FIVE BROTHERS MATED TO ONE (The Veil of Stars)

Chapter eight:Shadows at the gate

🌸 Chapter Eight: Shadows at the Gate

The cavern had grown too quiet.

Elara noticed it first — the way the Veilwater’s surface trembled, rippling without touch. The air thickened, pressing down on her chest.

Kael swore under his breath. “They’ve found us.”

Before she could ask, the world shuddered. A thunderous c***k split the silence as the stone doors at the far end of the ruin quaked under unseen fists. Shadows leaked through the cracks like smoke, writhing, hungry.

Riven’s playful smirk vanished. “Wraiths. A whole nest of them.”

Theron pulled Elara behind him, calm but grim. “They shouldn’t be able to pass this deep. The Veil is thinning faster than we thought.”

The brothers moved with sudden, terrifying coordination. Fire ignited in Kael’s palms, Riven’s hair lifted in the rising winds, Theron drew the cavern’s waters into a shimmering shield, and Darius melted into the growing dark, eyes gleaming.

Elara’s pulse pounded in her ears. Her power hummed inside her, restless, but fear held her frozen.

Kael barked, “Stay back—”

The doors exploded inward.

A tide of shadows poured through — hollow-eyed wraiths with clawed hands and mouths gaping wide, releasing a sound like the breaking of glass.

Elara staggered back as Kael hurled fire into the swarm, searing them into ash. Riven darted forward, blades flashing, each strike carried by the wind. Theron raised a wave from the pool that crashed down upon the invaders, scattering them.

And Darius… gods. He walked into them like a phantom, shadows bending to his will, swallowing the wraiths whole.

But for every one destroyed, two more emerged.

Elara’s chest heaved. She couldn’t just watch. Not anymore. The starfire burned in her veins, demanding release.

She stepped forward.

The nearest wraith lunged, claws outstretched.

Her fear broke. Power surged through her in a rush of light, bursting from her hands in a blinding flare. The cavern shook, the shadows shrieking as the light consumed them.

When the glow faded, silence fell. Every wraith was gone.

Elara collapsed to her knees, trembling, her breath ragged.

The brothers stared at her — not with fear, but awe.

Kael’s voice was hoarse. “You just did what four of us together couldn’t.”

Her hands shook as she whispered, “I didn’t mean to—”

Riven crouched beside her, grinning with relief. “Don’t apologize for saving our asses.”

Theron placed a steadying hand on her shoulder. “The prophecy isn’t just words anymore.”

And from the shadows, Darius’s voice, low and sharp:

“It means every kingdom will want her dead.”