Mag-log inRory's POV
The air was thick with smoke and dust, yet I could still smell the copper tang of blood. My own wings ached, heavy as stone, dragging behind me. Every breath burned, and every heartbeat felt like it might break my ribs.
And then I heard another voice. Smooth. Venomous. Certain.
I chained her because I love her. I hate myself for it.I never feared war.I never feared death.But I feared this.Her chains shook. Her breaths came sharp and angry.And every sound was a sword in my chest.I chained the woman I loved.And I could not breathe under the weight of it.She lifted her head slowly.Eyes black. Voice cold enough to cut spirit.&nb
Lucien watched us like we were a promise bleeding.“You cannot run from what you are. Fighting your fate only feeds the darkness.”I spun to him. “So I should give up? Let it take me? Become something hideous and call it destiny?”“Or accept who you are and become ruler rather than weapon.”“I don’t want a crown!”Silence. Thick. Violent.Kael stared at me, voice low. “You think a crown is the danger? The crown is kindness. The throne is safe. The power is what will kill you.”
“You say that now,” Dark Kael mumbled. “Until she burns you.”“She won’t.”Rory muttered, “But what if he’s right? What if my evil demands something you can’t give?”“Then I’ll give it anyway.”Her eyes softened and darkened.“You would bleed for me.”“I already did.”“You would die for me.”“I already did.”“You would chain yourse
“There is a question,” Elias said suddenly, voice shaking. “A test. To see which path she stands on.”“Do not” Kael warned, but Elias continued.“You must ask yourself one thing, Rory. Are you here to love the world… or to rule over the ashes of it?”A slow smile curved my lips. Sharp. Curious. Honest.“Maybe both,” I said.Selene’s eyes gleamed in victory.Elias paled. “If you surrender to that path, everything burns.”“Fire cleans,” I answered. 
My vision blurred black at the edges. Power cracked the ground under my feet.“Kael,” she whispered, “breathe.”“I can’t.” My voice shook. “If I let go”“You break the world.”“Yes.”“And if you hold too tight,” she whispered, “you break yourself.”I laughed. Broken. “I am already breaking.”ThenA flash of silver.A blade.&
I did not fall alone.I took the balance of the world with me.And the last thought I heard was not mine at all:Now let them fear their chosen girl.Love should soothe. Ours sharpened teeth.War did not come in music or marching boots.It came in a name.Hers.“Where is Rory? ” I demanded.No one answered. They only stared some with fear, some with hate. As if the air had changed. As i
Rory's POV The night air pressed heavy against my skin, like the world itself was holding its breath. My body still ached from the poison and the dreams, but the worst pain was inside the echo of his words. Lucien’s laughing hadn’t stopped since I woke. It curled around my thoughts like smoke I
Rory's POV The first thing I felt was fire. Not the warmth of comfort but the hot sting of something that clawed through my blood like acid. My chest heaved, though my body did not move. My lips parted, yet no sound came out. I was stuck between two worlds, the waking and the dream. And in the dr
Rory's POV The hall shimmered with golden light, chandeliers burning above long tables lined with silver plates and crystal goblets. Laughter rose around me, the sound almost too bright, too sharp, as though it covered something bad beneath. I raised my cup, trying to hide my nerves. For once, th
Elias’s POVI could still hear her scream. The courtyard was a mess, and the air was thick with smoke and the smell of stone that had been burned. She stood trembling in the middle, her hands glowing slightly, her face pale as if she didn’t even belong to this world. Also, I saw *her* for one hear







