Aria's POV
I couldn't move.
The Shadow King stared at me with eyes like black holes, and I felt like I was being pulled into an endless void.
"Such fear," he said, his voice echoing through the stone chamber. "Such delicious, pure fear. I haven't tasted terror this sweet in centuries."
Kieran pushed me behind him, shadows exploding from his hands. "Stay back. Don't look at him. Don't listen to him."
"The loyal Protector." The Shadow King laughed, and the sound made my bones ache. "Still trying to save a bloodline that should have died eighteen years ago."
"They didn't die," Kieran growled. "You murdered them."
"Semantics." The Shadow King waved his hand dismissively. "Dead is dead, Protector. And soon, the little princess will join them."
I pressed against Kieran's back, my whole body shaking. Through the strange connection I'd felt earlier—the bond—I could sense his emotions.
Fury. Determination. And underneath it all, a deep, terrible fear that we weren't going to survive this.
"The Moonless Hour approaches," the Shadow King said, glancing at symbols on the wall that were glowing brighter. "Fifteen minutes until your blood opens the Gateway, little Luminae. Fifteen minutes until I'm finally free."
"Free?" I whispered. "Free from what?"
"From this prison, of course." His smile was cold. "Your ancestors sealed me away millennia ago, trapping me in the space between worlds. But they made a mistake. They didn't destroy the Gateway. They only locked it." He pointed at me. "And you, precious child, are the key."
My stomach dropped. "I don't understand—"
"Your blood is pure Luminae. The same blood that sealed the Gateway can also open it." His eyes gleamed with hunger. "All I need is enough of it to break the lock. And then both worlds will merge, darkness and light becoming one beautiful chaos."
"You'll destroy everything," Kieran said.
"I'll transform everything. No more hiding. No more separation. Humans and magical beings living together in glorious mayhem." The Shadow King spread his arms wide. "Isn't that what your precious Luminae always wanted? Unity?"
"Not like this," I said, my voice stronger than I expected. "Not through murder."
"Ah, she speaks!" The Shadow King clapped mockingly. "Tell me, little princess, do you even remember your parents? The ones who died so you could live?"
Images flashed through my mind. The woman with violet eyes. The man with the kind smile. Their voices calling me their "little light."
"I remember," I whispered.
"Then you remember they were fools. They chose death over power. Weakness over strength." He stepped closer. "But you don't have to make their mistakes. Join me willingly. Give me your blood. Help me break down the walls between worlds. I'll make you a queen of the new age."
"Don't listen to him," Kieran said urgently. "He's lying. He'll kill you the moment he gets what he wants."
"Will I?" The Shadow King tilted his head. "Or am I offering her the only chance to survive this night? Think about it, Protector. You're wounded. Exhausted. Surrounded by my followers. Even with the bond giving you extra strength, you can't protect her forever."
He was right.
I could feel Kieran's exhaustion through our connection. Feel the pain from his injuries. Feel how much energy he'd already spent fighting.
He was running on empty.
"Here's my offer," the Shadow King said. "The girl gives me her blood willingly, and I let you both live. She refuses, and I take it by force while you watch. Either way, I get what I need. But one option is far less painful."
"Aria, don't—" Kieran started.
"How much blood?" I interrupted.
Kieran spun to face me. "What are you doing?"
"How much blood do you need?" I asked the Shadow King directly.
His smile widened. "Smart girl. I need exactly one pint. Drawn during the Moonless Hour. You'll be weak afterward, but you'll survive."
"And you'll let us both go? You swear it?"
"Aria, no!" Kieran grabbed my shoulders. "You can't trust him! He's the Shadow King—he doesn't keep promises!"
"But you're dying," I said quietly, looking into Kieran's silver eyes. "I can feel it. You've given everything to protect me. And if we keep fighting, we'll both die anyway."
"I don't care if I die. That's my job—"
"Well, I care!" The words burst out of me. "You're the first person in my entire life who's actually tried to protect me. The first person who looked at me like I mattered. I'm not letting you die for me when there's another way."
Kieran's expression crumbled. "There's always another way. We just have to—"
"We have twelve minutes," the Shadow King interrupted. "Decide quickly, princess. Willing sacrifice or screaming victim. Your choice."
I looked at Kieran. Really looked at him.
He'd been searching for me for eighteen years. Suffering for eighteen years. And now he was ready to die for me without hesitation.
I couldn't let that happen.
"I'll do it," I said.
"No!" Kieran tried to pull me back, but I stepped out of his reach.
"I'll give you my blood," I told the Shadow King. "But you have to swear on your true name that you'll let Kieran go free. Unharmed."
The Shadow King's eyes gleamed. "You know about true name binding?"
I didn't. But something inside me—some instinct from my Luminae heritage—told me that true names had power. That oaths made on true names couldn't be broken.
"Swear it," I demanded. "Or I'll fight you with everything I have, and you'll get nothing."
For a long moment, the Shadow King just stared at me.
Then he laughed. Really laughed.
"Oh, you are your mother's daughter. She had that same stubborn fire." He placed his hand over his heart. "Very well. I, Malachar of the Endless Void, swear on my true name that if you give me your blood willingly, I will release the Protector Kieran Ashford unharmed."
The words echoed with power. With magic binding them into reality.
"Aria, please," Kieran begged. "Don't do this—"
"I'm sorry," I whispered. And I meant it.
I walked toward the ritual circle in the center of the chamber.
Kieran tried to follow, but shadow chains erupted from the floor and wrapped around him, holding him in place.
"Let me go!" he roared. "Aria!"
I stepped into the circle.
The symbols on the floor flared to life, glowing brighter and brighter.
The Shadow King approached with a silver knife that seemed to drink in the light.
"Give me your hand," he said.
I held out my trembling hand.
He grabbed my wrist. The knife touched my palm.
And that's when I felt it.
The bond with Kieran—it was screaming at me. Warning me.
Something was wrong.
"Wait," I said. "You swore to let him go unharmed. But you didn't swear not to hurt anyone else."
The Shadow King's smile turned vicious.
"Very clever, little princess. You're right. I can't harm your Protector." He nodded to the shadows. "But I never said anything about your other friends."
The chamber doors burst open.
Warriors dragged in three people. A woman with fierce eyes. A man with tactical gear. And another man who looked gentle despite his warrior build.
They were beaten. Bloody. Barely conscious.
"The Midnight Court," Kieran breathed in horror. "Zara. Marcus. Finn."
"Your Protector's allies," the Shadow King confirmed. "The ones who've been helping him search for you. They attacked my stronghold trying to rescue you both." He pressed the knife against my palm. "So here's the real choice, princess. Give me your blood, or I kill them. All three. Right now. While you watch."
My blood turned to ice.
"You can't," I whispered. "You swore—"
"I swore not to harm Kieran. I said nothing about his friends." The knife bit into my skin. "Choose. Your blood, or their lives."
I looked at Kieran. At the three warriors who'd risked everything to save me. At the Shadow King who'd manipulated everything.
There was no good choice.
Only different kinds of terrible.
"I—" I started.
But before I could answer, something crashed through the ceiling.
A massive wolf made of silver light landed in the center of the chamber, snarling and radiating power.
And riding on its back was a woman with violet eyes exactly like mine.
She was glowing. Ethereal. Translucent.
A ghost.
"Hello, daughter," my mother's spirit said. "Did you really think we'd let you face this alone?"
The Shadow King's face went white.
"Impossible. You're dead. I killed you myself—"
"You killed my body," my mother said calmly. "But you can never kill a mother's love." She looked at me. "Aria. It's time you learned what being a Luminae really means."
She touched my forehead.
And everything exploded into silver light.