The world dissolved into gray.
The black-flamed lanterns swayed like a thousand beating hearts suspended in the mist. Their flames hissed softly, as though whispering secrets too dangerous to hear.
And in the middle of that terrible stillness stood the woman in black.
Her form was both solid and insubstantial, her cloak shifting as though woven from the mist itself. Long, dark hair flowed behind her, trailing into smoke. Her eyes—ancient, aching, luminous—fixed first on Selene, and the warrior flinched as though struck.
"Seraphine," Selene breathed, her voice breaking.
The name hung in the air like a prayer and a curse.
---
The First Words
Seraphine tilted her head, her lips curving into the faintest smile. "You still say my name as though it belongs to you." Her voice was low, velvet, and yet it reverberated strangely, as though spoken through layers of shadow.
Selene took a half-step forward, her hand trembling on the hilt of her sword. "I thought you were—" She stopped, swallowed. "I thought I lost you forever."
Seraphine's smile sharpened. "You did."
The words cut, but beneath them Iris heard something else. Not cruelty—sorrow.
Luna pulled Iris subtly behind her, blade drawn. "Stay sharp," she whispered. "She's not what she seems."
---
The Pull of Shadows
The mist swirled, forming illusions around them—half-seen figures, shifting shapes. One moment Iris thought she saw her grandmother's face, the next, her younger self running barefoot through fields. She clutched Luna's arm, grounding herself.
But her gaze kept drifting back to Seraphine. There was something magnetic about her, something that made Iris's chest ache with a sorrow she didn't understand.
"You shouldn't be here," Seraphine said softly, her gaze sliding from Selene to Iris. "This place is no place for hearts still beating."
Selene's voice cracked. "Then leave it. Come with us."
A flicker passed through Seraphine's eyes—longing, raw and unguarded. Then, like a curtain drawn, it vanished.
"I cannot leave what I have become," she said.
---
Luna's Challenge
Luna stepped forward, sword gleaming faintly in the black firelight. "Then we'll cut through what binds you."
Seraphine's gaze shifted to her, cool and unreadable. "Ah. The protector. Fierce little flame. Do you think your love is enough to guard her?"
Luna's jaw tightened. "Yes."
The shadows thickened, curling like serpents at Seraphine's feet. She stepped closer, and though the ground did not move, the distance seemed to vanish between them.
When her eyes found Iris, something in Iris's chest lurched. It felt like being seen—not just her face, but the cracks she kept hidden, the fragile longing, the dreams she never voiced.
"You hear the whispers, don't you?" Seraphine asked softly. "They answer you because you are not bound by this world alone."
Iris's lips parted, but no sound came out.
---
Selene's Breaking Point
Selene suddenly surged forward, her blade raised. "Enough!"
The strike would have cut through any mortal. But Seraphine merely lifted a hand, and shadows surged like a tide, catching the blade mid-swing. The sword froze inches from her chest.
"Still so quick to raise steel," Seraphine murmured. Her eyes softened, achingly tender. "That was always your weakness, Selene. You never learned to listen before you struck."
Tears glimmered in Selene's eyes. "And you never let me protect you."
The shadows tightened, forcing Selene to her knees. Iris cried out, but Luna's arm shot out to stop her from rushing forward.
"Watch," Luna hissed. "This is what she does—twists, ensnares."
But Iris wasn't so sure. The way Seraphine's hand trembled, the way her expression faltered—this wasn't mockery. This was restraint, hesitation.
---
The Touch of Shadows
Seraphine turned her gaze back to Iris, and the lanterns flickered violently.
"You…" Her voice dropped, almost reverent. "You don't belong to this cycle, do you?"
The words shivered through Iris like a forgotten memory. "I… I don't know what you mean."
Seraphine extended her hand. The shadows rippled like water, beckoning.
"I could show you," she whispered. "The truth that even she—" her gaze flicked to Selene "—never dared face."
Luna pulled Iris close, her grip fierce. "Don't you dare."
For a moment, Iris's heart raced in confusion. Part of her wanted to recoil, but another part—a quieter, deeper part—felt the pull. A promise of answers, of understanding.
---
Between Love and Darkness
"Why are you doing this?" Iris burst out, her voice trembling but strong. "If you wanted us dead, we'd already be gone. What do you really want?"
Seraphine's expression wavered. Her shadows dimmed for a moment, as though the question pierced something beneath the surface.
"I want…" Her voice faltered, then steadied. "I want what was taken from me. What this world stole. What Selene failed to save."
Selene's strangled cry echoed through the mist.
Luna's arm tightened around Iris, but Iris gently touched her hand, grounding her. "Let me try," she whispered.
Luna's eyes blazed with worry, but she nodded—just barely.
Iris stepped forward, just enough that the shadows brushed her boots. Her voice was soft, trembling, but true.
"Then maybe you don't need to take. Maybe you need to remember."
For a heartbeat, silence fell. Seraphine's face softened, her hand lowering slightly, her eyes bright with something like recognition.
---
The Cliffhanger
And then, from the black lanterns, a screeching roar erupted—an inhuman cry that shook the mist itself. The shadows convulsed violently, lashing out like a storm.
Seraphine staggered as though struck, her expression twisting in agony. "No—!"
The lanterns' flames flared higher, and the mist surged around them, swallowing Iris, Luna, and Selene in a whirlwind of darkness.
The last thing Iris saw before the world vanished was Seraphine's face—torn between love and ruin, reaching toward her as though she were the only anchor left.