Lyra woke before sunrise.
The dream still lingered — not just in her mind, but in her chest. The feeling of blood on her hands, of Torin falling away from her as a red moon pulsed above. The whisper repeating like a curse: "One must die for the other to rise."
She sat upright, heart pounding. The cold air of the forest clung to her skin.
Torin wasn't far. He sat by the low fire with his sword across his lap, staring into the embers like they might give him answers.
"You had it too," she said softly.
He didn't look at her. "Yeah."
Lyra drew her knees up and rested her chin. "It's not just a dream. It's a warning."
He nodded slowly. "Or a promise."
---
They broke camp as the sun crested the hills. Kaia stretched and yawned like a wildcat, while Riven checked his makeshift crossbow.
"Where to now?" Kaia asked, twirling a dagger between her fingers.
"There's an old tunnel system under Black Hollow," Torin said. "If we're building something… we need a base."
"Black Hollow's cursed," Riven said, frowning.
"That's why no one will look there," Torin replied.
Lyra didn't like it, but she understood the logic. They couldn't keep running forever. If they were going to gather more followers — more soldiers — they needed a home.
Even if it was buried in darkness.
---
The journey to Black Hollow took two days.
The further they traveled, the more Lyra noticed the land itself changing.
The trees grew twisted. The air, colder.
And at night, the howls weren't wolves — they were something else.
She felt eyes watching. Not just from the woods… but from within herself.
The bond between her and Torin pulsed stronger in this place. The closer they got to Black Hollow, the more she could hear his thoughts — not in words, but in shadows.
Memories that weren't hers. Pain that wasn't hers.
A boy screaming.
A man dying.
A voice: "You are a monster. Just like your father."
She gasped as the vision passed.
Torin looked at her sharply.
"You saw it, didn't you?"
She nodded, shaken. "You were… a child."
He looked away. "That place holds everything I tried to forget."
---
Black Hollow was a forgotten ruin beneath the earth.
Once a temple — then a prison — now abandoned, buried deep under moss and fog.
Kaia whistled when they found the entrance. "Creepy. I love it."
Riven shivered. "Something's still in there."
Torin didn't hesitate. He pried open the rusted gate with bare hands and stepped inside.
Lyra followed.
Down spiral steps slick with moss. Through stone halls etched with claw marks. Into a wide chamber lit only by a crack in the ceiling above.
"This used to be sacred ground," Torin said.
"What happened?" Lyra asked.
He met her eyes.
"I did."
---
They set up camp in the hollowed hall.
Torin worked in silence, setting up weapons and clearing debris. Kaia explored the tunnels, her laughter echoing faintly. Riven scribbled notes in his sister's old journal, tracking their movements and drawing maps.
Lyra wandered deeper.
She found a chamber filled with old paintings — faded murals on the stone walls. They showed wolves and vampires. Fighting. Bleeding. Kneeling before something hidden in shadow.
At the center of the wall, a single word was carved in ancient script.
"Veylith."
She didn't know the word — but her blood reacted to it. Her skin chilled. Her heart raced.
She reached out to touch it—
"Don't," Torin's voice growled behind her.
She froze.
"That name is forbidden," he said. "You say it, and the old magic stirs."
"What is it?"
He looked at her — and for once, she saw fear in his eyes.
"It was the first bond. The first betrayal. The one that started the war."
---
Night came, and with it… voices.
Not from the tunnels.
From outside.
Kaia was first to hear them. "We've got company."
Torin moved like a shadow, up the steps, into the woods.
Lyra followed with her blade drawn.
They found the intruders near the edge of the forest.
Five of them. Vampires. Warriors. Marked with the sigil of the Nightshade House — her house.
One stepped forward.
"Princess Lyra. By order of the High Council, you are to return at once."
She raised her sword. "They sent you to bring me back?"
The vampire smirked. "They sent us to kill you if you refused."
Torin stepped beside her. "You're welcome to try."
---
The fight was brutal.
Steel met fang. Fire met shadow.
Kaia dove from the trees, claws flashing. Riven fired bolt after bolt with steady hands.
Torin moved like death itself — silent, merciless.
Lyra faced the leader. A vampire named Caden — her cousin.
He'd always wanted the throne.
"You were born to obey," he snarled. "Not to lead."
"I was born to survive," she replied — and drove her blade through his heart.
---
After the battle, they burned the bodies.
Torin watched her in silence.
"You didn't hesitate," he said.
"They would've killed us."
"No," he said. "You've changed."
She looked at the fire.
"So have you."
---
Later that night, they buried what was left of her cousin.
Riven said a few words. Kaia tossed a handful of ash to the wind.
Then Torin turned to her.
"We need to talk."
She followed him into the tunnel chamber — the one with the forbidden name.
He stood facing the wall, eyes dark.
"Veylith wasn't just a name. It was a person. A vampire who bonded with a wolf — the first ever."
She stepped closer.
"What happened to them?"
"They fell in love. Built a city. Tried to unite the bloodlines."
"And?"
"Their people turned on them. One was forced to kill the other."
He looked at her.
"It's happening again."
Torin's words echoed in the hollow chamber. Lyra stared at him, her mind spinning.
"They were killed… because they bonded?" she asked.
"No," Torin said. "They were killed because their bond threatened the balance. The power they shared — it scared the kings and elders."
Lyra stepped closer. "You think we're repeating their mistake?"
He met her eyes. "No. I think we're the result of their sacrifice."
Her breath caught. She didn't want to believe it, but the weight of their connection — the bond neither of them asked for — was undeniable.
"It's not just magic," she said slowly. "It's memory. Legacy."
"And blood," he added. "Always blood."
---
The next morning, Kaia returned from a scouting trip with news.
"There's movement east of the ridge," she said. "A caravan. Heavy guard. Probably slavers."
Lyra's eyes narrowed. "Slavers? This close to Nightshade territory?"
"Someone's getting bold," Torin muttered.
"We can't take them head on," Riven said.
"We don't," Lyra replied. "We cut them off. Free who we can. Offer them a choice."
Torin tilted his head. "You're building an army already?"
"I'm not building anything," she said. "I'm giving people what I never had — a chance."
He stared at her for a moment longer, then nodded.
"Then let's give them hell."
---
They moved under cover of twilight.
Kaia was first to strike — slipping through the shadows and slashing open the rear guards. Riven followed, setting off a distraction with smoke bombs cobbled from herbs and gunpowder.
Torin and Lyra attacked the center.
Steel clashed with bone. Torin's roar echoed through the trees.
Lyra moved like a phantom, her blade slicing through chains and shackles. She freed two young women and a boy no older than fifteen.
"Run west," she told them. "You'll find safety in the ruins."
"Who are you?" one girl asked.
Lyra hesitated.
"Someone who was once like you."
---
By night's end, the slavers were dead or scattered.
Torin stood among the wreckage, blood-soaked and breathing hard.
"You hesitated," he said, walking over.
She shook her head. "I spared one."
"Why?"
"He had a child hidden in the back cart. That boy never chose this."
Torin watched her.
"You're still thinking like a queen."
"I'm thinking like a survivor."
He looked down, thoughtful.
"You did well."
She blinked. It was the first time he'd said that.
Then came the cries.
Kaia ran up. "We've got more survivors — and they want to fight."
Lyra's eyes lit up.
"Good. We'll train them."
---
That night, in Black Hollow, they had a fire again.
Not just for warmth — but for hope.
The freed prisoners sat in a wide circle. Some were vampires. Some wolves. A few were neither — outcasts, hybrids, humans.
Lyra stood.
"I won't lie to you," she said. "This will get worse before it gets better. But you have a choice. Stay and learn to fight — or leave and live in fear."
No one moved.
A woman with a branded cheek stepped forward.
"I lost everything. But I've still got rage."
Another man, missing an eye, stood. "You gave me back my name. That's worth fighting for."
One by one, they rose.
Torin leaned toward her.
"You've got a following now."
She exhaled.
"No. We've got a cause."
---
The next few days passed in drills, training, and rebuilding.
Lyra taught the vampires how to strike quick and vanish.
Torin taught the wolves control, discipline.
Kaia taught knives. Riven, tactics.
And Lyra found herself changing.
She no longer flinched when sparring. Her strikes grew faster, her instincts sharper.
Each scar became a lesson.
Each bruise, a badge.
She caught herself laughing during a break. It surprised her.
So did the way Torin looked at her now — not with resentment or suspicion… but with something softer.
Respect.
---
One night, she wandered back to the mural chamber.
The name "Veylith" still glowed faintly.
She touched it again.
A vision crashed into her.
Two figures — one vampire, one wolf — holding hands as fire consumed a city.
A voice: "They'll never accept what they fear."
Then the vision changed.
A blade. Blood. Betrayal.
She stumbled back, gasping.
Torin caught her.
"You saw it, didn't you?"
She nodded. "They didn't just fail. They were betrayed."
He looked grim.
"Then we need to find out who did it."
She stared at him.
"And make sure history doesn't repeat itself."
---
Suddenly, a horn echoed through the tunnels.
Riven burst into the chamber.
"We've got scouts incoming. Armed. Not ours."
Kaia slid in, blood on her blade.
"They're already inside."
Lyra and Torin exchanged a glance.
"No more running," she said.
"Agreed," he growled.
They sprinted toward the entrance.
A squad of black-armored soldiers marched into the hollow.
Not vampires.
Not wolves.
Hunters.
Humans.
Trained to kill both.
The lead hunter raised a silvered spear.
"By order of the Unified Council, all bonded bloodlines are to be purged."
Lyra's heart froze.
How did they know?
How did t hey already know?
Torin bared his teeth.
"You want a purge?" he snarled.
"Then bleed for it."
---