ログイン~ODETTEA smile slowly settled on my face at Lyora’s decision.“No!” Ried cried out, killing my smile.Before I could say anything he grabbed Lyora’s hands. And the worry that danced in his eyes, made me pause.“You can’t seriously accept this! What if Varek hurts you?” he let out.“I don’t see another way, Ried… this is all we can do for our children…” Lyora replied.As I watched their exchange, I felt a tug of amusement on my lips.The two of them certainly had more going on in their hearts.But as much as I was enjoying their banter, the world needed me to act— and that included dragging them to perform their roles!“Then it is settled!” I exclaimed, clapping my hands to ultimately gain their attention as I began to walk. “Lyora will pretend to run through the barrier.”“Won’t that draw the boys?” Ried asked.“Obviously that’s the goal,” I said with a roll of my eyes. “Once they bring you to Varek, I’ll keep him distracted and you will have the window to attack.”“That should work,
~ODETTEA failed King. A desperate mother. And a stupid witch!I could not believe my very own decisions even as I stared down at them.How did I— the high priestess— end up collaborating with such puny creatures again?“Odette,” Lyora’s gasp suddenly dragged me out of my thoughts.Her face pulled into an awkward mix of relief and shock. “I didn’t expect you to wait here… for us.”My irritation sharpened. “I knew you would take a different route. One only the stupid witch knows!”Before any of them could even understand my move, I went straight to the idiot and grabbed her neck!“You!” I snarled, raising her above the ground. “You helped in creating this mess and dared to run when I came to you!”The girl blinked her blank eyes and I saw the remorse in them. But it wasn’t enough!“It was you who wasted all my efforts in trying to keep Varek buried! You directly helped him get back to the world and now see what happened!”As my voice rose, it broke off Ried and Lyora from the shock my
~NYRADarkness suddenly consumed Sylver and I. I didn’t try to break away.I closed my eyes and held him close as he cried. And when the darkness eventually faded, we were back at the Wraiths’ cave.Sylver was no longer hanging against the vines. He was in my arms and we were hugging each other. Just like we were in that burning court.Relief cascaded through me like a river and I felt my body shaking with excitement as I hugged him even tighter.“Sylver, you did it!” I whispered against his neck.In response, he gently pulled back, a smile stretched as he held my face. “Yes, Nyra… I did it.”Butterflies fluttered inside of me at the intensity of his gaze… and the way he was holding my face…It was a moment I never thought Sylver and I could share. He wasn’t one to show affection— no, he would rather punish me than show how much he loved me.But this Sylver, he wasn’t ashamed to look into my eyes and smile…“Oh Sylver…” I whispered as a single tear trickled down my face.And without a
~LYORA“We need to poison him,” Kalista repeated her suggestion despite the shock etched on everyone’s faces.I tried to take it in but I just couldn’t.“That will kill him,” Ried growled, turning to face me. “And our children.”“Yes,” I quickly agreed with him, “Odette mentioned that killing Varek will only be our undoing. The boys will go berserk!”“That’s not what I am talking about,” Kalista corrected, her firm voice tripping the tempo in my chest.“Giving the monster poison— if it’s even possible— will kill him, no?” Nathan slipped in.“No, the kind of poison I am talking about won’t kill him,” she replied. “It will only stop him from being strong enough to hold the convergence in place—”“By convergence you mean this thing he has going on with my sons, right?” Ried cut in.Kalista’s eyes narrowed as if Ried’s interruption had raised a nerve.I was almost expecting her to flare up at him but instead, her cold eyes only rolled in irritation before she continued;“This will snap th
~NYRAThe vines took me to a place of total darkness.Everywhere I turned was dark. There was nothing around me— at least nothing I could see nor hear.The silence was as void as the darkness. There were no screeching cries from wraiths. Nothing at all.Was this another illusion to try and stop me from reaching Sylver?“It has to be an illusion,” I concluded to myself as I slowly lowered myself to the ground.Maybe, if I stayed focused enough, I could find the exit, just like I did with Rylan’s.But as I sat scanning the darkness, I couldn’t help but wonder just how powerful Varek truly was…How could he hold so many cells and illusions in his head?And all the while he was still quite active in the real world right now… how?He was truly powerful… because how else could I even explain all these—My thoughts suddenly stopped as my eyes caught something.A flicker in the darkness.Instantly, I jumped to my feet and started towards it. Whatever it was— had to lead somewhere.And eventua
~SYLVERMy eyes opened and I realized that I was sitting on a burning throne.My insides stiffened at the shock of what I was seeing.Blazing fire oozed from every side of the throne like it was being fed by the very gold that made up the seat.And what was even worse— I wasn’t burning along with it.It was almost like the fire was a shield… or a prison that kept me where I was.Confused, I tried looking around. But as soon as I moved, I felt the weight on my head.Surprised, I felt around it… it was a crown…What was going on? Why was I on the throne… I wasn’t the heir anymore…Father had given everything to his son… he gave it all to Lyon…Why then was I—“No! Please make it stop!” Screams suddenly filled my ears, stopping my train of thoughts.My eyes moved towards the sound and they almost popped out of their sockets at the shocking scene!They were on fire. People. Hundreds of them!They tried to get away, screaming at the top of their lungs. But the fire was like a living being
~NYRAI didn't know where the strength came from, but I felt it deep within me. It gave my knees the support they needed to keep standing even while Sylver's eyes burned over me. It was almost as if he couldn't believe what I had demanded... Almost like he wanted me to take back my words... Almo
~NYRAThe smell of old books suddenly became a long forgotten scent as all my senses burned with fear—fear of what I could be.“What if… I am an exception?" I whispered, and Cassian held my gaze.His anger was long gone and it was replaced with a distant thoughtful look. “I think we… need to do mor
~NYRATime seemed to have stopped as I stood there, glued to the wall in pure fear and confusion. Yet I didn't need clarification. It was clear that I had made a big mistake by releasing that woman— whatever she was, she was bad news.And Cassian, he was now kneeling on the ground, his fists still
~CASSIANI couldn’t sleep.I kept tossing around the bed, unable to find any sort of rest. My brain refused to shut down.Thoughts kept roaming through my head, centering around the events of the day. But the highlight was Nyra—it was always Nyra.A grin danced on my face as the image of her in tha







