The scent of blood hit first.
Lucien jerked upright from restless sleep, the dream of the velvet mirror fading into shadows. Outside, the night air had turned still—too still. The birds no longer sang. The fire pits had burned low. And somewhere beneath the silence…
Steel whispered.
Kael burst into the room, sword already drawn.
"They've come."
Lucien stood quickly, magic sparking at his fingertips. "Who?"
Kael's jaw clenched. "The Emperor's elite. The Bloodbound Guard."
---
1. The Red Infiltration
The Bloodbound Guard were not soldiers.
They were ghosts in armor—loyal only to the Emperor, bound by oaths older than the war itself. They bled willingly. Killed without pause. And tonight, they moved through the ruins like shadows cast by fire.
Elias met them first.
He had been guarding the outer perimeter with incense and runes, but it wasn't enough.
The first Guard appeared from the smoke, clad in armor etched with sigils, eyes glowing crimson.
"You stand between the vessel and his fate," the lead Guard intoned.
"I stand between him and your chains," Elias replied.
The Guard raised his blade.
So Elias broke his vow.
He whispered a forbidden word, and the runes on his skin lit gold—forbidden fire, the mark of exiled priests.
Flames erupted around him, burning unnaturally cold. The Guard lunged. Elias met him with magic laced in guilt and desperation.
---
2. Voluntary Merging
Inside the temple, Lucien watched Kael block an incoming attacker with brutal force.
"We can't win this," Lucien said, voice raw. "Not like this."
Kael, panting, nodded. "Then we run."
But Lucien didn't move.
His hand touched the sigil on his chest.
"You hear me," he whispered inwardly. "I won't beg this time."
The voice responded, velvet-smooth and waiting.
"You'reready, then?"
Lucien exhaled.
"Yes."
The magic surged—not like a takeover, but a fusion.
Riven didn't consume Lucien.
He stood beside him, within him.
A dual voice echoed in Lucien's chest. Power lit his veins like lightning.
Kael turned, eyes wide. "What did you do?"
Lucien's pupils glowed faint red. "I made a choice."
---
3. Ash and Bone
Lucien moved like a storm—faster than light, fire licking from his palms. He struck with precision, not rage. A Guard fell, then another.
Kael fought at his side, keeping Lucien grounded in movement and instinct. Where Lucien burned, Kael bled. The two moved like halves of one whole.
Then—
A familiar face emerged among the Bloodbound.
"General Theron," Kael breathed. "He trained me."
Theron removed his helmet, revealing sharp features, lined with age and sorrow.
"You disappoint me, Kael," he said. "I taught you loyalty."
Kael stepped forward, raising his sword.
"And I learned what happens when loyalty blinds you."
They clashed.
And Lucien knew: some chains could only be broken with blood.
---
4. The Emperor Watches
Far away, the Emperor stood over his viewing basin, watching Lucien blaze with newfound power.
He did not flinch.
"He's stronger now," the shadow beside him whispered.
The Emperor nodded. "Good. The velvet flame must ripen before the harvest."
He raised a black-glass vial filled with pulsing red light.
"When the time comes… we'll chain them both."