Selena's POV
The room was silent—too silent.
Selena stood at the center of the chamber carved from obsidian and bone, the walls humming with forgotten magic. Queen Seraphyne's parting words echoed in her ears: "To rule, you must first know the blood you carry."
A jagged mirror framed in silver thorns shimmered before her. It wasn't her reflection staring back—it was another world. Another time.
Drawn by an invisible pull, Selena reached out, her fingers brushing the glass. A coldness shot through her, and suddenly, the world spun.
---
She was no longer in the sanctum.
She stood in a moonlit forest, the air laced with dew and danger. The scent of lavender and blood clung to the trees. Before her knelt a woman—tall, dark-haired, with eyes like molten garnet. Not cruel, but tired. Battle-worn.
Lysandra.
Selena knew her instantly—not by memory, but by instinct. Her mother.
The woman stood slowly, turning to face her though she could not see her. This was a memory, a sealed truth, a vision trapped in time.
"I was not meant to live," Lysandra whispered to the wind. "Not after what I did."
Selena stepped closer.
"You were born from rebellion," Lysandra continued, voice shaking. "I disobeyed the Elders. I fell in love with a man who wore no crown, who bore no title. He was human—but pure of heart. And for that, the Court marked me."
The forest behind her shifted—creatures of ash and bone emerged, bound by shadow chains.
"I ran," she said. "Carried you beneath my ribs, knowing they'd come for us. But they didn't want you dead, Selena. No. They wanted you hidden."
Selena's breath caught.
"You were a prophecy they feared. A bloodline they tried to erase. My daughter… the last heir of the Crimson Line. The only one who can break the Pact."
Lysandra fell to her knees, clutching her stomach. Blood soaked her dress. Behind her, a shadowed figure approached—Seraphyne.
But Seraphyne looked younger. Kinder.
"You don't have to die," Seraphyne said. "Let me take the child. I'll hide her among the humans. She will forget this life… forget who she is."
Lysandra shook her head, eyes full of tears.
"She won't forget. She'll remember. One day."
And then the vision shattered.
---
Selena gasped, stumbling back from the mirror.
Tears clung to her lashes. Her heartbeat thundered in her chest.
She was royalty.
She was the heir.
The truth didn't comfort her. It burned.
So many lies. So much pain. And now, all of it sat on her shoulders.
A faint knock echoed through the stone corridor. Zack entered cautiously, his eyes narrowing when he saw her pale face.
"You okay?"
Selena nodded slowly. "No," she whispered. "But I know who I am now."
She looked up at the mirror, now cracked.
"I'm Lysandra's daughter."
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