All Chapters of The Goddess Vessel: Chapter 51 - Chapter 60

Vanessa's P.O.V.I screamed and my eyes shot open. I frantically looked at the window ledge but there was no raven. Everything felt so real and I don't recall falling asleep. My heart kept pounding in my chest as I recalled the sentence the crow said: The curse has begun. I needed to tell Adrien about this. I rushed out of the room and ran down the stairs. Just as I was about to reach out for the door, the handle turned and Adrien walked in."Vanessa?" His voice was soft, but worried. "Are you going somewhere?""I was about to look for you." I replied, my eyes still darting around."What's wrong?" "There was a raven," I whispered. "It spoke to me."He crouched beside me. "A vision?""I think so. It was on the window ledge and it bled as it spoke." He froze. "What did it say?""The curse has begun," I said.He didn't speak for a while and then he gently pulled me into his arms."Let's rest tonight, tomorrow we'll deal with it." he said, kissing my forehead.Adrien's P.O.V"Fuck." I

Vanessa's P.O.VThe morning after Sage Nolan's visit, the house smelled of wet earth and old wood. Adrien had opened the windows to let the night's air in, as if fresh air could sweep away what had clawed at me the night before. The cool breeze carried with it the scent of rain-drenched soil, mingling with the faint must of the timbers, whispering reminders of how long the house had stood as silent witness to struggles, triumphs, and secrets. I sat on the edge of the bed with my knees drawn up, arms loosely wrapped around them. The ceramic mug Adrien had left for me sat on the bedside table, steam still curling upward in soft wisps. I found myself staring at it as though the swirling heat might form answers to the questions clawing through my mind.Adrien had stayed until dawn. He'd refused to leave my side, a silent guardian who asked nothing in return. That steady presence, the weight of his quiet loyalty, was the only thing that kept the tremor in my hands from becoming an outright

Vanessa's P.O.VThe ache of last night's exertion lingered like an old wound. It did not sit only in my muscles but in the fragile places-behind my eyes, at the base of my throat, in the heaviness that weighed my bones. Every breath felt borrowed. Yet when I looked around the packhouse, heard the laughter that rose cautiously over bowls of stew, I knew survival had been purchased, and that mattered more than my weariness.I sat among them though my appetite failed me. The stew smelled of garlic and venison, but each spoonful turned to ash on my tongue. I forced myself to swallow what I could, not wanting to appear ungrateful. Children darted between benches, their shrill laughter a reminder of what had almost been lost. The sight alone pressed against my chest until it hurt.For the first time since my arrival, not every face turned from me with suspicion. Some even offered tentative nods, as if unsure whether to thank me or fear me. It was a fragile acceptance, cracked and unsteady,

VANESSA'S POVMy warning scream was still echoing in the sacred clearing, a raw and desperate sound swallowed by the river's rush. For a heartbeat, nothing happened. The world seemed to hold its breath.Then, the shadows themselves moved.They melted from between the ancient trees on the far bank, a dozen figures clad in robes of matte black that drank the light. Their faces were hidden deep within their hoods, but I didn't need to see their eyes to feel the cold, predatory intent rolling off them in waves. It was a physical pressure, a suffocating weight that pushed the air from my lungs.And on their hands-on every single hand-the same cruel, silver crescent moon glinted. The symbol from my nightmares. The symbol of the Shattered Moon.Adrien moved faster than thought. A savage growl ripped from his throat, a sound of pure, unadulterated fury that was more beast than man. In one fluid motion, he shoved me behind him, placing his body as a living shield between me and the emerging th

VANESSA'S POVThe silence in the cell was absolute, a heavy, smothering blanket that seemed to absorb even the sound of my own ragged breathing. The leader's words echoed in the hollow space, a death sentence wrapped in fanatical reverence. Tomorrow night. The full moon. The ritual.Panic was a live wire in my chest, sparking and frantic. I scrambled to my feet, my hands frantically patting down the cold, rough-hewn walls. I searched for a crack, a loose stone, a weakness-anything. But the walls were seamless and solid, the selenite veins within them humming with a low-frequency vibration that made my teeth ache and my newfound power feel distant and muted, like a song playing in another room.The door was a single slab of aged, iron-reinforced oak. No handle on the inside. No window. Just a narrow slit at the bottom for food, and a smaller, barred opening at eye level, both firmly shut.I was well and truly trapped.Tears of frustration and sheer terror welled in my eyes, but I angri