CHAPTER 9- THE VOICE IN THE DARK
1100 Words
CHAPTER 9: THE VOICE IN THE DARK
Seraphine
Darkness.
Not the darkness of night.
Not the darkness behind closed eyes.
This was different.
It stretched endlessly in every direction, swallowing everything around me until I couldn't tell where I stood... or if I was standing at all.
There was no wind.
No sound.
No warmth.
No cold.
Just... nothing.
A knot formed in my chest.
Where am I?
I looked around, but all I saw was an endless sea of black.
No walls.
No ceiling.
No floor.
Had I... died?
The thought sent a chill through me.
"No..."
I shook my head violently.
"This can't be..."
The last thing I remembered was rushing toward the restroom.
Then...
I had crashed into someone.
Silver eyes.
The scent of cedar.
Professor Darius Ravencrest.
After that...
Nothing.
Silence swallowed me once again.
My heartbeat quickened.
"Hello?" My voice echoed into the endless void.
No answer.
I turned in slow circles, hoping to find even the tiniest hint of life.
Nothing.
The emptiness was suffocating.
Then—
A familiar voice broke the silence.
"Took you long enough."
I froze.
My breath caught.
That voice...
It was the same one I'd heard inside the auditorium.
Slowly, I turned toward the sound.
"Who's there?" I demanded, trying to keep my voice steady despite the fear creeping into my heart.
A soft laugh echoed through the darkness.
The kind of laugh that sounded both amused... and affectionate.
"Oh?"
"So now you want to know who I am?"
My brows knitted together.
"Show yourself!"
"For someone who kept me waiting for twenty years..." the voice teased, "...you're awfully impatient."
Twenty years?
"What are you talking about?"
No answer.
Instead...
A tiny silver light flickered in the distance.
It was no larger than a firefly.
It hovered in the darkness for a moment before another appeared.
Then another.
And another.
Within seconds, countless silver lights floated through the endless void like stars descending from the heavens.
They danced around me, illuminating the darkness with a soft, moonlit glow.
My eyes widened in wonder.
The lights slowly gathered together.
One by one...
They merged.
OpThe glow grew brighter.
Brighter.
Until I had to shield my eyes with my hand.
When the light finally faded...
A graceful silver wolf stood before me.
She wasn't frightening.
She wasn't ferocious.
She was breathtaking.
Her sleek silver fur shimmered like moonlight on fresh snow, and her intelligent eyes glowed with a warmth that felt strangely... familiar.
She tilted her head ever so slightly, studying me with an expression that looked suspiciously like amusement.
Then she smiled.
"Well..."
"I was beginning to think you'd never find me.”
The silver wolf stood before me, her sleek fur shimmering beneath the moonlit glow. She tilted her head, studying me with amused silver eyes.
For a long moment...
Neither of us spoke.
Finally, I broke the silence.
"W-Who are you?"
The wolf smiled.
"Take a guess."
I frowned.
"I... don't know."
She let out a soft chuckle.
"I'm the voice that's been arguing with you since yesterday."
My eyes widened.
"You..."
"Finally." She sighed dramatically. "I was beginning to think you'd never figure it out."
I stared at her in disbelief.
"So... you're real?"
"As real as you are."
My lips parted.
"Wait..."
A thought suddenly crossed my mind.
"Does that mean..."
I hesitated before asking the question that had been tormenting me.
"...I'm really a she-wolf?"
The silver wolf's ears twitched.
Then she burst into laughter.
Not a terrifying laugh.
A bright, melodious laugh that echoed through the endless darkness.
"Oh, Moon Goddess..." she said between laughs. "Now that's the first sensible question you've asked since we met."
I folded my arms.
"Stop laughing and answer me."
She gradually composed herself, though a smile still lingered on her face.
"Yes."
"You are."
I blinked.
"I'm... a she-wolf?"
"Not just any she-wolf."
She stepped closer until only a few feet separated us.
"You are Seraphine Veyra."
"The rightful heiress of House Veyra."
"The bearer of the Moon Sight bloodline."
"And..."
She smiled knowingly.
"My human."
I stared at her.
"My... human?"
She dipped her head gracefully.
"My name is Lyra."
She held my gaze as the weight of her next words settled between us.
"And yes..."
"I'm your wolf.”
The smile on Lyra's face slowly faded.
For the first time since we'd met...
Her silver eyes softened.
I looked at her, countless questions swirling in my mind.
"If you're really my wolf..."
My voice trembled.
"...then where were you?"
Silence.
"You said you've been waiting for me for twenty years."
I swallowed hard.
"So why didn't you come sooner?"
My eyes burned.
"Why didn't you appear in my previous life?"
A bitter laugh escaped my lips.
"When I was abandoned..."
"When I was betrayed..."
"When I stood alone before thousands of people waiting to watch me die..."
My voice cracked.
"Where were you?"
Lyra lowered her head.
For a long moment, neither of us spoke.
When she finally looked at me again, there was sadness in her eyes.
"I was here."
She gently placed a paw against her chest.
"Sleeping."
I frowned.
"I don't understand."
"You weren't ready for me."
My brows knitted together.
"I wasn't... ready?"
She nodded.
"Our kind is different, Seraphine."
"I am not simply awakened because you're born a she-wolf."
"I awaken when your soul is ready to accept me."
I stared at her in confusion.
"But why now?"
A small smile returned to her face.
"Because your heart finally opened the door."
"My heart?"
"Yes."
"In your previous life..."
"You chased fate."
"You believed your happiness could only exist beside someone destiny handed to you."
"Kieran Blackthorn."
I lowered my eyes.
"I loved him..."
"I know."
"You gave him your trust."
"Your loyalty."
"Your heart."
"And he shattered all three."
Tears gathered in my eyes.
"I died because of him."
"No."
Lyra gently interrupted.
"You died because you trusted the wrong person."
She took another step toward me.
"But this life is different."
"You've stopped chasing fate."
"You've started choosing with your heart."
I looked up at her.
"So..."
"That's why you woke up?"
Lyra smiled warmly.
"Yes."
"I awakened because..."
"...for the first time..."
"...you unknowingly acknowledged the man your soul has loved all along."
"Darius Ravencrest."
His name echoed through the endless darkness.
My heart skipped a beat.
"So all this time..."
"You were waiting for me?"
Lyra nodded.
"I never left you."
"I was always here."
She gently touched my forehead with her nose.
"I was simply waiting..."
"...for you to find your way back to me.”
- Writer
