Luna Everleigh's POV
***
Seraphine's words still echoed in my mind, twisting like a blade lodged deep in my ribs.
"You will understand soon enough. Because before this is over, I will drag you into the darkness with me."
I could still feel it. That pulse of something ancient and wrong, seeping into my skin like ink spilled on parchment. It whispered at the edges of my mind, like a voice I couldn't quite hear but somehow understood.
I wasn't just imagining it.
There was something inside me.
Something that wasn't supposed to be there.
A cold sweat traced the back of my neck as I stepped back, my breath shallow. The weight of Seraphine's gaze bore into me, knowing, satisfied. She could sense it too.
Rhydian moved closer, his presence grounding, but I could feel the tension radiating from him. His silence was sharp as a blade, his expression locked in stone.
Then, finally—he spoke.
"You were the one who betrayed us." His voice was quiet, but laced with something raw. "Not me. You."
Seraphine let out a laugh, cold and sharp. "You really want to rewrite history now?" She stepped forward, tilting her head. "You abandoned me first, Rhydian. You let them destroy me. And when I needed you the most, you left me to rot."
Rhydian's eyes darkened, his hands curling into fists. "I left you because you chose her."
A hush fell over the room.
I swallowed hard, my pulse roaring in my ears.
Morganna.
Seraphine had chosen Morganna.
She hadn't just been a victim of war. She had fought for the other side.
I could feel the way the truth settled over the others, the way the warriors around us stiffened at the revelation. Seraphine only smiled, unbothered, unfazed.
"Oh, Rhydian," she purred. "You always were good at twisting things to fit your own story."
Then she raised her hand.
The air crackled.
And the shadows moved.
—
***
To be continued...