The temple trembled under the weight of Lysaria's arrival, her presence like a storm, a fiery tide that threatened to engulf everything. Kael stood between Aurenya and the high priestess of the Glass Flame, his fists clenched, his breath heavy in the thick, stifling air. The heat of the temple rose as Lysaria's magic crackled like a living thing, and Kael could feel it against his skin, scorching, pressing in from all sides. His curse, a familiar but unwanted presence, surged beneath his skin, thrumming with intensity. It was a wild thing, uncontrollable, pressing against his mind and body, as if it knew something he didn't.
Aurenya, behind him, remained still. Her silence, a quiet echo of the storm that raged around them, unsettled Kael more than he was willing to admit. He glanced over his shoulder at her, his heart thumping in his chest. The look on her face was unreadable, a mix of apprehension and something deeper, darker. She had known this moment was coming. But Kael hadn't.
"You've made a dangerous enemy, Kael," Lysaria's voice cut through the air, cold as ice and sharp as a blade. She stepped forward, the firelight glinting off the intricate patterns of the tattoos that decorated her arms. "But I'm not here to fight you." Her eyes flickered toward Aurenya, narrowing. "I'm here for her."
Kael moved to step forward, to challenge Lysaria, but Aurenya's hand reached out, her fingers brushing his arm. He stilled, a pang of confusion threading through him. Why wasn't she fighting back? Why wasn't she more afraid? Her eyes met his for the briefest of moments, and he saw the weariness there, the burden she had carried for so long, the same burden that kept her isolated, distant.
"You're wrong," Aurenya said softly, her voice steady despite the storm of magic around them. "I'm not a weapon for you to wield, Lysaria. I'm not what you think I am."
Lysaria's eyes flashed with contempt. "You don't even know what you are, Aurenya. You were meant for something far greater than this—than whatever pathetic life you're clinging to now."
Kael's grip on his blade tightened, but his hand trembled with the strain. The curse roiled inside him, hot and unrelenting, and he fought to keep it contained. It was all too familiar now—the suffocating pressure, the waves of uncontrollable heat. It flared at the venom in Lysaria's words, his vision blurring with the raw power that pressed against his skin.
He glanced over his shoulder at Aurenya again. Her presence, her calm, made it worse. She was standing there, so much more than what she let on, and he was still struggling to understand her—his curse, a constant reminder that he couldn't keep up with the storm she had brought into his life.
"Lysaria, stop," he growled, his voice thick with a raw desperation. His curse lashed out again, as though trying to burn through his control, but Kael shoved it down. He couldn't let it take over—not now.
But the priestess only smiled, and the satisfaction on her face twisted the knife further. "You can't protect her, Kael. You can't control it." Her gaze flickered to Aurenya, her voice dropping to a hiss. "And you know that."
Kael's fists were clenched so tightly his nails dug into his palms, but it did nothing to stop the fire that surged through his veins. The curse was like a beast locked inside him, clawing to break free, to do what it did best—destroy. And Kael had long learned that when it came out, there was no predicting what it might do, no stopping it.
Aurenya stepped forward, her voice now carrying a weight that Kael hadn't heard before. "I don't know what I was meant for, Lysaria. But I know what I've become. And I'm not the person you want me to be."
Lysaria's lips curled into a smile that held no warmth, only an unsettling coldness. "You still don't understand, do you?" She turned her gaze toward Kael, her eyes narrowing in disdain. "You think you can protect her, Kael? But she's a broken thing, an unfinished vessel. A piece of something divine that was never meant to walk this earth. Aurenya, the child of gods and monsters."
Kael's heart skipped a beat. "What are you talking about?" His voice was low, dark, but the question was there. The truth he had been dancing around for so long, the truth that he had refused to confront.
Aurenya's face was a mask of sorrow now, her silver eyes distant, far away. "I was created," she whispered, barely audible over the growing tension in the air. "Not born. A vessel meant to hold something divine, something greater than all of us. But something went wrong, Kael. Something broke, and I became something… unfinished. I don't die, but I'm not truly alive either."
Kael's breath caught in his throat. "You're not a person?"
Aurenya shook her head slowly. "I'm something else entirely. Something they made to hold the power of a god, but I can't control it. I never could."
Lysaria stepped forward, her voice filled with both bitterness and satisfaction. "And now the world will burn because of it. You think you can hide from your fate, Aurenya? From what you were made to do? The Hollow King is coming for you. He always has been. And once he has you, he'll reshape the world in his image."
Kael felt a cold chill sweep over him. The Hollow King. The name alone was enough to send a shiver down his spine. He had heard whispers of the dark ruler, a being who could bend fate to his will, a king who existed beyond life and death. But never had he imagined that the girl standing beside him, the woman he had come to care for, was the key to his power.
"You're lying," Kael spat, his fists clenching once more, but this time, it was harder. His chest was tight, his body fighting the curse that raged to break free. It seethed under his skin, threatening to explode. "If you think I'm going to let you have her—"
"Then you will die, Kael," Lysaria interrupted, her voice cold and cutting. "And I will have her. I will bring her back to where she belongs. To her true purpose."
For a moment, Kael could only stare at Lysaria in disbelief, his mind reeling with the weight of her words. The truth was more twisted than he had ever imagined. Aurenya wasn't just a woman, a friend—she was a living vessel, a creation meant to carry the power of gods and monsters. And now, that power was rising, a force that could reshape everything.
Kael's curse surged within him, raw and untamed, as the pressure in his chest built to a breaking point. He could feel the fire spilling over, the heat wrapping around his heart, threatening to consume him. His teeth gritted together, but he couldn't stop it. The curse would take him if he didn't—
Aurenya's eyes found his again, but this time, there was no sorrow. There was no fear. Only a quiet resignation. She had known this day would come. She had known all along what she was, what she had been made to be.
"I was never meant for love, Kael," she whispered, her voice filled with an unbearable sadness. "But I found it anyway. And now, I have to let you go."
Kael's heart shattered, the truth crashing down on him like a wave. He reached for her, but she stepped back, shaking her head.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm sorry for everything."