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T he wind howled around us as we stood facing each other, stirring the ash that clung to my boots. My pulse still pounded from the weight of the revelation, the knowledge pressing against my ribs like a vice.

Kaelen was Blood-Bound to me. Not by fate, not by love, but by purpose .

And that purpose was unravelling.

“We have to leave now,” Azrael said, his voice a firm anchor against the storm of my thoughts. He turned on his heel, striding towards his keep without hesitation.

Darius groaned, “We’ve just been told that if we don’t fix this mess, Kaelen will be lost forever. And instead of coming up with a plan, we are just going to run straight into a death trap?”

Azrael didn’t stop walking. “Yes.”

Darius threw his hands up. “Brilliant. Fantastic. No strategy, no rest, just immediate doom.” He muttered under his breath before sighing. “Fine. But if I die because of you two, I swear I will haunt the pair of you for eternity.”

“We are going to rest, only for a moment, whilst I replenish my energy and power at my Keep,” Azrael snaps. Something is bothering him .

I barely paid attention to their exchange. My grip on the crimson tome tightened as I turned my gaze towards the horizon.

Ebonshade Keep.

Kaelen must be hiding in his castle, somewhere the Council wouldn’t step near.

I exhaled sharply and followed behind Azrael and Darius. The journey back to Azrael’s Keep was silent.

The weight of the Blood-Bound revelation bore down on

my chest, and regardless of how many times I attempted to steady my thoughts, the same truth reverberated in my mind. Kaelen was never destined to survive alone. And now he

was drifting further away.

The air grew hotter as we approached the Keep, the massive

obsidian fortress looming against the night sky. Memories, such as the kiss and the urge to go further with Azrael, flash through my mind. To completely give myself to him. How I wish that it had now happened. Now, I don’t know if we will ever be alone again.

Darius let out a groan. “You know, for once, I wouldn’t mind an actual bed instead of the ground or a patch of grass.”

I ignored him, my gaze flickering up towards the part of the Keep where Azrael and I shared the night.

As I stepped forward, a figure approached, one of Azrael’s captains, a man with greying hair and a scar that traversed his jaw.

“My Lord,” he said to Azrael with a brisk nod. “There has been activity in the barren lands.”

Azrael tensed. “What sort of movement?”

The captain’s expression darkened. “Scouts report a gather- ing near the North West of the lands, near Ebonshade Keep.

They move like the Council’s forces, but there is something different about them.”

My stomach writhed. “The darkness? Could it be? ”

Azrael’s eyes darted to me and then to Darius. “We haven’t much time.”

Darius sighed, running a hand down his face. “Of course we don’t.”

Azrael turned sharply and strode into the keep. I followed without hesitation, the crimson tome still clutched tightly to my chest.

Azrael led us to the room where me and him discussed the tome and what would be at stake.

He exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair before facing me. “You must inform me of everything the messenger said. Every word.”

I nodded, stepping forward. “He said Kaelen is breaking. The Blood-Bound curse was intended to keep him stable and preserve himself.” I swallowed hard. “And if we don’t find him before the crimson moon, we shall lose him forever.”

Azrael’s jaw clenched. “Then we shan’t wait for the Council to make their next move.”

Darius scoffed. “And what, precisely, do you propose? Shall we storm into Ebonshade Keep and politely request that Kaelen should come with us? What if he is already transitioning?”

Azrael shot him a glance. “We’re not going in blind. We’ll find a way in without announcing our presence.”

I placed the crimson tome on the table, my fingers following the runes still shifting across its cover. “The book guided us before; perhaps it can do so again.”

Azrael frowned but acquiesced. “Give it a go.”

I inhaled deeply, pressing my palm against the cover. The instant my skin met the leather, warmth surged through my fingers, racing up my arm. The runes began to glow, shifting into new patterns, with words forming before my eyes.

Darius leaned in closer. “Well? What does it say?”

The words shimmered on the page, twisting like living embers before settling into a clear message. I read aloud, my voice scarcely rising above a whisper .

“The beast is bound in chains unseen. The fortress of night shrouds his soul. Only blood will open the way.”

A heavy silence fell over the room.

Darius exhaled sharply. “Fantastic. Ominous riddles. Just once, I’d like some straightforward instructions. Something like ‘Go here, stab this, problem solved.’”

Azrael ignored him, his gaze was dark with understanding. “Blood magic, Ebonshade Keep has always been locked to those who carry the lineage.”

I swallowed hard, my fingers still resting on the tome. “But Kaelen and I are bound. My blood... might be enough to open the way.”

Azrael studied me, his expression unreadable. “It will be dangerous. Blood magic is not to be taken lightly. If this book demands it, the cost may be higher than expected.”

Darius rubbed the back of his neck. “We’re already marching into what’s likely a death trap. Might as well add a little blood sacrifice to the mix.”

I forced myself to meet Azrael’s gaze. “If my blood is the key to reaching him, I’ll do whatever it takes.”

Azrael exhaled, nodding slowly. “Then we move at dawn. We’ll need to reach the Keep’s outer perimeter before the Council’s forces do. If they’re gathering in the barren lands, they may already suspect Kaelen’s location.”

Darius crossed his arms. “To summarise, infiltrate a cursed

fortress, bypass ancient blood wards, and retrieve Kaelen before he completely loses himself. Oh, and let’s not forget avoiding execution by the Council.”

“Correct,” Azrael said. “Now get some rest. We have a long night ahead.”

Darius muttered something under his breath but didn’t argue. He turned and strode towards the hall, disappearing down the corridor towards the bedrooms.

Azrael hesitated before following. “Are you alright?” he asked, his voice quieter now that we were alone .

I looked down at the tome, the glow of the runes fading back into stillness. “I don’t know. It feels like everything is slipping through my fingers.”

He stepped closer, his presence grounding. “You’re not alone in this. Whatever comes next, we face it together.”

I nodded, the weight of his words settling into my chest. For now, that would have to be enough.

Because tomorrow, we would walk into the dark, and there would be no turning back.

The night passed in restless silence. I lay awake, staring at the ceiling of my chamber, the weight of everything pressing down on me. The truth of the Blood-Bound Curse and the urgency of Kaelen’s fate loomed over me, relentless and suffocating.

I turned onto my side, my fingers brushing the edges of the tome resting beside me. The runes glowed faintly, pulsing in rhythm with my heartbeat. Was Kaelen still in there, somewhere beneath whatever the Council had done to him? Would he even recognise me?

Or had we already lost him?

The thought sent ice through my veins. No. I refused to accept that.

A soft knock at the door pulled me from my thoughts. “Come in,” I called quietly.

Azrael stepped inside, closing the door behind him. His pres-

ence filled the space, his crimson eyes intense but unguarded. “You should be sleeping.”

I let out a soft laugh. “As should you.”

I met his gaze, searching his expression. There was some- thing deeper in his eyes, not just concern, but something else, something unspoken. “Azrael, ”

He closed the distance, his fingers brushing against my cheek, his hesitant and possessive touch. “No matter what happens tomorrow, Elara, you must know... I would tear the world apart for you. ”

My breath hitched. “And I for you.”

His lips captured mine in a searing kiss that spoke of unspoken desires and promises made in silence. I melted into him, my hands tangling in his hair, pulling him closer as if we could freeze this moment. His hands gripped my waist, anchoring me, grounding me.

When we finally pulled apart, his forehead rested against mine. “Tomorrow, we fight. But tonight, let me hold you.”

I nodded, allowing myself this moment, this breath of warmth before the storm.

But once dawn broke, there would be no turning back.

As dawn’s first light crept through the stone archways of the Keep, I rose.

Azrael and Darius were already waiting in the hall, both armed and ready.

Azrael’s expression was unreadable, but his energy was focused, lethal.

Darius looked like he’d rather be anywhere else but here, yet beneath his usual bravado, his grip on his weapon was firm.

Azrael met my gaze. “Are you prepared?”

I let out a slow breath, steeling myself. “Let’s go.”

Without another word, we set out.

The journey was gruelling, the terrain growing darker and

more treacherous the closer we came to Ebonshade. The air thickened with something unnatural, something ancient. The land’s magic seemed to twist and coil, sensing our approach.

The journey was gruelling, the terrain growing darker and more treacherous the closer we came to Ebonshade. The air thickened with something unnatural, something ancient. The land’s magic seemed to twist and coil, sensing our approach.

Azrael walked a step ahead, his focus unwavering.

Despite his usual snark, Darius remained quiet, his shoulders tense with unease.

I kept my grip firm on the crimson tome, the weight of it grounding me.

Each step forward felt like walking deeper into something forbidden, a place not meant for the living.

Azrael suddenly halted, lifting a hand. “We’re close. ”

Darius exhaled sharply. “You don’t say? The air feels like it’s trying to suffocate me.”

I ignored him, glancing at Azrael. His expression was unreadable, but the intensity in his crimson eyes told me he was already working through the next step.

“We don’t have the time to approach on foot,” he said. “The longer we stay exposed, the more likely we are to be

discovered.”

I nodded, already anticipating what he was about to do. Azrael turned to me, his voice firm. “This will not be

pleasant.”

Before I could respond, shadows coiled around us, stretching weightlessness gripped me, followed by a gut-wrenching pull as the world around us twisted.

Darkness surrounded us, thick and cold, as if the air had been stripped of warmth.

My body felt like it was being pulled in all directions at once, an unbearable pressure compressing my chest.

And then,

We landed.

The moment my feet hit solid ground, my knees buckled

slightly. Darius let out a strangled noise, staggering beside me. “I hate when you do that.”

Azrael remained composed, his gaze fixed on the structure ahead.

Ebonshade Keep loomed before us.

Even in the dim light, its darkened spires twisted unnaturally, the fortress itself looking more like a wound in the landscape than a place built by hands.

The obsidian stone gleamed under the faint moonlight, pulsating as though it were alive.

Shadows clung to its walls, moving unnaturally, shifting when no wind stirred them.

A chill ran down my spine. This place... it wasn’t just dark. It was wrong.

Azrael stepped forward, voice low. “We don’t have much time. ”

I nodded, pressing my palm against the tome once more. The runes flickered to life, shifting, forming new words across its surface.

Blood will open the way.

I swallowed hard. We were here. Now, there was no turning back.