Kael's POV
The realm between realms was unraveling.
Kael felt it before he saw it—the tear in the Veil, the ripple in the fabric that separated his cursed world from Elara's. He had broken the law to reach her once. Now the universe was retaliating.
Blood dripped from the gash on his shoulder, but he didn't flinch. The wound was from them—the Sentinels. They had found him the moment he slipped back through.
He wasn't supposed to return.
Not after touching her.
Not after remembering.
But when he felt her soul scream across the veil, every rule shattered.
They had awakened.
---
The stars in his realm pulsed red.
The Guardians were whispering.
> "You bonded too soon…"
> "The Sealed One has tasted her light…"
> "The girl must be silenced."
Kael clenched his fists, wings flickering behind him in the shadows. "I won't let them take her."
His connection with Elara was fragile but real. The pendant she wore—the relic he had left behind—had activated far earlier than it should've. It meant someone had tampered with fate.
Or worse…
> Elara herself had started remembering.
---
He tore through the mists of the in-between, determined to reach her again. But halfway through—
A figure blocked his path.
Her hair shimmered like moonlight, and her eyes burned violet.
Seraphina.
His former partner.
The one who betrayed him.
"You should have stayed gone, Kael," she said softly, stepping forward. "This time, they won't spare you."
He didn't answer—just summoned the silver flame in his palm.
"You're protecting her?" Seraphina asked, tilting her head. "The girl who destroyed you before?"
"She didn't destroy me. You did."
For a second, Seraphina's expression cracked.
Then she smiled, cruel and radiant. "You think love will rewrite destiny? You think you can outrun the curse?" She raised her hand—and the mist behind her shimmered.
A prison formed.
Made of light and memory.
It began pulling Kael in.
"No!"
He resisted. Flames roared from his wings. His mark burned against his chest.
But Seraphina whispered a word—and he fell, crashing through space, straight toward the mortal realm.
---
Elara's Room
Elara sat curled on her bed, pendant gripped tight, heart still racing from the encounter in the alley.
Then—
The mirror on her wall shattered.
No warning.
No impact.
Just… cracked from the inside.
And from the broken reflection, a voice echoed—
> "Run."
She turned toward the window.
A tear formed in the night sky.
And from it, Kael fell—bleeding, breathless, and broken—straight into her room.