LOGIN(Akira’s POV) I felt my heart almost stop when his eyes opened. Kaidën took a sharp inhale, the sound breaking the silence like a miracle. Without thinking, I lunged forward, cradling his face in my hands, terrified he might disappear again if I let go. “You came back,” I whispered, my voice trembling and raw from all the tears. “You really—” Suddenly, he grabbed my wrist, his hold tight. His fingers were freezing, like ice. “Kai…?” He blinked once, then twice. For a fleeting moment, I saw something flicker in his gaze — it wasn’t the usual harshness or even the brief tenderness I’d seen before. This was wild. Dark. Untamed. His body quaked violently, as if something inside him was trying to break free. Panic washed over me, and I leaned in closer. “Hey, hey — just breathe. You’re okay. You’re here. With me.” He looked at me, his face contorted in confusion, then pain. “A-Akira…” His voice was off. “Something’s… wrong…” I clutched him tighter. “You’ve been out for hou
(Kaidën’s POV) Darkness. Not your typical nightfall—this was different. It was dense, almost alive. It wrapped around me like smoke, murmuring things I couldn't fully grasp. My body felt weightless, as if my mind was just floating in a void where time had no meaning. I tried to move, but there was nothing beneath me, no air to fill my lungs, no heartbeat. Just silence. Then—there was a flicker. A faint, trembling light appeared in front of me. It pulsed, almost like it recognized me. I reached out toward it, but my arm wouldn’t cooperate. Every little movement sent a jolt of pain through me, as if my very soul was being ripped apart. A voice echoed in the space—deep, ancient, somewhat familiar. “You weren’t meant to survive this, Kaidën Volkov.” I froze. That voice… it wasn’t Thorne’s. It felt older. Colder. “You wielded the Moonfire without fully awakening. Foolish, yet brave.” “Who are you?” I croaked, unsure if sound even existed in this place. The light shifted, formi
(Akira’s POV) The night screamed. Steel clashed against steel. Snarls mixed with war cries, filling the air with a cacophony. Each swing of my blade cut down another Hunter, yet they just kept coming. It felt like a hive; one would fall, and two would take its place. My arms screamed from exhaustion, and my lungs were on fire, but I couldn’t afford to stop. I just couldn’t. Through the haze, I spotted Kaidën — a blur of raw energy, with his sword glowing blue from the moonfire. He was chaos incarnate, shredding through our enemies like a storm. Every move he made was a mix of precision and fury. His roars echoed across the battlefield. But even he couldn’t be everywhere at once. “Left flank! They’re surrounding us!” Lyrein shouted, his voice cutting through the chaos. He twirled his blade in a perfect arc, decapitating a Hunter that lunged at him. I jumped off my horse, landing in a crouch next to a wounded soldier. The metallic scent of blood hit me hard — some human, some not
(Kaidën’s POV) The air was thick with iron and ozone, a stillness hanging in the atmosphere before the blood would flow. I sat on my horse, gazing out at the valley ahead of us. The moonlight shimmered off countless blades, and the low growl of my warriors rolled through the ranks like a living entity. Behind me, I could hear Akira’s steady breathing. Without turning, I knew she was right there — close enough that the bond between us throbbed like a taut wire. She shouldn’t have been here. Every instinct urged me to send her back. But the part of me that had long abandoned reason just… couldn't. “Your hands are shaking,” I said quietly. Her reply was sharp yet steady. “So are yours.” I turned my head slightly to catch her in my peripheral vision. She was sitting tall in her saddle, her silver hair cascading over her armor like strands of moonlight. For a brief moment, she looked every inch the warrior I always feared she would become — untouchable. “This isn’t your fight,” I sa
(Akira’s POV) The palace buzzed with energy—the clang of steel, the scent of sharpened iron mixed with damp stone. I slipped through the chaos like a shadow, each step pulling me away from the fragile peace of recovery and closer to the war I knew was coming. The bond throbbed softly under my skin, Kaidën’s heartbeat echoing just beneath mine. No matter how far I roamed, I could feel him—his rage, his focus, his fear. It was both comforting and infuriating. I wasn’t his to guard anymore. The armor they provided was light—black leather with silver trim, tailored to my body. When I glanced at my reflection in the mirror, I hardly recognized the woman looking back. The frail girl who once bowed her head around Kaidën was gone. In her place stood someone tougher, colder—someone who had faced death and was no longer afraid of it. “Still as stubborn as ever, I see.” Lyrein’s voice jolted me from my thoughts. He lounged casually in the doorway, one hand resting on his sword’s h
(Kaidën’s POV) The storm outside just wouldn’t let up. It slammed against the fortress walls, almost mirroring the chaos inside me. Every crack of thunder brought Akira’s pale, shaken face to mind — her eyes filled with questions I didn’t know how to answer. She was awake. She was alive. And because of me… she was bound. I stood by the window, gripping the cold stone sill so tightly my knuckles were turning white. A faint blue glow from our bond pulsed under my wrist, matching hers perfectly — a constant reminder of the line I’d crossed. Behind me, I could hear her shifting — the rustle of sheets and the quiet creak of the mattress. She was still weak, trying to hide it as usual. That was Akira for you. Always fighting, even when her body was telling her to rest. “You haven’t said a word,” she said softly, her voice still raspy. “What do you want me to say?” I replied, still facing away from her. “That you regret it. That you never meant to tie my life to yours.” I closed my







