Lucien remained on one knee, frozen like a statue carved out of shame.
The air was still heavy, pressing down on him like invisible hands. Even I could feel it, the strange authority pulsing from the crown symbol above my head, forcing the world to recognize something it had tried to forget.
Selene was still pinned against the wall by crimson chains, her body trembling as the sealing runes tightened around her like a cage.
Her face was twisted with rage and fear.
But her eyes…
Her eyes were laughing.
Because Selene knew something dangerous.
She knew Lucien had seen.
And once Lucien saw the Queen's power, nothing could go back to normal.
The Queen's voice spoke through my lips again.
"Kneel," she repeated, calm and commanding.
Lucien's jaw tightened.
His hands trembled against the stone ground.
He tried to stand.
I could see him fighting it.
Fighting the pressure.
Fighting the instinct in his blood.
But blood did not lie.
Blood recognized blood.
And the royal bloodline inside me demanded obedience.
Lucien's body shook.
Then he forced himself to lift his head.
His silver eyes met mine.
And for the first time, I saw fear in them.
Not fear of death.
Fear of truth.
"Elara," he whispered, his voice hoarse. "Stop this."
The Queen's lips curved into a faint smile.
"This is not Elara," she said. "This is judgment."
Lucien swallowed hard.
His gaze flickered to Selene, still trapped in the runes.
Then back to me.
He looked like a man caught between nightmares.
"What have you become," he asked.
I felt the Queen's presence shift slightly inside me, like she was considering him.
Then she spoke again, her voice quieter, but sharper.
"I have become what you helped destroy."
The words hit Lucien like a physical blow.
His eyes widened.
"I did not," he whispered quickly. "I do not even understand what I saw. I saw a vision. I saw you burning. I saw Selene whispering those words. But that cannot be real."
His voice cracked.
"That has not happened yet."
I felt my own thoughts screaming inside my head.
It happened.
It happened to me.
I lived it.
I died in it.
But the Queen did not allow me to speak.
She stepped forward, my boots scraping against the cracked stone.
The crown symbol above me pulsed again.
Lucien's shoulders tensed.
He tried to rise.
But the pressure forced him down harder.
His fists slammed into the ground.
He gritted his teeth.
"Damn it," he hissed.
The Queen's voice was cold.
"You feel it, do you not," she murmured. "The weight of your future sins."
Lucien's breathing became uneven.
He looked up at me again, eyes burning now.
"Tell me," he demanded. "Are you saying I will betray you"
The Queen leaned closer.
Her eyes glowed crimson.
"You already have," she whispered.
Lucien's face went pale.
His lips parted, but no sound came out.
Behind him, Selene let out a weak laugh.
A low, twisted laugh that crawled down my spine.
"You cannot escape it, Lucien," Selene whispered. "It is written. You will choose me again."
Lucien turned sharply toward her.
"Shut up," he snapped.
Selene's smile widened.
"You hate me now," she said softly. "But you will still love me later. You will still stand beside me."
Lucien's eyes flashed.
He rose slightly, forcing his body to fight the pressure.
"I will never love you," he growled.
Selene laughed again.
"You already do," she replied. "You just do not remember it yet."
My chest tightened.
What did she mean by that
Lucien's gaze shifted back to me.
He spoke quickly now, like he was desperate.
"Elara," he said. "If that future is real, if I truly become that man… then let me fix it. Let me help you now."
The Queen stared at him in silence.
I could feel her emotions.
Disgust.
Hatred.
But also something darker.
Pain.
Then she spoke slowly.
"You want to help," she said. "After you knelt beside her while I burned"
Lucien's entire body stiffened.
He shook his head.
"I would never," he whispered.
The Queen's eyes narrowed.
"Would you not," she said.
Then she lifted my hand.
A single crimson rune appeared in the air between us.
It spun slowly like a coin.
Then it burst into a vision.
Lucien's eyes widened as the image formed.
It showed him.
Older.
Stronger.
Standing in the Blood Court.
Selene beside him in white.
And me in chains.
Lucien in the vision looked down at me with cold eyes.
Then he spoke words that made my stomach turn.
"Admit your crime. I will make sure your death is painless."
Lucien's breath caught.
His body trembled.
He watched himself say it.
He watched himself stand there as flames rose around me.
He watched himself not move.
Not speak.
Not save me.
The vision vanished.
Silence fell like a blade.
Lucien's face looked empty now.
As if his soul had been torn open.
His lips trembled.
"That… that was me," he whispered.
His voice cracked.
"That was truly me."
Selene's laughter echoed again.
She looked almost pleased.
"Yes," she whispered. "That was you."
Lucien turned toward Selene slowly.
His eyes were darker than night.
"What did you do," he asked.
Selene smiled.
"I did what I had to do," she replied. "Elara's blood was never meant to belong to her. The council said it. The elders said it. The kingdom said it."
Lucien's jaw tightened.
"You framed her," he said.
Selene shrugged slightly despite the chains holding her.
"She was weak," she whispered. "She would have died anyway. I just made sure her power went to someone worthy."
My blood boiled.
The Queen's voice became colder.
"You call yourself worthy," she whispered. "You are nothing but rot wearing a pretty face."
Selene's smile faded.
Her eyes flashed with rage.
"Then kill me," she spat. "Go on. Kill me and take the serpent curse into your blood. Let it eat you from the inside."
The Queen's expression hardened.
She did not answer.
Because Selene was right about one thing.
Killing her was a trap.
The curse would transfer.
And the Blood Council knew it.
The air shifted.
A new presence entered the alley.
Heavy.
Ancient.
I turned slightly.
A portal had opened at the end of the street.
Not a normal portal.
A blood gate.
Crimson smoke twisted in a circle, forming an archway of living runes.
Three masked figures stepped through.
Blood Council envoys.
Their robes were darker than the night sky. Their masks were silver and expressionless.
The moment they appeared, the Queen's flames flickered.
Lucien's body stiffened.
Selene's eyes widened slightly, then softened into relief.
They had come for her.
One envoy spoke.
His voice was calm and deep.
"Enough," he said. "The serpent belongs to the council."
Lucien rose to his feet immediately, stepping forward.
"You cannot take her," he snapped. "She committed treason. She framed Elara. She is responsible for the chaos."
The envoy turned his masked face toward Lucien.
"You have no authority here, heir," he said.
Lucien's jaw clenched.
"I am Lucien Valemont," he said sharply. "I have the right to speak."
The envoy took one slow step forward.
And the air pressure changed instantly.
Lucien flinched slightly.
Because the envoy's aura was suffocating.
Not like an elder.
Not like a soldier.
This was something else.
Something beyond academy ranks.
The envoy spoke again.
"You will kneel too, if we command it," he said. "Do not forget your place."
Lucien's fists tightened.
But he did not move.
Because even he could feel it.
The Blood Council was not a group of old men.
They were monsters.
The second envoy stepped forward and raised a hand toward Selene.
The crimson chains around Selene loosened.
The sealing runes faded slightly.
Selene gasped as if she could breathe again.
She smiled.
And it was the most disgusting smile I had ever seen.
"I told you," she whispered toward me. "You cannot destroy me."
The Queen's voice became dangerously quiet.
"You think they came to save you," she said softly.
Selene's smile faltered.
The third envoy walked closer.
He crouched in front of Selene and placed two fingers on her forehead, directly over the serpent crown mark.
Selene shivered.
Then the envoy spoke.
"Your body is unstable," he said. "The serpent bloodline is not fully merged."
Selene's eyes widened.
"What do you mean," she whispered.
The envoy's voice remained calm.
"You are still a container," he said. "Not the final form."
Selene's breathing became frantic.
"No," she whispered. "You promised me. You promised I would be the future queen."
The envoy laughed softly.
A cold laugh.
"We promised you power," he corrected. "Not a throne."
Selene's face drained of color.
"You used me," she whispered.
The envoy stood.
Then he snapped his fingers.
Black chains erupted from the portal and wrapped around Selene instantly, tighter and darker than the Queen's crimson chains.
Selene screamed.
Her body convulsed.
The serpent mark on her forehead glowed violently.
The black chains began dragging her backward toward the portal.
Selene fought, clawing at the ground.
"No," she screamed. "No I did everything you asked. I drank the vial. I hunted her. I awakened the curse"
Her voice cracked.
"You cannot take me like this"
The envoy did not care.
"We can," he said simply.
Selene turned her head sharply toward me.
Her eyes were wild now.
"Elara," she screamed. "If you let them take me, I will come back worse. I will tear you apart. I will destroy you"
The Queen's expression remained calm.
But I felt something shift inside me.
A ripple of emotion.
Because no matter how much I hated Selene…
I knew what it meant to be used.
To be betrayed.
To be treated like a tool.
Selene was being dragged toward the portal, screaming and sobbing.
Lucien stepped forward suddenly.
"Stop," he demanded. "You cannot just take her away. She belongs to the Blood Court."
The envoy turned his masked face toward Lucien.
"Do you truly believe the Blood Court has power over us," he asked.
Lucien froze.
Then the envoy raised his hand slightly.
The air pressure slammed down.
Lucien's knees buckled.
His body shook violently.
He tried to resist, gritting his teeth.
But he could not.
And slowly, unwillingly, Lucien fell to one knee again.
My breath caught.
The envoy's voice was calm.
"That is what happens when you forget your place," he said.
Then he turned back toward Selene.
Selene was dragged into the portal.
But before she disappeared, she looked at me one last time.
Her face twisted into hatred.
Her eyes glowed red.
And she whispered something that chilled my blood.
"You will regret sparing me."
Then the portal snapped shut.
The street fell silent.
Only the smell of burned stone and blood remained.
Lucien stayed kneeling, breathing hard.
His eyes were filled with rage and humiliation.
The Queen stepped closer to him.
Her voice was quiet.
"You see now," she said. "The true enemy is not Selene."
Lucien looked up.
"What are they," he whispered.
The Queen's eyes narrowed.
"They are the ones who killed me," she replied.
Then she turned her gaze to the dark sky above the rooftops.
"And they will kill you too, if you stand in their way."
Lucien swallowed.
His voice was rough.
"Then what do we do"
The Queen was silent for a moment.
Then she spoke, cold and final.
"We run."
My heart pounded.
Run.
Again.
But this time, I understood.
Running was not weakness.
Running was strategy.
The Queen stepped back, and I felt her presence begin to withdraw.
The crimson crown above my head flickered.
My body trembled.
And suddenly, control returned to me like a wave crashing into shore.
I gasped, dropping to one knee.
My hands shook violently.
My head pounded.
Lucien rushed forward instinctively.
"Elara," he said quickly. "Are you alright"
I slapped his hand away.
"Do not touch me," I hissed.
Lucien froze.
Then he slowly pulled his hand back.
His eyes were full of conflict.
"I saw it," he whispered. "I saw the truth."
I stood shakily.
My shoulder still hurt from the serpent bite.
My ribs still burned.
But I forced myself to stand.
Lucien looked at me like he wanted to say something else.
Like he wanted forgiveness.
But forgiveness was a luxury I could not afford.
I stepped away from him.
Then I spoke, my voice low and cold.
"You saw the future," I said. "Now live with it."
Lucien's jaw tightened.
"Elara," he said, "if I truly become your executioner…"
His voice cracked.
"…then I swear to you, I will change it."
I stared at him.
I wanted to believe him.
But I could not.
Because the last time I believed him, I burned.
I turned away.
And as I walked deeper into the shadows of the city, the Queen's voice whispered one last warning inside my mind.
The Blood Council has taken Selene.
They will reshape her.
And when she returns…
She will not come as your friend.
She will come as your doom.
I swallowed hard.
And for the first time since my rebirth, I felt fear.
Not fear of dying.
Fear of what I was becoming.
And fear of what Selene would return as.
Because I knew the truth now.
The war had officially begun.
And I had just met the real enemy.