The stone chamber was deathly still, deep beneath the ruined castle where light dared not breathe. For centuries, time had curled around him like a serpent, binding him in silence and blood-soaked memory.
Lucian. The name itself was a ghost, whispered only in fear or legend. A vampire so old that even the elders forgot his origins. A king before kings. A monster to some. A god to others. And now...
Awake.
It wasn't a touch or a spell that shattered his slumber. It was a scream. Not of terror, but of power. A call that sliced through the void like a blade of moonlight. It was layered, haunting. A siren's wail, a wolf's fury, a vampire's rage.
And her scent.
Lucian gasped awake like a drowning man breaking through ice. His body seized before relaxing into tense awareness. Dust disintegrated from his skin. His eyes opened, silver and glowing like dying stars.
Her scent was still there, twined with the scream, clinging to his awakening. Sweet. Wild. Familiar.
Mate.
He sat up slowly, the stone beneath him groaning under centuries of forgotten weight. His veins throbbed, thick with reawakened magic. The runes carved into the walls had failed burned out from the force of her call.
"Katherine," he whispered, the name rolling off his tongue like a prayer and a curse.
He saw her. Not clearly flashes. A girl with fire in her eyes and shadows in her bones. A siren voice that bled from her throat. A wolf crouching behind her ribs. And deep in her heart, the echo of a vampire's hunger.
She was the one who broke the seal. His mate. His equal.
Lucian rose, dust and darkness shedding off his bare chest. The ancient markings tattooed into his skin, marks of loyalty, betrayal, and power glowed faintly. He flexed his fingers. Magic hummed beneath his skin, crackling like lightning reborn.
He staggered for a moment, then steadied himself. His strength wasn't gone it had only been waiting. Waiting for her.
A deep, low growl rumbled from his chest. Not of anger. But of need.
"I'm coming for you," he said into the dark. "Nothing will keep me from you now."
He stepped through the crumbling threshold of his tomb, bare feet silent against cold stone. The old castle creaked around him, walls aching with forgotten memories.
Outside, the wind howled. The sky churned with black clouds and silver lightning.
Lucian's eyes lifted. He could feel her. North. Her energy curled across the land like a storm seeking its center.
Mate.
He'd loved before. Or thought he had. But this, this bond was more than blood. It was ancient. Inevitable. Twisted into his very soul like a scar meant to burn for only one.
He would find her.
And if anyone stood in his way be it Lycans, witches, kings or gods he would tear down the sky to reach her.
For Katie was his salvation and his ruin. His eternity dressed in mortal flesh. And the world had no idea the kind of chaos waking her had unleashed.