Cas had never been this cold.
Not even during last winter, when the river froze solid and the wind sliced through every coat he owned.
This was different.
This cold was deep. Inside his chest. In his blood.
It started when the bond thread went dark.
One moment it had been glowing warm and gold between him and Evren—and the next, it snapped cold like someone had dipped it in frost.
He'd been scouting the ridge, only a hundred paces from camp. Brielle had gone hunting. Evren had stayed to sharpen weapons and glower at trees. Simple. Routine.
Until the trap spell snapped beneath Cas's boots.
Until the forest floor fell out from under him.
Until the cold took hold.
He woke in a cavern of black stone and blue fire, wrists bound, magic humming through the air like static.
A figure stood over him.
Not a purger this time.
Something worse.
A Bond Severer—one of the elite.
They didn't kill bonded pairs.
They tore the thread out by force.
And left the partners screaming.
"Your bond is unnatural," the woman hissed, pale eyes glowing under her hood. "Warden-Keeper. Male-male. Tainted."
Cas smiled weakly. "Wow. You should open with that on your dating profile."
She raised a hand—and agony tore through his chest. The bond thread twisted inside him like a live wire, sparking pain across every nerve.
He screamed.
🔥 Aboveground
Evren's blade dropped the moment the bond went cold.
He didn't shout.
He didn't ask where Cas was.
He felt it.
Every pulse of pain. Every scream held back.
He ran, faster than he thought his body could move. Through the trees. Through the wards. Straight toward the fire burning through his soul.
The system screamed at him:
🔔 EMERGENCY BOND ALERTPartner Vital Signs: CriticalBond Thread Severance in Progress (14%)
➤ Skill Unlocked: Break Limit – Channel raw bond energy to surpass current class restrictions⚠️ Side effects: Memory loss. Physical collapse. Emotional overload.
Evren didn't care.
He unleashed it.
The golden bond thread exploded from his chest like a lightning strike, pulling him toward Cas, every heartbeat screaming faster.
The Rescue
The cavern doors shattered under the force of Evren's arrival. Sword blazing, eyes burning, the Warden Class surged to life like a star.
The Severer turned—
Too late.
Evren struck her down in one, clean, impossible arc.
Then he was on his knees beside Cas, hands shaking, voice ragged.
"Cas. Cas, no—look at me—"
Cas blinked. Barely conscious. Skin pale. Thread fading.
Evren grabbed his face with both hands.
"You hold on," he whispered. "You hold on to me, you stupid, stubborn idiot—"
Cas's breath hitched.
"I'm here," Evren said, voice breaking. "You're not leaving. Do you hear me? I choose this. I choose you."
🔔 SYSTEM OVERRIDE
BOND THREAD RESTOREDEmotional Sync: 41%
➤ Emergency Link Surge Activated➤ New Skill Unlocked: Heartflare – Revive partner with direct physical connection
Cas surged up like he'd been jolted by lightning, gasping—and found Evren's face inches from his own.
His hands were still on Cas's face.
His breath was shallow.
The bond thread between them blazed like a sun.
Neither of them moved.
Then—
Evren kissed him.
It wasn't soft.
It was raw. Desperate. Alive.
It was the kind of kiss people wrote songs about and then tried to burn for being too dangerous.
Cas kissed him back like he didn't care what came next.
Because for that moment—
They weren't fugitives.
They weren't bonded.
They were just them.
And it was enough to save them both.