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“The daema have always been… troublesome. Dangerous, but disorganized. For centuries, they lived in the shadows, barely more than rabid animals, but mostly keeping to themselves. None of us know how they came to exist. That is, until Pathos. He was one of the Originals. A Titan who survived the corruption process and became the first true daema—but not without consequences. His natural spirit abilities were twisted into something darker. Harsher. It gave him incredible power, but it also stripped him of everything that made him… one of us.”

I shivered, the air around us feeling colder as his words sank in.

“He wasn’t like the daema you’ve seen,” Orion continued, his grip on my hand tightening.

“He kept just enough of his humanity to become something else entirely. By the time the council realized how dangerous he was, he’d already begun his attacks on the capital.

Whole cities were razed to the ground. Families were wiped out in a single night.

He didn’t just want power—he wanted destruction.

We fought. We tried everything to stop him, but…

it wasn’t enough. His forces were relentless, and for every daema we killed, he created more. ”

Orion’s eyes flicked to mine, and the raw pain in them made my chest tighten.

“The day the Divide was sealed, a brave soul gave her life to save us. She used the last of her power to sever the connection between Titan and Earth, trapping us here and cutting Pathos off from this world. It was… the only way to stop him from taking both worlds.”

“And you?” I asked gently, hesitant to push but desperate to know more. “You and your brothers?”

His grip on my hand tightened, grounding me as much as himself.

Then he sighed, as if he was finally getting it off his chest. “I don’t know why we were sent here.

Maybe they thought we’d be safer here, or maybe they hoped we could rebuild from this side.

But…” He trailed off, throat bobbing as he swallowed.

“It’s been twenty-five years, and we’ve seen no signs of the portals reopening. ”

Gently, I squeezed his hand, unsure what to say but wanting him to feel less alone. I knew it wasn’t enough—not even close—but it was all I could offer.

“What do you miss the most?”

Orion’s expression shifted, the tension in his shoulders easing slightly as a faint smile tugged at his lips.

“The Winter Solstice. It’s the only time of year we experience true darkness.

The rest of the year is filled with endless light, but for those few days…

the whole world changes. We’d have these outrageous parties,” he said, his grin growing wider.

“My brothers and I attended every single one—ridiculous affairs that would definitely make you blush.”

I laughed, shaking my head. “I don’t doubt that.”

“You would have loved them,” he said with a wink.

“They were something else. We’d decorate our homes with glowing crystals that lit up like the stars, transforming the entire city into a kaleidoscope of light.

The feasts ran for days. Food, music, and dancing.

The whole realm felt alive, like the magic in the air had doubled just for the occasion. ”

The picture he painted was so vivid I could almost see it: Orion and his brothers in a glittering world of starlight and music, their voices mingling with laughter as they moved through the crowd.

I tried to imagine him in a setting like that—carefree and wild, his sharp grin matching the sparkle of those crystals he spoke about.

“I don’t know,” I teased. “All of you in a setting like that? It’s hard to picture.”

Orion arched a brow, his smirk turning cocky. “What’s hard to picture? Ragnar not brooding for a change, or my dancing skills?”

“Both,” I admitted.

“I’ll have you know I’m an excellent dancer,” he laughed, the sound low and warm.

“It sounds beautiful,” I said softly, my voice wistful.

“It was.”

The melancholy that slipped into his tone tugged at me.

I tightened my grip on his hand, wishing I could give him back even a fraction of what he’d lost. But the ache in his voice was deeper than anything I could soothe.

Alton Creek had been my home my entire life, and yet I’d never felt that kind of connection to anywhere before.

Seeing Orion now, with something to fight for, even if it felt impossible, sent a tiny spark of hope through me.

“I never knew my dad,” I confessed, unsure of where I was going with this.

“My mom never really talked about him, except this one night when she’d had a few too many drinks with Louise.

She told me he was smart and brave. Apparently, I get my curls from him, too,” I smiled, but it felt hollow.

“But, she never even told me his name. And then she just… left. Woke me up in the middle of the night the day after my seventh birthday and took me to Louise’s.

I never saw her again. She never told me why. ”

After a moment, he turned toward me fully, his sharp gaze softening as it locked onto mine.

“Eve,” he said, his voice low and steady, “there’s a reason I brought you here.

I told you I wouldn’t keep things from you, and I meant it.

No matter how messy or complicated this gets, you deserve to know the truth.

I blinked, startled by the weight in his words.

I knew he’d been warring with something last night, but now that he was sharing it with me, I found myself regretting asking him to be honest with me.

Was I not safer in this little bubble? Was the world not a million times more dangerous if you knew what lingered in the darkness?

He gestured to the ruins, his expression a mix of determination and something almost hesitant.

“Yesterday, Ragnar and I dealt with some daema hiding near Lewisburg, but we got more than we bargained for.” He exhaled slowly, his gaze flickering to the ruins before meeting mine again.

“We’ve known for a while that Pathos was planning something—big.

With the portals sealed, we assumed that would be the end of it.

The daema we interrogated… They are looking for someone.

Someone with the power to open the gates.

They believe someone here on Earth has the power to change everything.

And I need you to know this—because if there’s even a chance they could come after you, we have to be ready. ”

“Wait,” Something in the way Orion was watching me—a careful, measured intensity—set off a warning in my mind.

Fear curdled in my chest. I felt like the ground beneath me was shifting.

I shot to my feet, my heart thundering in my chest, as I spun to face Orion.

“You’re telling me the daema think I’m some magical gate-opener?

I burn toast, Orion. I cry over dog commercials, I mean…

fuck! I didn’t even know any of this existed before this weekend, and now what? I’m their chosen one or something?”

The laugh that escaped me was raw, bitter, and jaded. It filled the clearing, echoing harshly back at me, a sound so foreign I barely recognized it as mine.

Orion was on his feet before the laughter had faded.

“Eve, I know you’re scared—”

“Scared?” I snapped, my voice trembling along with the rest of me.

“You think I’m scared? Try completely out of my depth, Orion.

I’m not some battle-ready, magic-wielding Titan, I work in a diner for Christ’s sake!

And now you’re telling me I’m on every demon’s radar like I’m the answer to all his plans?

Do you even hear how insane that sounds? ”

Orion’s hands cupped my cheeks, his touch gentle despite the strength behind it. The warmth of his calloused fingers brushed against my skin, his gaze locked onto mine.

“I know it’s a lot. I know it’s not fair. But, Eve, listen to me. Whatever happens, we will figure it out. I’m not going to let anything bad happen to you.”

I stared into his eyes, the hue of bright springtime, searching for a crack in his resolve. There was none. He believed what he was saying. He believed it completely.

But belief wasn’t enough.

“You can’t promise that, Orion. No one can…” I shook my head, the words catching in my throat.

Orion leaned in, his forehead brushing mine and silencing the errant thoughts in my head. I wondered if he was going to kiss me again. My breath caught, my heart pounding in anticipation, but then his head snapped toward the tree line.

Every muscle in his body went rigid, his jaw tightening as his gaze locked onto something in the distance.

“What is it?” I whispered, the words trembling as I followed his line of sight, but the dense shadows of the forest revealed nothing.

“Shit,” he muttered, the edge in his voice making it sound like a threat.

My stomach twisted. “Orion?”

He twisted sharply, stepping in front of me, his body a solid barrier between me and whatever was out there. His hand shot back, pressing lightly against my stomach as he urged me to move behind him. “We were followed.”