THE WITCH'S SECRET

The forest was still burning. Not with fire, but with energy the kind that made Seraphina's skin crawl.

She stumbled backward, her sword still raised, trying to make sense of what Kael had just said. That mark belongs to me.

He stood there like the chaos around them didn't bother him. The crows had scattered, the wraiths were gone, but the air was still thick with leftover magic. His eyes glowed faint red, like dying embers that refused to go out.

"What did you mean by that?" Seraphina demanded.

Kael didn't answer right away. He stepped closer, slowly, like he didn't want to scare her. "That mark on your wrist. It's the Bloodbound sigil. I thought it was lost centuries ago."

Seraphina shook her head. "It's just a birthmark."

"Birthmarks don't react to demon fire," he said evenly. "And they don't appear on witches who were never bound."

She stared at the faint red symbol pulsing under her skin. It was still glowing from the fight. "Bound to what?"

Kael's eyes met hers. "To me."

For a moment, everything inside her went silent. The forest. Her heartbeat. Even the wind stopped moving.

Then she laughed once, short and bitter. "You're insane."

Kael didn't argue. He just turned away, scanning the trees. "You shouldn't stay here. More wraiths will come. They always do."

He started walking, but Seraphina didn't move. She didn't trust him, but she also didn't want to face another attack alone. Her pulse was still racing from the last one.

"Wait," she said. "Where are you going?"

"There's an old temple north of here," he replied without looking back. "It's protected by older magic. You'll be safe there until sunrise."

"Safe with you?"

He gave a faint, humorless smirk. "If I wanted to kill you, witch, I wouldn't need to wait until sunrise."

Seraphina hesitated. Then she followed.

They walked for a while in tense silence. Every few steps, she caught herself glancing at him. He moved like someone trained for battle-quiet, efficient, dangerous. His armor wasn't like any demon soldier she'd seen in books; it looked old, ceremonial, carved with runes she couldn't read.

Finally, she asked, "Why are you helping me?"

Kael's tone was flat. "I told you. You're bound to me."

She rolled her eyes. "That doesn't mean anything."

"It will," he said. "Sooner than you think."

Before she could answer, a sudden sound cut through the woods - the unmistakable crack of a branch underfoot.

Kael stopped immediately. "Hide."

Seraphina ducked behind a tree, heart pounding. Kael drew a blade from his side - dark steel, slightly curved, humming with heat.

Voices echoed through the fog. Human ones.

"...search the west side! The witch was spotted near the Hollow!"

Her stomach dropped. Hunters.

There were at least six of them, torches flickering through the mist. She recognized the sigil on their armor - the golden hawk of the Sanctum, the Church's personal witch-hunting order.

Kael looked back at her and muttered, "Stay quiet."

One of the hunters moved closer to her tree. His boots crunched the leaves, his torch lighting up her hiding place. Seraphina pressed a hand over her mouth, trying not to breathe too loud.

Then the mark on her wrist started to glow again faintly, but enough to reflect light.

The hunter froze. "What was that?"

He took another step closer.

Seraphina's heart slammed in her chest. Her magic surged without warning, reacting to her panic. She tried to push it down, but it fought back - hot, wild, uncontrollable.

"Come on out, witch," the hunter said, raising his sword.

Her hand burst with blue light.

Kael moved first. He stepped out of the fog and struck the hunter across the chest in one swift move. The man hit the ground before he could scream. The others shouted and raised their weapons.

"Run!" Kael shouted.

But Seraphina couldn't move. The magic inside her flared stronger than ever. Sparks flickered around her fingertips, then exploded outward - raw, blinding energy that shattered branches and threw two hunters backward.

When the light faded, Kael was staring at her like he'd just seen a ghost.

"What did you do?" he asked quietly.

"I-I don't know," she stammered. Her hands were still glowing.

He grabbed her wrist and looked at the mark again. The faint lines around it had spread further up her arm. "You've never used magic like this before?"

"Not like that," she said. "It's never- it doesn't-"

"Then someone's awakened it," Kael said grimly. "And that means they'll come for you."

"Who?"

"The ones who created the Bloodbound."

Before she could ask more, the surviving hunters regrouped and advanced. Kael pushed her behind him.

"Stay down," he ordered.

She didn't listen. Instead, she lifted her blade again, her pulse still racing from the surge of power.

If her secret was already slipping out, she wasn't going down quietly.

The hunters spread out fast, forming a half-circle around them. Steel clashed against stone as they drew their blades, the flicker of torches reflecting off polished armor.

Kael stepped forward, calm but ready. Seraphina stayed behind him, her grip tightening on her sword.

One of the hunters shouted, "Stand down, demon!"

Kael didn't even blink. "You first."

The nearest hunter lunged. Kael sidestepped easily, slamming his elbow into the man's ribs and twisting his sword free in one motion. Another came from behind, swinging wide. Kael ducked low, kicked his legs out, and sent him crashing into the dirt.

Seraphina watched, frozen for a second. He moved differently from any fighter she'd seen before-too fast, too precise. His strikes weren't just trained; they were centuries old.

A third hunter broke through the fog from her left. She reacted on instinct, turning and slicing upward. Her blade met his, sparks flying. The man was strong, but she'd been training for years; she matched him strike for strike.

He shoved her back. "You're under arrest for witchcraft and consorting with demons!"

She snarled, "You don't say." Then kicked his knee and cut his torch in half. The fire spilled across the ground, lighting the fog in gold.

Kael threw his stolen blade into another hunter's chest, then caught the man's weapon midair as he fell. Every movement was controlled, brutal, clean.

But there were too many. Four more shadows appeared in the trees, and this time, they weren't human.

Seraphina's eyes widened. "Kael-"

"I see them."

Demon wraiths again - drawn by her flare of power.

"Perfect," Kael muttered. "Hunters and wraiths. Just what I needed."

The creatures lunged at the humans first, tearing into them before the hunters could scream. Kael moved to intercept the nearest one, cutting through it with a burst of red flame.

Seraphina felt her mark burning again, harder than before. The heat crawled up her wrist to her shoulder, spreading like fire under her skin. Her vision flickered; colors distorted. She stumbled, gasping.

"Seraphina!" Kael shouted.

But she barely heard him. Her body was reacting on its own - the energy she'd felt earlier was returning, stronger, faster, wilder. The wraiths turned toward her like they could sense it too.

One charged straight at her. She raised her hand-without thinking-and blue light exploded from her palm.

The creature disintegrated instantly.

The blast didn't stop there. It tore through the clearing, flattening trees, scattering crows into the air. Hunters screamed. Kael shielded his face from the shockwave.

When it was over, the world went silent again. Smoke rose from the earth, glowing faintly with blue veins of magic. Seraphina dropped to her knees, shaking. Her fingers were smoking, her veins bright under her skin like they were filled with lightning.

Kael approached carefully, sword still in hand. "You could've leveled half the forest with that."

She looked up, terrified. "I didn't mean to. I don't know what happened."

"Your magic overloaded," he said. "You've been suppressing it for too long."

She shook her head. "That's impossible. I'm not that strong."

Kael crouched in front of her, his expression serious now. "You're not supposed to be. Not unless you were born with bound magic."

She stared at him. "You keep saying that. What does it even mean?"

He studied her wrist again, the mark still glowing faintly. "When two powers-demon and witch merge, they create something called the Bloodbound. A fusion. The last one nearly destroyed three realms."

Seraphina's stomach twisted. "And you think I'm one of them?"

"I know you are," Kael said. "I can feel it. The moment your magic flared, it resonated with mine."

She pulled her hand away. "Stop saying that! You don't know me."

He stood up, letting out a low sigh. "I know enough."

"Then why help me?" she snapped. "If I'm some kind of cursed weapon, why not kill me right here?"

Kael looked at her for a long moment, his red eyes unreadable. "Because you're the only one who might stop what's coming."

Before she could reply, another sound echoed through the woods not footsteps this time. Wings.

A massive crow landed on a branch above them, its feathers black as oil and its eyes glowing faint white. It wasn't a normal crow.

Kael cursed under his breath. "They've found us."

Seraphina frowned. "Who?"

"The High Circle," he said grimly. "The ones who control the Bloodbound seals."

The crow let out a shriek so loud it split the air. The ground around them pulsed once, and then light burst through the soil like veins cracking open.

Kael grabbed Seraphina's arm. "We need to move. Now!"

But the light formed a circle around them, burning bright gold. The air shimmered.

Seraphina's panic rose. "Kael-what's happening?"

"They're trying to summon you."

"Summon me?!"

He didn't answer. He wrapped his arm around her and muttered a low incantation. The mark on his wrist glowed in sync with hers, and for a split second, their surroundings warped like glass bending under heat.

Then everything went black.