POV: Sera
I wake up with my head pounding and my wrists chained to a cold stone wall.
Finally awake, Aldric's voice cuts through the darkness. I was beginning to worry I'd hit you too hard.
Memory floods back I was in the library researching curses when guards grabbed me from behind. I fought, but there were too many. Someone hit my head, and everything went black.
Now I'm in an underground chamber, chained like an animal. And Aldric stands before me with that terrible smile.
Where's Cain? I demand, yanking against the chains.
The Guardian is fine, Aldric says. For now. Though that will change very soon.
He holds up a ritual knife, the same one from before. Its symbols glow brighter in the darkness.
You're going to use your curse-breaker blood to make his curse permanent, Aldric continues. And this time, there will be no interruptions. No spirit friends to rescue you. Just you, me, and the choice that will define the rest of your very long life.
I'll never help you, I spit.
Aldric sighs. That's what your mother said. Right before I killed her.
Rage explodes through me. I lunge forward, but the chains hold me back. You MURDERED her!
She made her choice, Aldric says coldly. She refused to strengthen the curse, so she became useless to me. But you, Sera you're smarter than your mother. You'll cooperate. Because if you don't
Footsteps echo in the chamber. Guards drag someone in, throwing them to the ground.
Cain.
He's barely conscious, covered in fresh wounds, real chains binding his wrists. But when his silver eyes find mine, they blaze with fury.
Sera, he rasps. Are you hurt?
I'm fine, I lie. Cain, I'm so sorry
A guard kicks him in the ribs. Cain doesn't even flinch, but I scream.
Stop! Don't touch him!
Then cooperate, Aldric says simply. He presses the ritual knife into my chained hands. Use your blood to seal his curse forever. Do it, and I'll let him live. Refuse, and I'll make him suffer in ways you can't imagine before I finally kill him.
Cain's eyes meet mine. Don't do it, he says firmly. Whatever he wants, don't give it to him.
A guard hits him across the face. Blood drips from Cain's split lip.
STOP! I scream, struggling against my chains. I'll do it! I'll do whatever you want, just stop hurting him!
Aldric smiles. Excellent. Now, cut your palm and
Wait. My mind races desperately, searching for any way out. I need to see the spell first. Curse-breaking magic is dangerous. If I say the wrong words, the whole thing could backfire and kill all of us.
It's a weak excuse, but Aldric considers it. Finally, he pulls out a scroll and unrolls it in front of me.
I read the ancient words, my curse-breaker instincts translating automatically. And what I see makes my blood freeze.
This spell won't just strengthen Cain's curse. It will transfer part of it to me. We'll both be bound, both suffering, both trapped forever as Aldric's power source.
He never planned to use me just once. He wants us both as eternal prisoners.
This spell I start.
Will make the curse unbreakable, Aldric interrupts smoothly. Exactly as promised.
He's lying. And he knows I know. But what choice do I have?
Before I can decide, another CRASH echoes through the chamber. Purple smoke pours in.
Did someone order a rescue? Nyx's voice rings out cheerfully.
She appears through the smoke, eyes glowing with wild magic. Because I specialize in ruining evil plans!
Guards rush at her. Nyx throws her hands up, and purple fire explodes outward, creating a barrier.
Sera, the chains! she shouts. Break them NOW!
I don't think. Golden light bursts from my hands, shattering the chains holding me to the wall. I fall forward, catching myself.
Stop them! Aldric screams.
More guards pour in. Nyx's magic wavers there are too many.
I run to Cain and grab his chains. Golden light floods through my hands, melting the metal. He staggers to his feet.
Can you run? I ask urgently.
For you? Always. Despite everything, he manages a small smile.
We run toward the chamber exit. Nyx covers our escape with bursts of wild magic. But then I hear her cry out.
I turn and see an arrow buried in her shoulder. She falls.
NYX! I scream.
Aldric emerges from the smoke, the ritual knife glowing in his hand. Enough games. Sera, you will complete the ritual. Or I will kill everyone you care about, starting with this annoying spirit.
He raises the knife toward Nyx's throat.
Guards surround us from all sides. We're trapped.
Cain grips my hand. Sera, listen to me, he whispers urgently. The curse recognizes your power. If you're going to use that knife anyway use it to break the curse instead of strengthening it.
I don't know how
Yes, you do, Cain says fiercely. Your mother got close because she trusted her instincts. Trust yours. Trust me.
Aldric advances toward us. Three feet away. Two feet.
I make my choice.
I rip the ritual knife from Aldric's hand and slash my own palm. Blood wells up, glowing gold.
NO! Aldric lunges for me.
Too late.
I press my bleeding palm against Cain's shadow chains and scream words I didn't know I knew words written in my mother's journal, words she never got to finish.
By curse-breaker blood and willing heart, I claim this curse and tear it apart!
Golden light explodes from my hands, brighter than the sun.
The shadow chains scream a sound like metal tearing, like reality breaking. They writhe and burn, fighting against my magic.
MORE! Cain shouts, pressing his hands over mine. Don't stop!
Together, our magic combines his ancient immortal power and my curse-breaking gift. The chains crack, splitting apart like glass.
But the curse isn't done. It fights back with everything it has.
Black fire erupts from the breaking chains, engulfing both of us. Pain like I've never felt crashes through my body. I'm burning, breaking, dying
Hold on! Cain's voice cuts through the agony. Sera, HOLD ON!
I pour everything I have into the spell. Every ounce of strength, every bit of magic, every desperate hope that this will work.
The chains shatter.
The explosion throws everyone backward. I fly through the air and crash into the wall, my vision going dark at the edges.
When I can see again, the chamber is chaos. Guards scattered everywhere. Nyx unconscious but breathing. Aldric on his knees, staring in horror.
And Cain
Cain stands in the center of the chamber, unmarked and unbound. The shadow chains are gone. Completely gone.
For the first time in three hundred years, he's free.
It worked, I whisper, barely able to believe it. It actually worked.
Cain turns to me, his silver eyes wide with wonder. He takes a step forward
And collapses.
CAIN! I try to run to him, but my legs won't work. I fall too.
The curse is broken, but something's wrong. Terribly wrong.
Cain's immortality the thing that kept him alive for three centuries was tied to the curse. Without it, he's mortal again.
And all those years are catching up to him at once.
I watch in horror as silver streaks appear in his dark hair. Lines form around his eyes. He's aging, rapidly, his body trying to make up for three hundred years it should have lived.
No, no, no, I sob, crawling toward him. This wasn't supposed to happen!
Aldric starts laughing horrible, triumphant sound. You fool! Breaking the curse doesn't save him it kills him! Without his immortality, he'll age to dust within hours!
I reach Cain and pull him into my arms. He's shaking, his breathing shallow.
I'm sorry, I cry. I'm so sorry, I thought breaking the curse would free you
You did, Cain says weakly. His hand comes up to touch my face, and for the first time, his touch is warm instead of cold. For the first time in three hundred years, I'm free. Even if only for a moment.
Don't you dare die on me, I say fiercely. We just broke an impossible curse. We can fix this too.
But I don't know how. My magic is exhausted. My strength is gone. And Cain is fading right in front of me.
Nyx stirs and crawls over to us. Blood soaks her shoulder, but her eyes are sharp.
There's one way, she says quietly. But Sera, it will cost you everything.
I don't care, I say immediately. Tell me.
Nyx looks between me and Cain. Curse-breaker blood can break curses. But it can also transfer life force. You can give him your mortality share your years with him, anchor him to life. But it means you'll both age together. You'll both eventually die. No immortality for either of you. Just a normal human lifespan.
That's it? I almost laugh. That's the cost? A normal life?
After three hundred years of suffering, Nyx says, mortality is a gift.
I look down at Cain. More silver streaks his hair. More lines mark his face. He's aging faster.
Do it, I say. How do I do it?
Kiss him, Nyx says simply. With intent. With your whole heart. Your magic will do the rest.
I don't hesitate. I lean down and press my lips to Cain's.
Golden light explodes between us softer this time, warmer. I feel my life force flowing into him, anchoring him, binding us together. Not with chains or curses, but with choice.
With love.
When I pull back, Cain's aging has stopped. He looks like a man in his early thirties not the ageless immortal, but not dying either. Just human. Wonderfully, perfectly human.
His eyes open, and when they meet mine, they're filled with tears.
You saved me, he whispers.
We saved each other, I say.
Behind us, Aldric screams in rage. No! NO! You've ruined everything!
He raises the ritual knife, murder in his eyes.
But before he can strike, Nyx snaps her fingers. Purple magic wraps around Aldric, lifting him into the air.
You killed Sera's mother, Nyx says, her voice cold with fury. You tortured Cain for twenty years. And you hurt my friends.
Her eyes glow brighter. The Wild Lands don't forget. And they don't forgive.
The magic squeezes tighter.
And High Priest Aldric's screams echo through the chamber as the Wild Lands claim their justice.