Elara's POV
Another sacrifice. How... disappointing.
The voice echoes from everywhere and nowhere. My heart hammers against my ribs, but I force myself to stand still.
I'm not in my world anymore.
The sky above is purple and silver, stuck in permanent twilight. No sun. No moon. Just endless dusk that makes everything look like a dream or a nightmare.
The ground beneath my feet is solid but wrong. Black stone that seems to pulse with energy. Mist curls around my ankles like living smoke.
And ahead, rising from the mist like a blade ready to strike, stands the Obsidian Citadel.
It's the most terrifying beautiful thing I've ever seen.
Black glass towers reach toward the strange sky. The entire castle seems carved from a single massive piece of darkness. Windows glow with silver light. The walls are so smooth they reflect the purple twilight, making the whole structure shimmer.
I should run.
Instead, I walk toward it.
My white tribute robes drag through the mist. My bare feet are already numb from the cold stone. But I keep walking because what else can I do?
Behind me, the veil has closed. There's no going back.
Only forward.
The citadel grows larger with each step. It's bigger than I thought bigger than the entire royal palace in Lummis. How does one person live in something so huge?
Then I remember. The Dark King isn't a person.
He's a monster.
The massive front gates stand closed, made of the same black glass as the rest of the building. I stop in front of them, unsure what to do next.
Do I knock? Call out? Wait?
Before I can decide, the gates swing open.
Silently.
No servants pushing them. No guards announcing my arrival. The gates just... open.
Like the citadel itself is inviting me inside.
Or swallowing me whole.
I step through.
The entrance hall takes my breath away. Not because it's beautiful though it is. Because it's alive.
Shadows move along the walls like water flowing upward. They twist and curl, forming shapes that almost look like faces before dissolving again. Black pillars rise to a ceiling so high I can barely see it, each one carved with scenes of battles and creatures I don't recognize.
Everything is made of darkness, but it glows with silver light that seems to come from within the stone itself.
Hello? My voice sounds small and fragile in the vast space.
No answer.
I walk deeper inside, my footsteps echoing. The shadows on the walls move faster, like they're excited or agitated by my presence.
Then I see the throne room.
Massive doors stand open, revealing a space that makes the entrance hall look tiny. The ceiling disappears into darkness. Pillars line both sides, each one carved with different battle scenes warriors fighting monsters, kingdoms burning, people screaming.
And at the far end, sitting on a throne made of pure shadow, is a man.
My breath catches.
He's not a monster.
At least, not on the outside.
The Dark King sits perfectly still, watching me. He's young maybe late twenties with dark hair that falls across his forehead. His skin is pale, almost glowing in the silver light.
But it's the marks covering his skin that make me freeze.
Strange symbols crawl across his arms, his neck, and his face glowing lines that pulse with light. They move constantly, shifting and writhing like living things trapped under his skin. They look painful.
His eyes are the worst part. Silver. Not gray actually silver, like melted metal. They stare at me with an intensity that makes me feel naked, like he can see every thought in my head.
He's devastatingly handsome and absolutely terrifying.
This is Kaelen Ash'mor. The Dark King. The monster who kills every tribute sent to him.
And he looks... bored.
And sad.
Like I'm just another disappointment in a very long line of disappointments.
I force myself to walk forward. My legs shake, but I won't let him see me weak. I won't give him that satisfaction.
I stop twenty feet from the throne and lift my chin. If I'm going to die, I'll die with dignity.
Kaelen doesn't move. He just watches me with those terrible silver eyes.
The silence stretches so long I think I might scream just to break it.
Finally, he speaks.
Another one. His voice is smooth and cold, like water over ice. What did you do to anger your king, girl?
Not welcome. Not who are you.
Just tired resignation.
Like I'm a chore he has to complete.
Something about his tone makes my anger flare. I've been dragged through a nightmare forest, abandoned by cowards, shoved through a veil between worlds and now this monster is treating me like I'm boring?
I told the truth, I snap before I can stop myself.
His eyebrow raises slightly. The first sign of interest. Truth. How revolutionary.
My king and his council are letting people die from plague while they hoard medicine. I told everyone. So they sent me here to shut me up.
Kaelen studies me for a long moment. And you think telling me this will save you?
No. I think I'm going to die no matter what I say.
Something flickers in his silver eyes. Surprise, maybe. Most tributes beg for their lives at this point.
I'm not most tributes.
Clearly. He leans forward slightly, the shadows around his throne writhing faster. Do you know why you're here? Your real purpose?
To die. Everyone knows tributes don't come back.
Correct. But do you know why they die?
I shake my head, heart pounding.
Kaelen stands, and I immediately want to step backward. He's tall much taller than he looked sitting down. The glowing marks on his skin pulse brighter as he moves.
They die because of a curse, he says quietly. A curse that's kept me trapped in this hell for five hundred years. Anyone who stays near me too long withers and dies. You'll last maybe a week if you're strong. Most make it three days.
Then why accept tributes at all? I demand. Why not just refuse them?
Because kingdoms believe I demand them. They think sending tributes earns my mercy. His laugh is bitter and empty. There is no mercy. There's only the curse. And you're just another victim of it.
He walks toward me slowly, and I do step back this time. I can't help it.
Don't be afraid, he says, but there's no comfort in his tone. Death will be relatively painless. The curse simply drains your life over days until there's nothing left. You'll just... stop.
That's supposed to make me feel better?
No. It's supposed to prepare you. He's only ten feet away now. What's your name?
Elara.
Elara. He says it like he's testing the word. I'm sorry, Elara. Your kingdom sent you to die, and I can't save you. I never can.
He reaches toward me, and I see his hand clearly for the first time.
The curse marks cover every inch of his skin, writhing and pulsing. They look alive. They look hungry.
His fingers brush my arm, just for a second
The world EXPLODES.
Blinding white light erupts from where his skin touches mine. Power slams into me like a physical force, throwing me backward. I crash into a pillar, pain shooting through my back.
Kaelen is thrown in the opposite direction, hitting the floor hard.
For a moment, everything is chaos light and darkness swirling together, the throne room shaking, shadows screaming.
Then it stops.
I'm on the ground, gasping for breath. My arm burns where he touched me.
Kaelen is on his knees across the room, staring at his hand in absolute shock.
The curse marks on his skin are going crazy, moving faster than before, and glowing so bright they hurt to look at.
What are you? he whispers, and for the first time, I hear genuine emotion in his voice.
Fear.
I don't know what you're talking about! My voice shakes.
But even as I say it, I feel something strange. Power humming under my skin. Energy I've never felt before.
The shadows around the room are moving wrong. Instead of staying on the walls, they're reaching toward me. Pulling toward me like I'm a magnet.
Kaelen climbs to his feet, still staring at me like I'm a ghost.
That's impossible, he breathes. No one survives contact with my curse. No one reacts like that. You should be dying right now, not He stops, eyes widening further. Not glowing.
Glowing?
I look down at my arms and almost scream.
Faint silver light shimmers beneath my skin, matching the marks on Kaelen's body.
What is happening to me?
A massive shape materializes from the shadows a wolf made entirely of living darkness, bigger than a horse. Its eyes glow the same silver as Kaelen's.
Nyx, Kaelen commands, never taking his eyes off me. Take her to the east tower. Lock her in. Don't let her near me.
Wait I start to protest.
GO! Kaelen roars, and his power explodes outward.
Darkness rushes at me like a wave. I throw my hands up instinctively
And the shadows stop.
They hang in the air, frozen, like they hit an invisible wall.
Then they curl around me. Gently. Protectively.
Defying their master.
Kaelen's face shifts from shock to wonder to absolute terror.
Impossible, he whispers again.
The shadow wolf Nyx approaches me carefully, silver eyes cautious.
My heart is trying to beat out of my chest. Nothing makes sense. Why didn't his curse kill me? Why are the shadows protecting me instead of attacking?
Why do I feel power growing stronger inside me with every second?
Kaelen takes a shaky step back, and I realize something stunning.
The Dark King the monster everyone fears is afraid of ME.