Location: Skyfortress Aegis – Command Quarters / Lower Decks
The whisper lingered long after the comm line went dead, slithering into the corners of Aeris's mind like smoke.
Little Queen… you can't hide from your crown.
Her pulse pounded in her ears. She felt Lucien's grip tighten on her hand — almost too tight — as if he could physically anchor her to reality.
"Aeris." His voice was sharp, low, like a blade drawn in the dark. "Look at me."
She forced her gaze to him, but it was already happening. The walls of the Aegis rippled, shadows stretching like fingers. Somewhere distant, alarms began to wail, but the sound was muffled, distorted, as if underwater.
"They're inside," she whispered.
Lucien's jaw clenched. "Then we kill them."
They moved — him leading, her following — down the corridor toward the lift. The air grew colder with each step. The Aegis groaned around them, steel complaining like an old beast in pain.
By the time they reached the lower deck, the lights flickered once… twice… then dimmed to a deep, bruised red.
That's when she saw it.
Not soldiers. Not weapons. But faces.
Her mother's. Her father's. Friends long buried under rubble and war. They stood in the hallway ahead, impossibly real, their eyes glowing faintly like embers.
"Aeris," her mother said, voice soft, sweet. "Come home."
Her chest tightened, and her feet… moved. Without thinking.
"Aeris." Lucien's voice cracked like a whip, cutting through the haze. He stepped in front of her, blocking her view. "They're not real."
She tried to focus on his face, but the whispers grew louder, curling around her thoughts like ivy. They love you more than he ever will… come to us…
"I—" She swallowed, panic and longing warring in her chest. "Lucien, I can feel them."
He grabbed her shoulders, forcing her to meet his eyes. "Then feel me instead."
Before she could breathe, his mouth was on hers — hard, desperate, claiming.
The world tilted. The cold slipped back. His kiss wasn't gentle; it was an anchor thrown into a storm. His hands framed her face, fingers digging in just enough to keep her grounded, to remind her she was flesh and blood, not shadow and memory.
When he broke the kiss, his forehead rested against hers, breath ragged. "Stay. With. Me."
The hallway behind him rippled, and the illusions twisted. Her mother's face melted into something darker, lips curling into a predator's smile. The voices grew sharper, urgent.
He will die for you, Little Queen. Let us spare you that pain.
Aeris's hands fisted in Lucien's coat. "Don't let go," she whispered.
"Not in this life. Not in the next."
The shadows lunged.
Lucien spun her behind him, rifle snapping to his shoulder, shots ringing in the dim light. But every shadow he hit bled into smoke, reforming moments later.
"They're not dying," Aeris breathed.
"Then we keep fighting until they do," he growled.
One of the illusions broke through the smoke — this time wearing Lucien's face. But his eyes were wrong, too cold. It smiled at her, offering a hand.
Her breath caught.
The real Lucien didn't hesitate — he grabbed her waist, pulling her flush against him, his voice hot against her ear. "You know me. You know us. Don't you dare let them in."
Her heart hammered, torn between fear and something dangerously close to need. "If I fall—"
"You won't. Because I'll drag you back, even if I have to go to hell to do it."
Something inside her snapped — the haze clearing in a burst of stubborn, furious love. She turned from the illusion and pressed her palm to Lucien's cheek. "Then let's burn them down together."
And for the first time since the whispers began, the shadows faltered.
The fight had only just begun.