
Now it poured through her like liquid flame.
She stumbled into a clearing beneath a weeping willow. Her legs shook, her palms burned — literally. When she looked down, orange and gold fire licked across her fingers, not consuming her but dancing like it had known her all along.
The fire didn’t hurt.
It obeyed her.
Helena stepped into the clearing, unfazed. “You’re only just awakening. You don’t know how to control it.”
“Then stay back,” Aria warned, her voice low, vibrating with heat.
Helena laughed darkly. “You think Damien will save you? He’ll use you. Just like he used her.”
Aria’s eyes narrowed. “You don’t know him.”
“Oh, I do,” Helena hissed, drawing the dagger. “He thinks he’s in love. But once you ignite, you’ll burn even him.”
Something cracked in the air — a pulse, like thunder before a storm. The fire flared up Aria’s arms, glowing veins visible beneath her skin. The wind howled through the trees.
“I didn’t ask for this,” she said, her voice shaking — not from fear, but from power. “But I won’t run anymore.”
She thrust her hand forward, and a stream of fire erupted from her palm, spiraling like a living whip toward Helena. The flame struck the dagger, sending it clattering to the ground, sizzling with heat.
Helena stumbled backward, face twisted with shock and rage. “You don’t even know what you are,” she growled, vanishing into the shadows before Aria could stop her.
The garden fell quiet.
Smoke curled into the air.
Aria stood alone, her hands still glowing, her heart pounding with the weight of what had just happened.
She wasn’t just marked.
She wasn’t just chosen.
She was dangerous.
And now, there would be no hiding what she truly was.
- Writer
