THE DIVINE FRACTURE: MATES & PAST LIVES

THE PROPHECY

ELIAS

The castle was quiet that night-eerily so. The kind of silence that made thoughts louder than they should be.

Elias sat alone in the grand library, surrounded by the soft glow of candlelight and the faint scent of books, Shelves towered above him, packed with centuries of history-most of it he'd been forced to memorize, but tonight, he was reading for himself.

The book open before him was Celestial Bonds and Ancient Ties, an old and worn text that spoke of divine pairings and their connection to fate. The pages were brittle, but the words carried weight.

"A celestial bond can still be of choice, but it's also recognition. Two halves of the same soul meeting again, their essence intertwined beyond mortal comprehension."

He exhaled slowly, leaning back in his chair, eyes flicking toward the flickering firelight. Recognition. That was exactly what it felt like with Amaris. As if he'd known her beyond lifetimes.

He closed the book, but the words stayed pressed against his thoughts. "A celestial bond," he murmured under his breath. "That's impossible."

The library doors creaked open behind him, breaking the quiet.

"You're still awake?"

His mother's voice was soft-Queen Elara, radiant even in her simplicity, wrapped in a silvery robe that shimmered faintly in the low light.

"Couldn't sleep," he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck.

She stepped closer, her gaze landing on the open book. "Celestial Bonds and Ancient Ties," she said, smiling knowingly. "That's not the kind of reading one does this late"

Elias gave a faint laugh. "It feels familiar somehow. The stories, the connections. I can't explain it."

Elara tilted her head, studying him the way only a mother could. "This is about someone, isn't it?"

He hesitated, then nodded. "Her name's Amaris. She's human-or at least, I think she is. But when I'm near her, it's like I've met her before. It's a pull I can't reason through. A bond that shouldn't exist."

At her silence, he frowned. "You know something."

Elara exhaled softly, the warmth in her eyes dimming into thought. "Amaris," she murmured, testing the name like it carried old weight. "That name echoes through our history. Our bloodline's story isn't as clean as it's been written."

She walked toward one of the high shelves and pulled free a large leather-bound tome. Its cover was cracked and gilded with an ancient crest-their family's. She set it gently before him and opened to a section near the middle.

There, in faded ink, was a painting of a dark-haired man with golden eyes, standing proudly in armor marked with celestial insignias. He bore Elias's face-or what could have been a reflection of it, centuries removed.

Elias felt his stomach twist. "He looks like me."

"Your ancestor," Elara said quietly. "Prince Arion Malek. He was one of the Celestial Royals who helped lead the final battle during the Great War. The one that ended the uprising."

"The uprising," Elias repeated slowly. "You mean the war that destroyed Iris."

Elara nodded, her voice soft, almost mournful. "Yes. Iris was powerful, revered even-but she stood against the council's decision to destroy what they couldn't control. Many of those who fought against her believed they were saving balance. But history... is not always merciful."

Elias stared at the portrait, the weight of it sinking deep into his chest. "So if this bond I feel with Amaris is real," he said quietly, "it means our family helped destroy hers."

Elara didn't answer right away. She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder instead. "Our pasts are intertwined more than we understand. Maybe, what was once divided may now be seeking to mend itself through you both. It doesn't have to be a bad thing."

He looked down at the table, jaw tightening. "How do I tell her that the blood in my veins once fought hers? That my ancestor might've been part of her pain?"

"You don't," she said softly. "Not yet at least, The truth will surface when it's meant to. Until then, trust what you feel, even if it frightens you."

Elias stared again at Arion's painted face-his mirror image bound to a history of both honor and bloodshed. The irony stung.

Every word on celestial bonds, prophecies, and the Divine fracture pulled him deeper into a truth he already feared.

The chosen shall be bound to the blood of her destroyer, now turned protector...

He'd read the phrase in three different translations already, and each time it echoed like a warning.

His hand brushed over the page, tracing the old runic symbols that described the connection of souls through divine design. The more he read, the more impossible it seemed - and yet, it explained everything he'd felt since meeting her. The warmth. The pull. The recognition that made no logical sense.

He leaned back, exhaling. "Of all the people in this realm..." he muttered under his breath.

Elias turned, a wry smile tugging at his lips as his mother, Queen Elara, his mother, carried the kind of calm that silenced a room without effort. Her golden eyes, the same as his, softened when they met his.

So planning on spending all night with these books? His mom asks.

He huffed a quiet laugh. "I just can't seem to find answers anywhere else."

She stepped closer, curiosity in her tone. "Answers to what?"

Elias hesitated. He didn't usually tell her everything - his mother was sharp, insightful, and had a way of reading him too easily. But this time, he couldn't hide it.

"The way I feel about her," he said finally, voice low. " I can feel something - like... a thread."

Her expression didn't change, but the faintest flicker of surprise crossed her eyes. "A bond."

He nodded. "It feels like it. But that shouldn't be possible, at least not this kind."

Elara sighed softly, flipping to another page.

"I have another page to show you" she said quietly.

Elias froze. The man's face - strong jaw, familiar eyes - it was almost like looking into a mirror blurred by time. "They look..."

"Like you and Amaris, The Woman you've met," Elara finished softly. "And that guardian beside him - that's Iris. The one who defied the order. The one who began the fracture."

Elias's stomach twisted. "Then if what I feel is real... if she's tied to that bloodline..."

"Then history has a cruel sense of humor," Elara murmured, closing the book gently. "But perhaps that is the point. What was once destruction may now become restoration."

He stared into the flames, his voice quiet but heavy. "Our family helped destroy hers, Mother. If this bond is real, it's not fate - it's punishment."

"No, Son," she said, touching his shoulder with tenderness. "It's balance. The Divine does not bind souls to suffer - only to heal. You may be your ancestor's mirror, but that does not mean you must repeat his story."

Elias looked back toward the fire, his thoughts consumed by the image of Amaris - her voice, her guarded warmth, the way her eyes held a familiarity he couldn't explain.

When Elara left, he lingered, tracing the edge of the old parchment as the firelight dimmed. The words from his book echoed back at him-recognition beyond mortal comprehension

"If this is destiny," he whispered, "then why does it already feel like a tragedy waiting to happen?"

He didn't know if he was meant to protect her or destroy everything they were trying to preserve.

But deep down, he already knew - whatever bound them wasn't chance.

It was destiny rewriting itself.