Reyna no longer felt the tremble of fear. Only fire.
She left the Iron Vaults without a word, her mind roaring louder than the screaming subway cars overhead. Kairo Thorn—calculated, calm, seductively dangerous , had played her. Pretended to be an ally, whispered warnings while holding a dagger behind his back.
It wasn't just betrayal.
It was war.
The Safehouse
Back in the shattered remains of what used to be her penthouse, now cloaked in enchantments and urban decay, Reyna stood over the remnants of her past life. Glass shards. Burned photos. The echoes of her downfall.
She didn't need comfort. She needed vengeance. Answers. Power.
Pulling open a floor panel only she knew existed, she retrieved an obsidian-bound spellbook, the Codex Mortalis, once outlawed by the Circle. Her fingers danced over its surface, activating a sequence that responded only to her blood. The pages fanned open, revealing a page she had never dared touch before:
"Soul Split Ritual – For Eyes in Every Shadow"
It would let her create a magical tether to someone she wished to follow, letting her see through their eyes.
She knew exactly whose soul to track.
Ritual in Blood and Smoke
The room dimmed. Candles flared. Blood—a drop from her fingertip—hit the page. Energy surged. Words whispered themselves.
And then,her vision split.
Two worlds unfolded.
One: her own, grounded in bitter resolve.
The other: Kairo Thorn's.
He stood in a room bathed in black flame. A magical war room. Circle emblems on every wall. Surveillance images of her from different points in the city. They were preparing.
Not just to kill her.
To rewrite her.
They were planning a memory erasure spell.
A fate worse than death.
Reyna pulled back just before the tether snapped. Blood began to leak from her nose. But her rage only became worse.
If they wanted to erase her…
She'd burn their whole memories first.
The Warning
A knock came at the door. Not a spell. Not a threat.
A real knock.
She raised a spellshield instantly, her heart pounding.
A voice called through the barrier.
"I'm not your enemy."
The door creaked open, and there he was.
Azrael Cross.
Tall, with storm-gray eyes and a presence that buzzed with restrained chaos.
"I'm a rogue enforcer. Ex-Circle," he said simply. "I know they're hunting you. I also know you've got the Eidolon Core."
Reyna narrowed her eyes. "And what do you want?"
"To help you survive."
She didn't lower her guard.
"But why?"
"Why would you even want to help me "
"What do you want from me or better still go straight to point "
Azrael's voice dipped low. "Because they used me too. And I'm done watching powerful women die for sins they didn't commit."
Reyna studied him. Trusted no one. But something in his eyes told her the truth.
Still…
"If you're lying, I'll kill you first."
Azrael grinned. "Then I guess we better win."
In the distance, the Circle was already deploying their hunters.
And Reyna?
She was done playing prey.