Chapter Twelve: Prime Origin
1419 Words
The courtyard fell into stunned silence.
Not even the clash between the ancient creature and the descending hunters could break the moment.
Because every single one of them had heard the same words.
Prime origin detected.
My heart slammed violently against my ribs.
“What does that mean?” I whispered.
No one answered.
Not Lucien.
Not Davies.
Not even the creature fighting the hunter only twenty yards away.
Because all of them were staring at me.
The silver energy beneath my skin had changed.
Before, it had glowed like scattered sparks beneath my veins.
Now it burned like a living storm.
Light spread across my arms in thin, glowing lines—ancient patterns forming across my skin like symbols awakening from a long sleep.
The hunters reacted immediately.
All four still in the sky froze midair.
Their glowing weapons dimmed slightly.
The lead hunter standing in the courtyard lowered its spear by a fraction.
Then it spoke again.
But this time, its voice was different.
Less like a command.
More like disbelief.
“Prime origin… confirmed.”
Davies looked completely lost now.
“What the hell is a prime origin?”
Lucien didn’t look away from me.
His crimson eyes burned with dangerous curiosity.
“Something older than hybrids.”
Another shockwave exploded across the courtyard as the ancient creature slammed the first hunter through a stone pillar.
The impact shattered marble across the ground.
But the creature itself wasn’t watching the fight anymore.
It was watching me.
Waiting.
Almost reverently.
“You remember now,” it rumbled.
“I don’t,” I said quickly.
But my head throbbed with pressure.
Memories were clawing at the edges of my mind again.
Flashes.
A vast chamber of silver light.
Strange machines humming with energy.
Dozens of supernatural beings kneeling before me.
And the same hunters descending from the sky.
Burning entire cities.
Erasing entire species.
I staggered.
Lucien’s hand caught my arm.
The moment his skin touched mine—
The silver energy surged again.
Lucien stiffened.
For the briefest second, his crimson eyes flashed with silver light.
Then the energy vanished.
Lucien stepped back slowly.
“That,” he said quietly, “was new.”
Adrian stared at him.
“What happened?”
Lucien flexed his fingers slowly.
“Her power… reached into me.”
Davies frowned.
“That’s impossible.”
Lucien smiled faintly.
“Apparently not.”
Above the courtyard, the remaining hunters finally moved again.
But they did not attack.
Instead, they formed a circle in the sky.
Watching me.
Studying me.
The lead hunter spoke again.
“Directive conflict detected.”
Davies blinked.
“Directive conflict?”
The hunter’s glowing gaze remained fixed on me.
“Prime origin classification overrides elimination protocol.”
The words sank into the courtyard like a stone dropped in deep water.
Lucien’s smile widened slightly.
“Well.”
“That sounds promising.”
Adrian didn’t look convinced.
“They were trying to kill her five seconds ago.”
Davies nodded.
“And now they’re hesitating.”
Lucien’s voice dropped lower.
“That means they weren’t expecting this.”
The creature beside the fissure exhaled slowly.
“They feared this.”
I turned toward it.
“Feared what?”
Its glowing eyes softened slightly.
“You waking up.”
My stomach twisted.
“I’m already awake.”
“No,” the creature said quietly.
“You are only beginning to remember.”
Another memory struck suddenly.
This one sharper.
Clearer.
A massive council chamber.
Rows of powerful supernatural leaders.
Vampires.
Werewolves.
Fae.
Demons.
All arguing.
All terrified.
And at the center of the chamber—
Me.
Standing beside the enormous creature now kneeling in Lucien’s courtyard.
“You created me,” the creature whispered.
The memory continued.
The hunters descending.
Slaughtering everything in their path.
The council burning.
My voice shouting one final command.
Protect them.
My breath caught.
“I made you to stop them.”
Lucien turned toward me sharply.
“You remember that?”
“Pieces.”
Davies looked shaken.
“You created that thing… to fight the hunters?”
“Yes.”
The creature bowed its head slightly.
“That was my purpose.”
Lucien’s expression darkened slightly.
“That implies the hunters were winning.”
The creature didn’t answer.
Which was answer enough.
Above the courtyard, the lead hunter raised its weapon again.
But this time, it did not aim at me.
It pointed toward the ancient creature.
“Guardian construct must be neutralized.”
The creature growled.
Lucien frowned.
“Ah.”
“So that’s still the plan.”
The hunter’s voice remained emotionless.
“Prime origin must be preserved.”
Davies blinked.
“They’re protecting you now?”
“That sounds worse,” Adrian muttered.
The creature stepped closer to me again.
Its chains rattled loudly.
“I was created to stop them.”
Lucien glanced at the creature.
“And how well did that go last time?”
The creature was silent for a moment.
Then it answered quietly.
“I failed.”
A heavy silence followed.
I swallowed.
“What happened?”
The creature’s glowing eyes darkened.
“They adapted.”
Lucien looked almost impressed.
“Of course they did.”
Another hunter descended from the sky.
Landing beside the first.
Weapons glowing.
Power radiating off them like heat.
Adrian stepped forward instinctively.
But Lucien raised a hand.
“Let them come.”
Davies stared at him.
“You can’t possibly be serious.”
Lucien smiled faintly.
“I want to see what they do next.”
The lead hunter spoke again.
“Prime origin must be secured.”
I frowned.
“Secured where?”
The answer came instantly.
“Beyond this world.”
Cold dread crawled down my spine.
“You’re kidnapping me.”
Davies’ voice dropped.
“That’s exactly what they’re doing.”
Lucien’s eyes gleamed dangerously.
“That would be inconvenient.”
The hunter raised its weapon toward the sky.
The glowing rift widened again.
Energy poured downward like a waterfall of light.
The creature stepped forward immediately.
“You will not take her.”
The hunters reacted instantly.
Weapons flaring.
Energy gathering.
The courtyard erupted into chaos again.
The creature charged.
The hunters attacked.
Silver light and black power exploded across the battlefield.
Lucien stepped forward.
His crimson eyes burning.
“Well,” he said softly.
“This just became a negotiation.”
Davies looked horrified.
“You’re calling this a negotiation?”
Lucien’s smile was sharp.
“Yes.”
Another hunter landed directly in front of me.
Weapon raised.
Its glowing eyes locked onto mine.
“Prime origin.”
“Come with us.”
My heart pounded.
“I don’t think so.”
The hunter raised its spear.
Energy gathered at the tip.
Lucien moved faster than anyone could see.
One moment he stood ten feet away.
The next—
His hand closed around the hunter’s throat.
The courtyard froze.
Even the other hunters paused.
Lucien’s crimson eyes burned with cold fury.
“You seem to misunderstand something.”
His voice was soft.
But deadly.
“She belongs to my kingdom.”
The hunter’s armor glowed brighter.
“Prime origin cannot belong to anyone.”
Lucien’s smile widened.
“That,” he said quietly,
“is where we disagree.”
Behind us, the creature roared again as it battled two hunters at once.
The castle shook violently.
The sky crackled with energy.
But the most terrifying moment came next.
Because the lead hunter in the sky suddenly raised its weapon again.
And aimed it—
Not at the creature.
Not at Lucien.
At the entire castle.
Its voice echoed across the battlefield.
“Final escalation protocol.”
Davies’ face went white.
“Oh no.”
Lucien glanced up.
“What now?”
The hunter answered calmly.
“Planetary purge authorized.”
My blood ran cold.
“You can’t be serious.”
The hunter’s weapon began to glow with terrifying intensity.
Energy gathered in the sky like a miniature sun.
The creature’s eyes widened.
“They’re going to destroy everything.”
Lucien’s smile slowly disappeared.
For the first time since the battle began—
The Hybrid King looked genuinely concerned.
“Well,” he murmured.
“That escalated quickly.”
The glowing weapon above the castle grew brighter.
And as the hunters prepared to unleash something capable of erasing the entire city—
The silver energy inside my body exploded again.
But this time—
It didn’t just glow.
It answered them.
And the sky itself began to change.
- Writer
