SCARLETT
The forest trembled like a living thing.
Beneath our boots the snow shivered, cracking into spiderweb patterns that glowed red from within. A low, endless rumble rolled through the ground, deeper than thunder, older than stone. The bloody light on the horizon surged higher, curling into the night like a second dawn.
The First One was no longer a myth.
Kael moved in front of me instantly, fire already haloing his body. “Stay behind me, Scarlett.”
Darius joined him, lightning wreathing his arms, eyes narrowed at the spreading crimson fissure. “It’s bigger than Blackridge Keep. Bigger than anything I’ve ever felt.”
Lucien’s presence folded the air around us, shadow thickening until the trees blurred into a dim silhouette. “It’s not size you should fear,” he murmured. “It’s int
