Chapter 17 - Chapter 17: The God Who Knocks

🌑 A Calm That Lies

Three days of relative peace felt unnatural.

Lucien knew better than to trust it.

Caelen's training continued—faster, harder. He was already blocking Kaelira's feints, sidestepping Velka's flames, and reading Serael's bow draw before the arrow loosed. But when Lucien asked him to summon divine fire at will, the boy's control faltered.

"Your hesitation will kill you," Lucien warned after Caelen's third failed attempt.

"It's not hesitation," Caelen shot back. "It's… I don't want to be what they made me."

Lucien said nothing. He understood all too well.

🐺 The Scent of Trouble

Velka burst into the training yard, her eyes burning gold. "Something's at the outer gate. Something… wrong."

Lucien's tone sharpened. "What kind of wrong?"

She sniffed the air. "Not god. Not mortal. Something in between."

Kaelira's hands drifted to her blades. "A herald."

Serael was already on the wall, scanning the horizon. "One rider. Alone. Clad in gold."

Lucien's expression darkened. "Open the gate. Slowly."

🚪 The Visitor

The rider was beautiful in the way only divine creations could be—tall, flawless, and draped in armor that shimmered like molten sunlight.

His face was calm, but his eyes were too still—predator still.

He dismounted with casual grace, letting his spear rest in one hand.

"Lucien Draemir," the man said, his voice smooth as silk. "I bring the will of the gods."

Lucien didn't move from the steps. "If the gods have a will, they can come tell me themselves."

The man's lips curled faintly. "I am Serath, their mouth. Their hand. And, if need be, their blade."

⚡ The Offer

Serath's gaze slid to Caelen, who had emerged from the shadows beside Serael.

"The child belongs to us," Serath said simply. "You know this."

Lucien smirked. "You'll have to kill me."

"That was the gods' original command," Serath said, "but Elysera has… reconsidered. She offers you a choice. Return the boy, and she will grant you sovereignty over every mortal kingdom for a thousand years. Refuse…" He tapped the butt of his spear against the ground. "…and I'll take him myself."

🔥 The First Strike

Velka snarled and lunged without waiting for an order. Her claws met Serath's spear with a sound like breaking stars.

The air itself warped from the clash, heat and shadow twisting into violent currents.

Kaelira flanked instantly, blades aimed for Serath's ribs. He parried both with a single motion, golden sparks scattering across the courtyard.

Lucien called the Crown's power, the ground beneath Serath splitting to release skeletal warriors.

Serath only smiled. "Good. I was hoping you'd refuse."

⚔️ Battle in the Courtyard

What followed was chaos.

Serath moved like light given flesh, each strike of his spear a blinding flare. Velka's flames roared in arcs of black fire, Kaelira's blades slicing at impossible angles, and Serael's arrows finding the smallest gaps in his armor.

Lucien's necrotic magic lashed out, summoning bone walls and shadow bolts to break Serath's rhythm.

For a moment, it seemed they might overwhelm him—until Serath's armor flared, and every blow simply… slid away.

🌌 The Turning Point

Caelen, breathing hard from the sidelines, shouted, "Let me fight!"

Lucien's answer was immediate. "No. You're not ready."

But Serath's gaze snapped to the boy, hunger in his eyes. "Then I will make you ready."

He lunged—not for Lucien, not for the queens, but for Caelen.

Lucien teleported in his path, intercepting the strike with a wall of bone that shattered under the force.

The impact threw Lucien ten feet back. He tasted blood.

🌑 The Godseed Awakens

Caelen's scream split the air. His body glowed with starlight, hair whipping in a phantom wind.

The courtyard erupted in a sphere of divine energy, hurling Serath into the far wall hard enough to crack stone.

For the first time, Serath looked surprised. "So… the seed awakens."

Lucien, coughing blood, grinned. "Yeah. And you're out of time."

🚪 The Retreat

From the sky, a golden sigil burned into existence.

Serath stepped back, spear dissolving into light. "Elysera will not ask again." His body dissolved into golden dust, carried away by the wind.

🖋️ End of Chapter 17

📣 CTA (Call-to-Action)

Serath is gone—for now. But Elysera knows exactly where they are.

Should Lucien move the boy to a hidden location, or prepare Blackfang Keep for war?

💬 Comment: Hide or Fortify?

🔜 Next Chapter: "The Storm Before the Siege"

The gods gather their forces, and Blackfang Keep becomes the center of the coming war.