The moon hung high over Solaris, a cold, pale orb casting a silvery glow over the sprawling royal gardens. The air was thick with the scent of jasmine and moon lilies, their delicate petals glowing faintly in the dark. It was a fragrance once so familiar, so comforting—yet now it felt suffocating, clinging to the night like a memory that refused to fade.
Elyndra stood beneath the crystal willows, her arms wrapped tightly around her body as if she could shield herself from the invisible storm raging within her. The cool air didn't cause the chill in her bones—no, it was the echo of Auron's voice, still lingering in her mind.
"Then choose me."
The words had pierced her like a blade, raw and unrelenting. She could still feel the heat of Auron's gaze, the desperation in his eyes as he'd begged her to choose him. To choose love, to choose hope. But the truth was, she had already chosen. And it wasn't him.
Her fingers clenched the fabric of her gown, twisting it in her grip. She could feel the weight of the silence that stretched between them—Auron, broken and pleading, her heart, once so sure, now fractured. He had given her everything. And she? She had given him nothing. She had stood there, paralyzed by something darker, something that tugged at her soul in ways Auron's love never could.
She had let him go. Not because she didn't care for him—no, she had cared more than she had ever admitted—but because deep down, a terrible, undeniable truth had emerged: her heart no longer beat for him.
A rustle of wind stirred the trees, a soft whisper in the air. The shadows lengthened, darkened, twisting like serpents in the moonlight. Elyndra didn't need to look. She felt it—the unmistakable presence, as palpable as the air she breathed.
Kael.
His shadow fell over her, like night itself descending. A shiver ran down her spine, not from fear, but from something far more dangerous.
"You're trembling, Elyndra."
His voice—a deep, smooth caress that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up—slipped through her defenses, wrapping around her heart with the ease of a serpent's coil. He was close now, far too close, and she could feel the heat of him, like fire just beyond the edges of her awareness. His presence filled every inch of space, every corner of her mind.
She didn't move. She couldn't. Her body was frozen, trapped between the pull of desire and the heavy weight of guilt.
"I shouldn't be here," she whispered, her voice hoarse.
"And yet…" His presence moved closer still, his words dropping like velvet, "Here you are."
A statement, not a question. And the worst part? He was right. She was here. She had chosen this.
The truth, harsh and undeniable, hung between them. She had come here, to him. She had let Auron walk away, and now, she was standing before the one man who had torn her heart open and remade it in his image.
Kael stepped behind her, his breath warm against her neck. Elyndra's body reacted before her mind could catch up, a pulse of heat spreading through her chest. She fought against it, tried to remain composed, but her body betrayed her.
He reached out, his fingers barely grazing her shoulder, a touch so light it might have been imagined. And yet, it burned.
"You let him go," Kael murmured, his voice dripping with a dark satisfaction. It wasn't a question—it was an accusation.
"He was in pain," she whispered, as though that could explain the chasm growing between her and the man she had once loved.
"And yet…" His breath ghosted over her ear, his lips curving with cruel amusement. "You didn't follow him."
Each word cut deeper, sharper than any blade. Guilt was one thing, but Kael's words twisted the knife, driving it deeper into the fragile remnants of her loyalty. He knew. He always knew.
She had come here, to him. She had chosen him, whether she had realized it or not. The moment Auron had left, the moment she had let him walk away, it had been a choice—a choice she hadn't been strong enough to fight.
"Say it, Elyndra."
His voice was low, commanding, and something inside her trembled. She knew what he was asking, and she knew she couldn't refuse him. Not anymore.
She clenched her jaw, her fingers digging into her gown as if she could hold herself together. "Say what?" she asked, her voice faltering.
"Say that you belong to me."
The words fell between them like a spell, thick and heavy, and Elyndra felt them seep into her very soul. Her heart hammered in her chest, each beat louder than the last. She could hear Auron's voice in her mind, the pleading, the desperation, the love.
But it wasn't enough.
Kael's fingers grazed her throat, tilting her chin up, his touch possessive, deliberate. It wasn't rough, no—it was the touch of a sovereign handling something precious, something claimed. His thumb brushed over her skin, just enough to feel the pulse beneath it, quickening with every passing second.
"Say it," Kael repeated, his voice a dark whisper, filled with power. "Say that you belong to me."
Her breath caught in her throat, tears threatening to spill. The past clung to her like a shroud, but it was a weight she could no longer bear.
And then, in a voice barely audible, she whispered the words that had been clawing at her from the inside.
"I… I belong to you."
Kael's smile spread slowly, like the first crack of dawn breaking through the night. It was the smile of a conqueror, of a man who knew he had won.
He pulled her into him then, without hesitation, without doubt. The kiss was not gentle; it was claiming, consuming. And in that moment, Elyndra shattered—not into pieces—but into something else entirely.
She was his. Entirely. Irrevocably.
Far below, in the hidden depths of Solaris's royal archives, Auron Starfire sat alone. His armor was discarded beside him, forgotten like the ideals he had once sworn to uphold. The only light was the flickering of a candle, casting long shadows on the pages of an ancient tome. The book was old, its leather cracked with age, and its ink as dark as the despair now seeping into his soul.
The title was a cold reminder of his path—"To reclaim what has been lost, one must sever the will of fate. Let death be the key."
Auron stared at the text, his bloodshot eyes unfocused, as though the words on the page spoke to him on a level deeper than mere understanding. They spoke to the rage that had been growing inside him, a fire that could no longer be contained.
She chose him.
The words echoed in his mind, each one a nail in the coffin of his heart. He had tried to save her, to fight for her, but in the end, she had made her choice. And it hadn't been him.
He closed the book with trembling hands, the weight of his grief pressing down on him like an anvil. The gods had failed him. His kingdom had failed him. Love had betrayed him.
The anger that had been bubbling beneath the surface now boiled over, a scorching heat that consumed him whole. If he couldn't save her, then he would burn everything to the ground.
To claim her.
To take her back.
And if that meant tearing the world apart in the process?
So be it.
To be continued...