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MALACHI

T orchlight flickered over the tunnel’s walls as they widened into a natural cathedral, its high ceiling lost in darkness. More of that phosphorescent mold clung to the smooth walls, that eerie diamond-like sparkle reflecting off a perfectly still pool in the chamber's center. I could barely breathe, the ley line's energy was so strong, the air in here reeked of misery and death. A subtle aurora shimmered in the air, drifting upwards like smoke, rippling with enough power to make the walls tremble.

Suspended above the mirror-like pool, pulsing with evil, hung a sphere of darkness, large enough to swallow me whole. That shimmering magic leaking from the ley line fed a constant stream of energy into the portal and this time, what was on the other side of that portal didn’t call to me.

Instead, something hungry watched, as if there were a million eyes inside, every one of them fixated on me. Waiting for what came next.

This was what Ravok was after.

He was planning to harness this broken power to somehow remake himself into…something else.

What, I didn’t know.

I didn’t want to know, because I was going to kill him before he could.

I took one last look at that dark portal and turned on my heel, heading toward Ravok, preparing for our final confrontation. The glamour encasing my hands gleamed in the strange light; my magic pulsed in time with the waves of energy traveling through the ley line beneath my feet.

And hidden deep inside my cloak was a secret weapon, something I’d been saving for a very long time. Without Evie’s dark fire to destroy my Maker, ancient, primitive magic would have to suffice.

“I wondered when you would arrive, Malachi.”

That particular accent I'd know anywhere. Romulus stepped out to intercept me, and I paused, keeping my expression neutral despite the hatred surging through me.

Romulus blocked the opening to Ravok’s chamber, his slight frame silhouetted against a golden glow—fire or candles, I didn’t know—his mouth set in that familiar half-smile that used to be open and friendly, but now didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Rom,” I said, my voice betraying none of my fury. “Serving Ravok seems to have agreed with you.”

He chuckled, the sound echoing in the narrow space. “Says the traitor who kept him prisoner.” He stepped forward, and I noticed he carried no visible weapons. “You owe our Maker a debt, Kai.” His eyes narrowed. “You owe him your life.”

“I don’t owe that monster a thing,” I replied coldly. “Why you decided to waste yours in his service is beyond me. I’ve spent mine figuring out how to destroy him.”

“Destroy him?” He laughed again, circling slowly to my right. I matched his movements, measuring the shrinking distance between us. “You spent all these years trying to figure out a way around that oath you swore.”

“The oath I swore to save you and Noc and Tyberius,” I reminded him.

“All you had to do was kill him. Of course, that would have meant you died in the process, and the almighty Malachi Draven would never dream of sacrificing himself for the greater good. No, you were always more worried about saving your own skin, just like you did on that battlefield.”

“What happened on that battlefield,” I scoured his face for any redeeming sign of the friend I used to know, “was grotesque. I’ve spent almost every day since wishing I would have chosen death.”

“But you didn’t. And here we both are. Why did you come, Kai?” Romulus asked, genuine curiosity in his voice. “Do you truly believe you’re strong enough to face him?”

I didn't answer. Words were Romulus's favorite weapons—he would keep me talking until he got close enough to exploit an opening.

I attacked without warning, covering the distance between us in less than a heartbeat, an illusion of silver daggers aimed for his throat. Romulus was ready, twisting away with inhuman grace, wielding that strange magic that made my bones groan when his power collided with mine.

This was almost like…he was mimicking my magic .

The walls of the passageway shook, dust and debris raining down over our heads, Romulus’s own hands now bore a set of wickedly curved blades that seemed to materialize from nowhere.

“I found these in your memories.” He sliced them through the air with barely a hiss of sound, exactly as Valaine had wielded them. “Formidable weapons, I think.”

I didn’t know what kind of magic Romulus possessed, but those knives weren’t glamour. They were real . And if he’d reached past my layers of protections that easily to see into my thoughts…

We clashed in a blur of magic and metal, centuries of experience guiding every strike and parry. My magical weapons sliced through the air where his head had been a split second before; his curved blades scraped against my reinforced shield, nearly penetrating the protective enchantments.

“Your magic is strong,” Romulus acknowledged, dancing back to create distance between us. “But it won't be enough. Not against all of us.”

We parried again, both of us spinning to avoid being sliced apart, fighting for solid footing, shoulders scraping against the rough stone walls…then Romulus’s back was to the room with the still pool.

And I was right where I wanted to be.

Right in front of him ready to drive him backwards, straight to his demise. I didn’t know what stepping into that dark portal would do, but Romulus was about to fucking find out.

And once Romulus was gone, I’d drag Ravok into that dark hole.

“How’s the ritual coming along?” I murmured, circling to the left, only to be cut off by a flash of razor-sharp silver clashing against my shield, sparks showering to the floor. “Everything going to plan, I hope?”

Something flickered across Romulus's face—satisfaction, perhaps? “Our Master’s plans never fail. He has proven time and again his vision is true, because you are here, as he foresaw.”

“Ah yes, Ravok and his amazing foresight. I’m not impressed,” I muttered, looking for an opening in his guard as he retreated another step.

“You should be,” Romulus said. “He sees everything that will happen, knows every decision you will make. For instance, I know that in a few seconds, the portal over the ley line will open. I know your woman is almost here. In a matter of minutes, she will walk straight into our trap, like a lamb to slaughter.”

I faltered, shock breaking through my carefully maintained facade. “You're lying.”

“Am I?” Romulus gestured behind him at the doorway, as the walls all around me ignited with a strange, white glow. A phantom wind blew past us, smelling of primordial rot and spent magic and something even fouler. “Look for yourself. It's already beginning.”

Cursing myself, my gaze lifted over his shoulder. I barely glimpsed the edge of the pool, but the previously still water was moving, and the air blowing from that room festered, as if something vast and ancient and utterly wrong was stirring.

That momentary distraction cost me.

Romulus lunged, piercing my shield and slicing his blade across my arm. Pain bloomed, sharp and immediate, and from the metallic taint in my mouth, the weapon had been coated with something toxic.

I spooled up more magic as I retreated, that dark presence brushing past me again, Ravok’s demanding tug redoubling. This was like being trapped between two great evils.

“You never did fight fair, Romulus. Poison? Really?”

“I'm a pragmatist,” he corrected, pressing his advantage to gain a few steps. “You should have come better prepared. You had to know you were walking into a trap.”

This time, I drew real knives, and when we clashed again, metal rang against metal, our movements a deadly dance in the tight corridor, the points of our blades catching on the low ceiling, the walls.

Blood dripped from my wounded arm, each drop sizzling when it hit the ground, as if the very earth rejected it.

“You know what's truly ironic?” Romulus continued, his voice maddeningly calm, despite our violent exchange. “How much little you have changed, Malachi.”

He leaned closer, madness dancing in his eyes. “I know the truth. You came here prepared to die to protect your pathetic humans. But your efforts are in vain. Your little pet will be the Master’s soon enough, and you…will be nothing but a memory.”

His lips curled back. “No, not even a memory. The Master will erase you from her mind, make it so you never even existed. He will make her worship him. He will break your precious little half breed, and she won’t even be aware what’s happening, because she will believe she’s in love. There’s something beautiful, don’t you think, in something so strong becoming a helpless pawn?”

His threats sent rage ripping through me, and I attacked with renewed ferocity, using every bit of my fury to drive Romulus back step by step toward that thrumming portal. One of my daggers found its mark, sinking into his shoulder. He hissed in pain, blood welling around the silver blade.

Red blood.

Not black. Doubt nipped at my memories, along with a sense of wrongness.

“You've gone soft, Malachi,” he growled, wrenching away, leaving my dagger embedded in his flesh. “But you always did care too much.”

“Maybe,” I said, drawing the ancient, specially forged blade with my good hand. “But caring makes me stronger than you will ever be.”

Romulus's eyes widened at the sight of that weapon, recognition dawning on his face. “Cold iron,” he whispered. “Where did you?—”

“I've spent centuries collecting relics, preparing for this moment,” I hissed, advancing on shaky legs. “Did you really think I wouldn't come prepared to end Ravok? Cold iron will work just as well on you, I think.”

For the first time, I saw genuine fear in Romulus's eyes. Cold iron was legendary among our kind—some said even Caine was nearly killed with a spelled metal dagger. The razor-edge of my blade, forged from a mixture of copper and iron, gleamed with a soft silvery light.

“I was saving this for Ravok, but my blade is thirsty for your blood, Romulus. I am ending this tonight, do you understand? I had no wish to kill you, but you’ve given me no choice.”

“He trusted you,” Romulus said, backing away, eyes sparking with fear. “When he made you, he saw a strength worth preserving. And this is how you repay him?”

“He made me a monster against my will,” I bellowed, a chemical sourness coating the inside of my mouth. The poison . “But I choose what kind of monster I will be.”

Behind Romulus, the pool's surface broke suddenly, writhing like the water had come alive. The chamber shook, dust and small stones raining down.

“You're too late,” Romulus grinned, blood staining his teeth. “The gateway is opening.”

He never even saw me move.

One moment I was five feet away, the next, I plunged the iron blade through his heart, the sudden impact ripping up my arm, my bones rattling from the death blow, or maybe from the poison coursing through my veins.

Romulus stared down in shock at the ornate handle protruding from his sternum—black as night, spelled to inflict death on an immortal being. Nothing could stop this now; his fate was sealed.

“I'm sorry, Rom.” The apology was dragged up my dry throat, forced over my numb lips. “I swear, I never wanted to hurt you, all those years ago. I was only trying to save you.”

“I believe that, I do.”

I caught him before he hit the floor, lowering him to the cold stones, leaving the knife in place. I would retrieve it when he was gone, and would not feel any more pain.

“You. Should. Have. Let. Me. Die.” Romulus's voice turned thready, lower pitched… wrong .

His hand gripped my arm. “And you are too late. She is already here.” His eyes— green, not gray —shifted to the ceiling. “She came for you, but she will leave with Ravok, and there is nothing you can do to stop this.”

“I stopped you. I will stop him.” Rom was lying. Evie couldn’t possibly find me across two continents and an ocean, she couldn’t .

“No, you won’t. You have already lost her. Our Master is unstoppable.” Rom’s smile faltered, his eyes glazing over, locking with mine…green… why were they green ?

Bright bottle green . Eyes I hadn’t seen in centuries, his hair turning lighter, longer, his body thickening, broader, almost bulky. His gaze softened, his expression genuinely regretful.

“Hello, Malachi, my old friend. It has been a long time since I last saw you in Rome.”

I pitched backwards onto my ass, horror and recognition clamping a vise around my shattering heart.

Through some spell or dark magic, Romulus had put his face on another’s body, the illusion so perfect even me—a master of illusion—hadn’t seen the truth.

“Noctarian?” I lunged forward, prepared to rip that hideous weapon from his chest, but my limbs wouldn't respond. The knife wasn't just a physical weapon—spelled iron was meant to disintegrate a vampire from the inside out.

There was nothing I could do. Noctarian was going to die.

“Why? Why are you helping them?”

His brow wrinkled. “Helping? I’m not helping. I’ve been a slave, ever since you swore that oath to him. You didn’t save us, Kai. You bound us to Ravok, gave him our souls to control and command. Romulus…was glad…he served willingly.” His next raspy cough brought up a mouthful of blood.

Bright, red blood . Not black, like Romulus’s.

“But I despised that monster. Thank you for releasing me, this is a good death, compared to how I’ve spent my life.”

“You never…I never knew.” I couldn’t wrap my head around this. All these years, I’d painted myself as their savior… had I really cursed them?

“I never blamed you.” Noctarian’s eyes shone, his face calm as his body began to decay, right before my eyes. “I knew why you bent the knee, because you always were a noble fool. Listen…”

I bent forward, nothing else in the world existing except for my dying friend, the one I’d killed twice over, without even knowing.

“He’s waiting, but he’s not the one who will…” His eyes dulled. “Don’t let them get their claws into you. You must leave this place, old friend. Leave before Ravok…” Another cough, hacking up blood. “Now. Run .” Then his body collapsed into a pile of dust and bone and fabric, and I turned toward where a warm, almost welcoming light glowed.

I reached desperately down the bond I shared with Evie—pouring every ounce of my strength into one final message, one warning. Don't come down here, you must return to Crimson House. You are in danger, Evangeline. All of you are in danger.

But even as I screamed my warning down the bond, I sensed their familiar presences above me. Blake's deathly shadows. Riordan's focus. Eldric's fiery power.

And Evie’s fierce determination. My Evie , about to walk straight into danger.

For me .

Despite everything I'd done to keep her safe, she’d followed me straight into this hell.

My last thought before unconsciousness claimed me was a prayer to whatever gods might listen to ruined creatures like me: Let me be strong enough to save them, even if I can't save myself.