The Abyss pulsed with anticipation. Its walls, black as void, seemed to lean inward, watching, waiting for the storm that was about to erupt. Seris Vale could feel the weight of Mason's presence in every shadow, every echo, every pulse of the mark burning on her chest. She hated how aware she was of him. Hated how much she needed him, even as her instincts screamed to fight and run.
The corridors twisted unnaturally as she moved, darkness folding over itself like living silk. Her hands trembled, the pull of her goddess blood coiling beneath her skin, waiting for release. For the first time, she realized that her powers weren't just gifts—they were a weapon, and a weapon Mason had helped awaken, intentionally or not.
A sudden hiss cut through the silence. She froze. From the shadows, a cluster of malformed demons lunged, claws and teeth gleaming in the faint purple-black light of the Abyss. Her heart skipped. She could handle a few, but this was different—this was organized, lethal. They moved with purpose, as if guided by a mind she couldn't see.
"Step back," Mason's voice whispered through her mind. She flinched, startled by the intimacy of it. He appeared behind her in the shadows, not moving, but existing, like gravity pressing down. His silver eyes, pale and stormy, scanned the demons. "Do not underestimate them," he warned softly.
"I won't," she said, trying to sound braver than she felt.
"Good," he murmured. "But remember—every choice you make here, every strike, every move… you are mine. And the Abyss knows it."
The demons lunged. Seris lifted her hands, and shadows tore from the walls, coiling into jagged spears of black energy. They struck with precision, impaling the creatures, but even as she fought, her chest burned. The mark pulsed violently, Mason's obsession reaching through it, threading into her mind like a needle of fire.
"You can feel me," he whispered, so close it was impossible to resist, his presence pressing against her like a storm. "And I can feel you. Every heartbeat, every doubt, every flicker of fear. You are mine, Seris Vale. Do you understand?"
She ground her teeth, sending a blast of shadows at a demon that lunged too close. "I… I am not yours!" she spat, even as heat lanced through her chest, making her knees buckle.
"And yet," Mason said softly, leaning closer, "you crave what you cannot resist."
The Abyss shivered. The shadows twisted, responding to their bond. Seris realized, with a jolt of both terror and thrill, that the more she used her powers, the more intense Mason's obsession became. His presence no longer just pressed against her—it reacted to her defiance, to her strength, to the spark of danger she carried inside her.
A demon lunged again. This time, she met it head-on, summoning a wall of shadows that erupted in a wave of crushing darkness. The creature disintegrated before it could reach her, but the force of the attack sent a shockwave through the corridor. She stumbled, chest burning, and Mason caught her instantly, hands on her shoulders, holding her steady.
"You are reckless," he said, silver eyes blazing. "Dangerous. And perfect."
"I can handle myself!" she snapped, though her voice trembled.
"You can fight," he murmured, leaning closer, his breath brushing the back of her neck, "but you cannot escape me. Not here, not ever. Every heartbeat, every spark of defiance… belongs to me."
Heat and fear twisted together in her chest, and she realized with sudden, terrifying clarity that he was right. She could fight. She could resist. She could unleash power that even Mason had not seen before. But she could never truly escape him. The mark, the bond, the obsession—they were absolute.
Her knees went weak under the weight of the realization, and Mason's silver eyes softened—not entirely, but enough to send a shiver through her. "You are mine," he said, low and intimate. "And one day… you will want to be."
The Abyss itself seemed to sigh, shadows curling and folding around them like silent witnesses to the bond forming, terrifying and irresistible. Seris Vale realized she was not just surviving—she was learning, awakening, and somehow… already trapped in the pull of Mason's dangerous, obsessive love.