ZIELLE
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Arieth freezes. "What… was that?"
"I'm scared, Arieth!" Lyla gasps. "Someone's here—"
"Shut up!" Arieth snaps, but her voice wavers now. Like the bravery is slipping out of her and fear creeping in.
From my hiding place, I whisper, low and barely audible—just enough for the echo to carry:
"You don't belong here."
My voice sounds scary even to me. Especially in the dark aisle and the howling wind that comes out of nowhere. It's like the magic book is doing me a favour.
This place truly knows how to stand on the truth's side.
The shadows deepen. A book falls from a shelf across the aisle with a loud thud like someone just smacked it down.
Arieth lets out a sharp scream.
"I-I think we should go," Lyla stammers.
"No, wait—"
Another shelf groans, wood creaking unnaturally. A second gust blows past them like someone rushing by, except no one is there.
"Leave," I whisper again, low and deep, voice curling around them like mist. "Now."
Footsteps. Stumbling. Running.
The sound of heels slipping on marble echoes through the empty aisles as they bolt, their frightened breaths fading into the distance.
I exhale.
The silence returns, sacred and still.
I burst out laughing, the sharp and loud sound killing the silence.
My laughter echoes once more, then vanishes into the library's vast stillness. I clutch the book to my chest, suddenly aware of how loud I'd been. How alive I feel.
But then—
A sudden flutter.
The pages of the book ripple on their own, like a breeze is passing through them. Only… there's no wind.
I freeze, watching as one particular page folds out and turns itself.
Slow. Intentional.
A page I hadn't reached yet.
A new title appears at the top, written in ink that glimmers faintly under the torchlight:
"The Chosen Vessel."
My eyes narrow. I run my fingers over the heading. The page is warm, faintly pulsing like a heartbeat.
Below the title, there's only a single line, scrawled in an ancient hand I've never seen before:
"Power bends not to will, but to recognition."
I blink. That's it? No explanation, no context. Just this cryptic line and a blank page below it.
I glance over my shoulder toward the dark aisle where Arieth had fled down.
Something about this feels… intentional. Like the library wanted me to see this page only after they were gone.
I stare at the words again. Recognition? By what? By who?
A strange chill tiptoes down my spine.
And then, I see it.
At the bottom of the page, right before it fades to blank parchment, a symbol appears. Slowly, like ink being drawn by an invisible hand.
A sigil.
Sharp. Elegant. Unlike any rune I've ever studied.
My heart starts ramming hard against my chest.
And beneath it, a name appears in ancient script—one that doesn't belong to anyone in our kingdom.
I whisper it aloud, the sound unfamiliar on my tongue.
But the moment I say it, the torches flicker.
The book snaps shut.
And everything goes still again.
I stare at the closed cover, heart thudding now, not from fear… but from something colder.
Like the feeling you get when you realize the story you thought you were reading… is already reading you back.
——
After everything that happened last night, I barely slept.
The moment that book slammed shut on its own, I bolted out of the library. I kept debating whether to take it with me—whether I could risk it—but I knew better. If that book ever went missing, the High Omegas would turn the entire palace upside down. And who would they blame first? Me. The outsider. The one who never truly belonged.
So I left it.
When I got home, Lily was already fast asleep, her soft snores filling the quiet room. I stood there for a moment just watching her, grateful she hadn't noticed I was gone. Then I crashed into bed, hoping for rest that never really came.
Not long after, a palace maid woke me up before the sun was even fully out. She came knocking on my front door.
"You're needed in the taming quarters. First session of the day."
Her tone was polite, but firm. No room for argument.
I wanted to throw the pillow at her.
Instead, I dragged myself out of bed, washed up with cold water that made me shiver, and put on the taming uniform.
Gods, I hated this outfit.
The deep neckline, the slit that ran too high on the thigh, the way it clung to my body like it was trying to seduce someone I didn't want to impress.
It wasn't designed for comfort or function, it was designed to look a certain way. To tempt. To remind Alphas of submission, temptation, power.
I tugged at the hem, but it was useless. The cloth wasn't going to grow more fabric out of mercy.
Now I'm walking through the long hallway leading to his quarters, and I can feel my heart pounding so hard it feels like it's echoing through the marble walls. Every step closer makes my chest tighter.
I'm not ready.
Not after last night.
Not after what he did—how he summoned me. How his scent nearly pulled me apart from the inside.
How I almost lost control.
I press my hand to my stomach, trying to breathe through it. The air is colder in these corridors, but my skin feels warm. Too warm.
When I reach the taming chamber doors, I pause.
Just for a second.
I close my eyes. Center myself.
Whatever happened last night doesn't exist this morning. This is just another session. Another Alpha. Another day.
Lies. But I push through anyway.
The door creaks open with a low groan, and I step inside.
It's quiet. Too quiet. The fire in the hearth crackles softly. The heavy scent of him still lingers in the air.
He's lying on the padded dais in the center of the room, someone has taken him out of the cage but he is still chained. And this time he has a muzzle tightly fixed on his mouth.
He stirs the moment I step inside.
Those sharp eyes blink open slowly, locking on mine as if he was already awake. As if he felt me coming.
My stomach twists.
Still, I stand tall. Shoulders back. Face calm. Pretending I don't feel exposed in this ridiculous outfit.
"Good morning, Alpha," I say softly.
He doesn't speak. Just stares.