THE THORN

Chapter One: The Thorn Seraphina’s POV The angel was begging before I even drew my blade. Pathetic. I stood beneath the dead branches of an ancient oak, watching him kneel in the mud. His once white robes were stained with blood, his silver wings dragged across the forest floor, and his golden eyes darted between my dagger and the shadows behind me. “Please,” he whispered. “You don't understand. I had nothing to do with the massacre.” I tilted my head. “That's interesting.”Hope flickered across his face. I smiled. “Because every angel I've killed in the last eleven years has said exactly the same thing.” His expression crumpled. Thunder rolled across the night sky as thorned vines tightened around his wrists. The forest smelled of rain, damp earth, and blood. My magic had always been particularly fond of liars. Unfortunately for him, so was I. My “Tell me who sent you,” I demanded. “I told you. I came alone!” The thorns pierced his sleeves, drawing a cry from his lips. I sighed. “Lying makes this unnecessarily difficult for both of us.” “I swear by the Celestial Throne—” “Shut up!” My voice sharpened. “Don't swear by a throne that has spent centuries allowing monsters like you to hide behind its name.” Suddenly, I wasn't beneath the oak tree anymore. I was standing in the ruins of my childhood home, watching flames devour the royal banners of Aurelith. I could hear screams echoing through the palace corridors and smell the smoke that had filled my lungs as I crawled through the wreckage, searching for two people who would never answer me again. My father's crown lay abandoned in the dirt. My mother's blood stained the marble. And above them, black wings spread against the burning sky. Lucien Veyr. The fallen angel who had murdered my parents. The monster who had taken everything from me. I had been fourteen when he destroyed my world. I was twenty-five now, and I was still hunting his kind.“Princess?” The angel's voice dragged me back to the present.I went still. Slowly, I lowered my gaze to him. “What did you call me?” He swallowed. “Your Highness, I—” I seized his robes and dragged him closer. “Who told you who I was?” “No one. I recognised your magic.” My grip tightened.His gaze dropped to the black thorns curling around my fingers. “The Thorn,” he whispered the name had travelled through taverns, royal courts, and angel strongholds until even creatures who had never seen my face knew to fear it. I released him,“Then you know what happens to angels who come looking for me.” “You're making a mistake.” I laughed softly. “That's what my kind said eleven years ago.” I raised my dagger, The forest fell silent. Moments later, the angel's body dissolved into the wind, leaving only a few silver feathers scattered across the mud. “That was dangerous, Phina!”Nicole's voice broke through the silence. Rain soaked her white floral dress as she threw her hands into the air. “One of these days, you're going to get yourself killed, and I swear to the Mother Goddess, I'm not spending the rest of my life mourning your stubborn arse.” I sheathed my dagger.Another angel gone. Another useless corpse. And still, the man I wanted most remained beyond my reach. “I need to find him,” I muttered. “I can't keep living like this.” Nicole's smile disappeared. “Seraphina.”I hated when she used my full name. It usually meant she was about to say something I didn't want to hear. “Please don't,” I begged. “Don't what? Remind you that you've spent years chasing an angel who could crush you without breaking a sweat?” I turned towards her. “Would you prefer I remind you that the last time you infiltrated an angel stronghold, you came back with three broken ribs and a hole in your shoulder?” “That was two years ago.” “And apparently, you haven't learned a damn thing since.”I rolled my eyes and headed towards the horses waiting beyond the trees. Nicole followed. “You know what your problem is?” she asked. “I have several. Be specific.” “You think killing him will bring your parents back.”I stopped walking. Rain pattered against the dead leaves, filling the silence between us. “Don't you dare tell me what I think.” “Then stop making it so painfully obvious.”Her voice had lost its teasing edge. Nicole had been my friend since childhood. She had held me through nights when nightmares made me feel fourteen again and stood beside me when the court whispered that the surviving Thornvale princess had become too dangerous to approach. She knew exactly what Lucien had taken from me.Perhaps that was why her words hurt so much. “I don't expect them to come back,” I said quietly. “I just want him to understand what he took from me.” “Phina—” “I want him to look me in the eyes when I end him. I want him to know that the little girl he abandoned in those ruins survived.” For years, I had imagined that moment. Sometimes, I pictured Lucien kneeling before me, his black wings broken and his golden eyes stripped of arrogance. Other times, I imagined nothing at all.Nicole stepped closer and squeezed my arm. “And what happens after you kill him?” I stared at her. “What will you do when Lucien Veyr is dead?” I opened my mouth, but no answer came. I would destroy every angel who had participated in the m******e. I would dismantle Heavenfall's corrupt hierarchy and ensure no other child suffered what I had endured. But after that?I had never considered what came next.I pulled my arm from Nicole's grasp.“Let's go.” She sighed. “Why have a meaningful conversation when you can run away from it?” “Keep talking, and I'll leave you here.” “You wouldn't dare.” I gave her a sweet smile. “Try me.” We mounted our horses, and Nicole adjusted her reins.“There was a message at the safe house.” I glanced at her. “What message?” “Your aunt sent a royal messenger looking for you.” My fingers tightened around the reins.“Isolde?” “Unless you've acquired another aunt without telling me, yes.” “What did she want?” “She ordered you to return to the palace immediately.” “Did she say why?” “No. But she sent three royal guards to find you.” That made me stop. Aunt Isolde preferred manipulation through carefully worded letters and expensive political dinners. Sending armed guards into the forest was practically a declaration of war. Something was wrong. “I also heard the delegation from Noctis has arrived,” Nicole added. My stomach twisted.“Noctis?” She nodded. “The fallen angels' delegation. Apparently, their lord is among them.” The world narrowed to three words. Their lord, Lucien.My fingers tightened around the reins until the leather creaked.“Why is he here?” “How the hell would I know?” Nicole replied. “Perhaps he's finally decided to surrender. Personally, I'd prefer he did so somewhere convenient. Somewhere with a dungeon and a nice, sturdy pair of chains.” I barely heard her. Lucien Veyr was in Aurelith. The same kingdom he had invaded eleven years ago. The same kingdom where he had slaughtered my parents and destroyed my childhood. And now, he had the audacity to walk into my home as though their blood had never stained its floors.A cold, familiar rage unfurled inside my chest. I turned my horse towards the palace.“Let's go,” I said. Lucien Veyr had finally come within my reach. Today, I would make him pay.