Chapter Nine: Through the Breaking Dark
1315 Words
Lena felt herself falling.
Not down but sideways, like the world had been folded and thrown.
Her fingers were locked around Kael’s hand. If she let go, she knew she would be lost.
“Kael!” she cried as darkness wrapped around them.
“I’m here,” he shouted back. “Don’t close your eyes!”
The shadows twisted, pulling at her body. Her wrist burned. The cracked Crimson Seal flared wildly, cutting into her skin.
“It hurts!” she gasped.
“I know,” Kael said. “The bond is tearing through the seal. Just stay with me.”
The darkness screamed.
Then
They slammed onto cold stone.
Lena cried out as pain shot through her back. Kael rolled beside her instantly, shadows flaring to soften the impact.
For a moment, neither of them moved.
Then Lena sucked in a sharp breath. “Are we… alive?”
Kael let out a breathless laugh. “Barely.”
She pushed herself up slowly. The place around them was unfamiliar an underground hall carved from black stone, lit by faint blue flames that hovered in the air. Symbols crawled across the walls like living things.
“Where are we?” she asked.
Kael’s face was tight. “Below the palace. The old ways.”
Her heart dropped. “The Great Seal?”
“Yes.”
She struggled to her feet. Her legs shook, but she stood.
“I didn’t open anything,” she said quickly. “I swear.”
“I know,” Kael replied. “It reacted to you. To the bond.”
A deep sound echoed through the hall.
Footsteps.
Kael turned sharply. “We’re not alone.”
Lena’s breath caught. “Eldric?”
“No,” Kael said slowly. “Worse.”
From the far end of the hall, figures emerged tall, twisted shapes made of shadow and bone. Their eyes burned silver.
“What are they?” Lena whispered.
“Wardens,” Kael said. “Ancient. They guard the Seal.”
The Wardens spoke as one.
“THE CONDUIT HAS ARRIVED.”
Lena’s knees nearly gave out. “They know what I am.”
“Yes,” Kael said. “And they don’t care if you live.”
The Wardens advanced.
Kael stepped in front of her. “Stay behind me.”
“No,” Lena said, surprising herself. “If I’m the reason they woke up, then”
A Warden lunged.
Kael’s shadows slammed into it, tearing through its form. The creature screamed—but didn’t fall.
“They can’t be killed like this!” Kael shouted.
Lena’s wrist pulsed violently. Heat spread through her arm, into her chest.
“I feel… something,” she said breathlessly. “Like the doors in my dream.”
Kael looked at her sharply. “What doors?”
“Paths,” she said. “Ways through.”
Another Warden struck. Kael barely blocked it. Pain ripped through his side.
“Kael!” Lena screamed.
He staggered but stayed standing. “Lena—if you can do something, now is the time!”
Her hands shook. “I don’t know how!”
“Yes, you do,” he said fiercely. “The magic listens to you.”
The Wardens closed in.
Lena shut her eyes.
She remembered the doors.
She reached inside herself not for strength, but for feeling.
Fear.
Loneliness.
The ache of wanting to belong.
“Stop,” she whispered.
The air changed.
Blue flames flared white.
The Wardens froze.
Lena opened her eyes. Light poured from her wrist, flowing into the floor like liquid.
The symbols around them shifted.
A door appeared in the stone.
Kael stared. “You opened a path.”
Her breath came fast. “I didn’t mean to.”
“It doesn’t matter,” he said urgently. “Go!”
The Wardens screamed and rushed forward.
Kael grabbed her hand and pulled her through the door.
The world snapped.
They stumbled out into a narrow passage, stone walls pressing close.
Lena collapsed against the wall, gasping.
Kael braced himself beside her. “You did it.”
“I almost fainted,” she said weakly.
He gave a small, tight smile. “You saved us.”
Her wrist burned again. She cried out, clutching it.
Kael turned pale. “The seal is breaking further.”
“I don’t want it to,” she whispered. “I don’t want to hurt you.”
He cupped her face gently. “Look at me.”
She did.
“You are not hurting me,” he said softly. “They are.”
Tears slipped down her cheeks. “Eldric will never stop.”
“No,” Kael agreed. “And now he knows the Seal responds to you.”
She swallowed. “Then I really am a weapon.”
“No,” he said again. “You are a choice.”
The ground shook.
Distant bells rang lower, angrier than before.
Kael cursed. “He’s activated the court.”
“Meaning?” Lena asked.
“Meaning,” he said grimly, “the entire palace will hunt us.”
Her heart pounded. “Where can we go?”
“There is one place,” Kael said. “Forbidden even to princes.”
“Then let’s go there,” she said without hesitation.
He searched her face. “You trust me that much?”
She nodded. “I chose you. Remember?”
Something fierce and tender crossed his expression. “I won’t forget.”
They moved quickly through the passage. Lena stumbled more than once, but Kael always caught her.
“You’re bleeding,” she said, noticing the dark stain on his side.
“I’ll survive,” he replied. “Focus on breathing.”
Voices echoed behind them.
“THIS WAY!”
“DON’T LET THEM ESCAPE!”
Lena’s chest tightened. “They’re close.”
Kael stopped suddenly and pressed her against the wall.
“What are you”
“Quiet,” he whispered.
The shadows swallowed them.
Guards rushed past, not seeing them.
Lena’s body was pressed to Kael’s. His breath was warm against her temple. Her heart raced not just from fear.
The bond pulsed.
Kael stiffened. “Lena… don’t.”
“I’m not doing anything,” she whispered.
“I know,” he said hoarsely. “But the bond responds to closeness.”
Heat spread between them dangerous, tempting.
She swallowed. “Kael… if this keeps growing”
“I know,” he said. “That’s why we must leave the palace tonight.”
They slipped away as the guards passed.
At last, they reached a heavy iron door etched with old runes.
Kael placed his palm against it. “Beyond this is the Veiled Quarter.”
“Is it safe?” Lena asked.
“No,” he said honestly. “But it’s free.”
He pushed the door open.
Cold air rushed out.
The city stretched before them dark towers, hanging bridges, glowing markets hidden in shadow. A world untouched by royal law.
Lena stared. “It’s beautiful.”
“And cruel,” Kael said. “Stay close.”
They stepped out together.
Behind them, far above, the palace lights flared crimson.
Eldric stood on a balcony, watching the darkness.
“She’s learning,” he murmured. “Good.”
He turned to the court mages. “Prepare the final binding.”
Back in the Veiled Quarter, Lena’s knees buckled suddenly.
Kael caught her. “What is it?”
She gasped. “I feel… pulled again.”
Her wrist blazed bright white.
Kael’s eyes widened in fear. “Lena the bond isn’t just reacting anymore.”
She clutched his coat. “Then what is it doing?”
He stared at the mark, dread in his voice.
“It’s choosing.”
The light exploded
and Lena vanished from his arms.
“LENA!”
Kael’s shout echoed through the city
but she was already gone.
- Writer
