WORLD CHARACTER INTRODUCTION
The Human World
The human world is fragile, built on lies, forgotten history, and ancient seals hidden in places no one remembers anymore. Humans live their lives unaware that demons once walked among them, ruled kingdoms, and burned cities into ash.
Most demons were banished centuries ago, sealed between worlds by blood magic and sacrifice.
Most… but not all.
The Demon World
The demon realm exists beyond shadows and fire, ruled by ancient laws written in pain and power. Demons do not love. They conquer. They do not protect humans, they destroy them.
And yet, fate is cruel.
LAYLA
Layla is human.
Or so she believes.
She is quiet, observant, and emotionally guarded. Haunted by strange dreams since childhood, she carries an unexplainable heaviness in her soul. Her past is filled with loss she never fully understands, and her family history is full of secrets no one talks about.
She doesn't know yet that her soul is rare.
She doesn't know yet that her blood carries ancient magic.
She doesn't know yet that she was never meant to live an ordinary life.
KARAN
Karan is a Demon Prince, feared, powerful, merciless.
Cold eyes that burn like hellfire.
A presence that bends shadows.
A name whispered in terror among demons.
He has been imprisoned for centuries, sealed away for crimes that shook both worlds. He hates humans with a passion carved by betrayal and blood.
But fate binds him to one.
And she is human.
CHAPTER 1: The Girl Who Dreamed of Fire
The dream always began the same way.
Darkness.
Not the gentle kind that came with sleep, but a heavy, breathing darkness, alive, watching, waiting. Layla stood barefoot on cold stone, the air thick with smoke and ash. Somewhere in the distance, fire cracked and roared, lighting the shadows just enough for her to feel fear crawling up her spine.
She wasn't alone.
She never was.
"Layla…"
The voice came from everywhere and nowhere, deep and rough, like it had been forged in flames. Her heart pounded violently as she turned, already knowing what she would see.
A man stood in the shadows.
Tall. Broad-shouldered. Powerful in a way that didn't belong to the human world. His eyes burned, deep crimson, glowing like embers in the dark. Black markings crawled along his skin like living shadows, disappearing beneath dark armour that looked ancient and alive.
He watched her as if he had been waiting for centuries.
As if he knew her.
"Who are you?" she whispered, her voice shaking.
The man stepped forward, shadows bending to his will. Heat wrapped around her skin, stealing her breath.
"You are mine," he said quietly. "And you always have been."
Fear and longing twisted painfully in her chest.
She tried to run.
The world shattered.
Layla woke up screaming.
She bolted upright in bed, gasping for air, her heart slamming against her ribs. Cold sweat soaked her skin as dawn light filtered weakly through the cracked window of her bedroom.
Another nightmare.
Another night haunted by the same demon.
She pressed a trembling hand to her chest, trying to calm her breathing. This had been her life for as long as she could remember, dreams of fire, shadows, and a man whose eyes followed her even after she woke.
"Get a grip, Layla," she muttered to herself.
The old house creaked around her, as if listening.
She hated this house.
It had belonged to her grandmother, passed down after her sudden death, a death surrounded by unanswered questions. The place smelled of dust and time, filled with locked rooms and sealed doors. Layla had never been allowed to open any of them as a child.
Secrets lived here.
She could feel them.
Thunder rumbled outside, the sky darkening unnaturally for early evening. A storm was approaching, violent and restless. Layla moved through the narrow hallway, candle in hand after the power flickered again.
"Perfect," she sighed.
As lightning flashed, something caught her attention.
A symbol.
Carved faintly into the wooden floor near the old basement door was a circle filled with strange markings she had never noticed before. Her pulse quickened as she knelt, brushing away dust.
The air felt… wrong.
Cold and hot at the same time.
"What is this?" she whispered.
The storm intensified, thunder shaking the house violently. Against every instinct screaming at her to stop, Layla reached for the old iron latch on the basement door.
It resisted.
Then snapped open.
The stairs descended into darkness, the smell of smoke rising from below. Her candle flickered wildly as she stepped down, heart racing.
At the centre of the basement lay a stone platform. and on it
Chains.
Blackened, ancient chains wrapped around an invisible force, embedded into a glowing seal carved into the stone floor. The same symbols from her dreams pulsed faintly, reacting to her presence.
Her head throbbed.
Her dreams rushed back all at once.
"No," she whispered, stepping back.
The seal cracked.
The room shook violently as the chains snapped apart, shadows pouring from the ground like living smoke. Fire erupted, circling the platform as a figure began to form.
A man.
Tall. Powerful. Terrifyingly familiar.
Crimson eyes snapped open, locking onto hers.
Karan inhaled sharply, his first breath in centuries.
The seal shattered completely.
Silence fell.
Layla couldn't move. Couldn't scream. Couldn't breathe.
The demon stepped forward, chains dissolving into ash around his wrists. He looked down at his hands, flexing them slowly, power rolling off him in waves that made the walls tremble.
Then he looked at her.
Everything stopped.
"You…" His voice was rough, dangerous, filled with disbelief. "You freed me."
Layla's legs gave out, and she collapsed to the floor.
"I-Ididn't mean to"
Karan was suddenly in front of her, impossibly fast. He crouched, gripping her chin, forcing her to meet his burning gaze. Heat rushed through her veins at his touch, a connection snapping into place so violently it stole her breath.
His expression changed.
Shock.
Recognition.
Hunger.
"Impossible," he growled softly.
"A human…"
His grip tightened, not in pain, but in possession.
"My fated mate."
Layla's world shattered as his words echoed through her soul.
And somewhere deep within the demon realm, ancient forces awakened.
The war had begun.
END CHAPTER 1