Lysandra's world tilted as Kastian's words settled in.
Kill a god?
Her whole life, she had fought to survive. To escape. To outrun the shadow of her curse.
But this—this was different.
This was war.
She folded her arms, eyes locked on his. "You're serious."
Kastian's expression didn't waver. "Deadly."
Lysandra exhaled sharply, turning away. The idea was madness. Killing a god? It was beyond reckless—it was impossible.
And yet…
Deep inside, something coiled like a serpent, awakening.
A whisper in her blood. A hunger in her bones.
You were not meant to be caged.
She had spent her whole life believing she was cursed. A mistake. A monster.
But what if she was something more?
The Forgotten God's Weakness
Kastian stepped closer, his voice low. "You've felt it, haven't you?"
Lysandra's hands clenched.
She had.
That aching pull in her chest. The way shadows bent to her will when she wasn't even trying. The way she could move between darkness like stepping through a door.
It was power. Raw, untamed power.
And if Kastian was right, it was a power the Forgotten God himself feared.
Lysandra turned back to him, narrowing her eyes. "If we're so dangerous, why hasn't he killed us yet?"
Kastian smirked, but there was no humor in it. "Because he can't."
Lysandra's breath hitched.
He can't?
Kastian lifted his hand, and for the first time, she saw it—the chains.
Faint, barely visible threads of silver magic wrapped around his wrist, glowing with an eerie light.
She looked down and felt her stomach drop.
The same chains shimmered around her wrists, too.
"This curse," Kastian said, "isn't just a punishment. It's a leash. A way to keep us from awakening fully."
Lysandra stared at the glowing chains, horror creeping into her chest.
She had lived with this curse for so long. Had felt it weigh her down, control her.
But she had never realized…
She wasn't just cursed.
She was bound.
Breaking the Chains
Lysandra inhaled sharply, shaking off the wave of fear. "So how do we break it?"
Kastian's eyes darkened. "That's what we need to find out."
His fingers brushed over his wrist, where the chains pulsed faintly. "The Forgotten God bound us so we could never reach our full power. But there must be a way to undo it."
Lysandra's jaw tightened. "And if there isn't?"
Kastian tilted his head. "Then we take our power back by force."
A dangerous thrill shot through her veins.
For the first time, Lysandra wasn't running. She wasn't hiding.
She was fighting.
And the god who had cursed her?
He would regret it.