Sera's POV
Twenty gods stand between me and survival.
Selene my sister, though I barely remember her looks at me with cold disgust. You've caused enough trouble, Seraphine. Two hundred years of running ends today.
I'm not the one causing trouble, I say, finding courage I didn't know I had. You're the ones hunting someone who just wants to be left alone.
You broke divine law, Selene says. You loved a mortal. You defied the Court. And worst of all, you keep refusing to accept your punishment.
My punishment was supposed to be losing my godhood, I argue. I'm mortal now. Completely mortal. What more do you want?
Selene's laugh is bitter. You think giving up your power erases your crime? You embarrassed the entire Celestial Court. You made us look weak. For that, you must be erased completely.
She raises her hand. The other gods move into attack positions.
Caspian steps in front of me. You want her? Go through me first.
Gladly, Selene says.
Wait! Lyric shouts. There's another way! A trial by combat! Divine law allows it!
Selene pauses. A trial by combat? Between a mortal and a goddess? Don't be absurd.
Not between Sera and you, Lyric says quickly. Between Sera and a champion of her choosing. If she wins, divine law says you must let her go.
I stare at Lyric. What are you doing?
Buying time, she whispers. Trust me.
Selene considers this. And if she loses?
Then you can execute her without any divine court interference, Lyric says. Clean. Legal. No political mess.
I watch Selene weighing her options. Finally, she smiles coldly.
Fine. A trial by combat. She has one hour to choose her champion. Selene gestures, and the gods create a fighting arena out of pure light. The rules are simple: first blood loses. No outside interference. No divine power for the mortal.
But I don't have divine power anymore, I protest.
Exactly, Selene says with cruel satisfaction. Which means you'll lose. Choose your champion wisely. It'll be the last choice you ever make.
The gods step back, waiting.
Caspian pulls me aside immediately. This is a trap. Selene wouldn't offer a trial unless she knew you'd lose.
Then what do I do? I ask desperately.
I'll fight for you, Caspian says.
You're dying! You can barely stand!
I'm still the best fighter you have.
No, Lyric interrupts. I'll fight. I still have some divine power left. Enough to stand a chance.
Against twenty gods? I shake my head. That's suicide.
Then what's the plan? Caspian demands, looking at Lyric.
Lyric's star-filled eyes spin rapidly. I'm buying us exactly one hour. That's how long it'll take for what I set in motion to arrive.
What did you set in motion? I ask.
Help, Lyric says cryptically. Major help. We just need to survive until it gets here.
Caspian looks skeptical, but we're out of options.
Fine, I say. I choose Lyric as my champion.
Selene laughs. A failed minor goddess against our battle champion? This will be entertaining.
She gestures, and one of the gods steps forward. He's massive eight feet tall, covered in golden armor, carrying a sword that crackles with lightning.
Ares. The God of War.
Lyric goes pale. Okay. Maybe I didn't think this through.
Can you beat him? I whisper.
Honestly? No, Lyric admits. But I can last an hour. Probably. Maybe thirty minutes. We'll see.
The gods form a circle around the arena. Lyric steps inside. Ares grins like a wolf seeing prey.
Begin! Selene commands.
Ares attacks immediately. He's fast despite his size impossibly fast. His sword swings at Lyric's head. She barely dodges, rolling sideways.
Come on, little oracle, Ares taunts. Show me what you've got.
Lyric throws up her hands. Stars burst from her palms tiny explosions of light and heat. They hit Ares's armor and bounce off harmlessly.
He laughs and swings again.
For twenty minutes, Lyric runs and dodges and throws weak attacks. She's outmatched completely. Ares is toying with her, drawing it out, making it entertaining for the watching gods.
Caspian grips my hand. Whatever Lyric's plan is, it better happen soon.
She said an hour, I whisper. We have forty minutes left.
But Lyric's slowing down. Ares lands a hit his sword catches her shoulder. She screams. Blood pours from the wound.
First blood! Selene announces triumphantly. The trial is over. Seraphine loses.
No! I run forward, but gods block my path.
Ares raises his sword for the killing blow. Nothing personal, little oracle. Just following orders.
The sword descends
and stops.
A hand catches the blade. A mortal hand.
We all stare in shock.
A man stands in the arena. He appeared from nowhere just materialized like he stepped through an invisible door. He's tall, powerfully built, with dark hair and eyes that glow with barely-contained fury.
He's wearing modern clothes, but power radiates from him like heat.
That's enough, the man says quietly.
Ares yanks his sword back. Who dares
I dare, the man interrupts. He looks at Selene. You want a champion? Fight me instead.
Selene's face goes white. Impossible. You can't be here. You're
Alive? The man smiles, but it's not friendly. Surprise.
Lyric staggers to her feet, grinning despite her injury. Told you help was coming.
Who is that? I whisper.
Caspian's expression is stunned. That's impossible. He died two hundred years ago. I saw the records. I
The man turns and looks directly at me. His eyes soften.
Hello, Seraphine, he says gently. It's been a while.
And I know that voice. Know those eyes. The memories crash over me like a wave.
Konstantin? I breathe.
But that's impossible. Konstantin died two hundred years ago saving me. Caspian's ancestor. The mortal sorcerer I fell in love with.
He should be dead.
Not exactly, the man says, reading my confusion. I'm not Konstantin. I'm his... continuation. His magic, his memories, his purpose bound into a new form. I've been waiting two centuries for you to need me again.
He turns to face Selene and the assembled gods.
She wants a trial by combat? he says. Fine. I'll be her champion. Me against all twenty of you. Right now.
The gods murmur nervously. Selene looks furious but also... afraid?
You have no authority here, Selene says. You're not divine. You're not even fully mortal. You're an abomination
I'm the result of divine arrogance, the man interrupts coldly. You killed a mortal who loved a goddess. His magic became something you couldn't predict or control. Something that's been growing stronger for two hundred years while you sat in your palace thinking you'd won.
He raises his hand, and power explodes from him. Not light like mine. Not cold like Selene's. Something darker. Older. Wild magic that makes even the gods step back.
So here's the new deal, he says. You leave Seraphine alone. Forever. Or I show you exactly what happens when you push mortals too far. When you make them desperate enough to become monsters.
Selene's composure cracks. You wouldn't dare attack the Divine Court
Try me, he says simply.
For a long moment, no one moves.
Then Selene makes her choice. Retreat, she commands. For now. But this isn't over, Seraphine. We'll be back.
The gods vanish in bursts of light.
We're alone with the stranger who claims to be Konstantin's continuation.
He turns to me and smiles sad, tired, but genuine.
I've watched over you for two hundred years, he says quietly. Every Keeper who protected you, every time you woke up and forgot I was there, in the background, making sure you survived. I'm sorry I couldn't reveal myself sooner. The magic binding me only allows me to appear when your life is in true danger.
Caspian stares at him. You're real. The legends were true. The Thorne family grimoire mentioned a guardian bound to Seraphine's bloodline, but I thought it was myth.
Not myth, the man says. Promise. Konstantin's dying promise became reality. I am what's left of him, transformed by magic and time into something new. I have his memories, his love for you, his absolute commitment to keeping you safe.
Tears stream down my face. But you're not him.
No, he agrees gently. I'm not Konstantin. He died saving you. I'm... the echo of that sacrifice. The price he paid for your protection. And I'll keep paying it until you're finally free.
He starts to fade, becoming transparent.
Wait! I reach for him. Don't go!
I have to, he says. The magic only lets me stay when you're in immediate mortal danger. You're safe now. For the moment. He looks at Caspian. Take care of her. All of you. The gods will be back. And next time, they'll bring more than twenty soldiers.
He fades completely.
We stand in silence, processing what just happened.
Finally, Lyric breaks it: So... that was Konstantin. Sort of. In magic ghost form. Cool. Traumatic, but cool.
Caspian sinks to the ground, overwhelmed. My ancestor became a guardian spirit bound to Sera. For two hundred years. That's
Insane? I offer. Impossible? Completely overwhelming?
All of that, Caspian agrees.
But there's something else bothering me. A question that won't let go.
If Konstantin's magic has been protecting me for two hundred years, I say slowly, and if every Thorne man has fallen in love with me... is it real? Or is it just his magic influencing them?
Caspian looks up sharply. What?
How do I know what you feel is real? I ask, the words spilling out. How do I know it's not just Konstantin's magic making you think you love me?
The hurt on Caspian's face is immediate and devastating.
Before he can answer, alarms blare through the monastery.
New signatures incoming. Not divine this time. Mortal.
Lyric curses. Marcus Webb. He's here.