Elena collapsed onto a fragment of fallen stone, her hands trembling. Adrian crouched beside her, his sword dripping ash.
"You didn't open it," he said quietly.
She swallowed, tears welling "I wanted to. Gods, Adrian, I wanted to so badly."
He caught her hands, gripping them tight. "But you didn't...You chose. That's all that matters."
Her throat ached "For how long, though? Every time it calls, it feels louder...Closer. What if next time I can't stop myself?"
He brushed a thumb across her cheek, his gaze fierce and unyielding "Then I'll remind you who you are. As many times as it takes."
She leaned into his touch, her chest tight with a mix of fear and love.
Above them, the moonlight shifted through drifting clouds, painting the ruins in silver. The Codex lay abandoned on the ground, its cover cracked where it had struck the stone. For once, its symbols were still.
But Elena knew the silence wouldn't last.
Somewhere in the distance, Seraphine's laughter carried faintly on the wind.
Petals fall and still, you deny me.
Elena shivered. She wasn't sure if the words were memory or prophecy.
All she knew was this: the path ahead was narrowing, and each step drew her closer to something she might not be able to walk back from.
The ruins had grown quiet again, but silence was rarely peace. Elena and Adrian sat side by side beneath the broken dome, their bodies weary, their souls heavier.
Elena stared at the Codex lying cracked on the stone floor. She hadn't touched it since throwing it down, afraid even to look too long at its cover. The crimson symbols pulsed faintly, like the heartbeat of something sleeping.
"Do you think it's angry?" she whispered.
Adrian followed her gaze, his jaw tightening "It's not alive."
Her lips parted, then closed. She almost believed him.... Almost.
Bloom…
The echo was softer now, more distant, but still there. Always there.
She hugged her knees to her chest "I keep wondering if Seraphine was right. If every choice I make is just another petal falling into place. What if I'm not defying it at all? What if I'm feeding it?"
Adrian turned to her, his storm-gray eyes catching the moonlight "Then we burn the whole damn Rose before it can bloom."
The conviction in his voice should have steadied her. Instead, it broke something fragile inside. She shook her head, her voice trembling "You don't understand. Every time I hear it, I feel… part of me wants it. Wants to stop fighting....To give in".
Adrian's hand cupped her chin, lifting her gaze to his "Then you fight anyway even when it hurts. Especially when it hurts. That's what makes you Elena, not the Rose."
Her throat ached. She wanted to believe him. Gods, she wanted to.
For a long time, they just sat there, their foreheads pressed together, sharing the same breath. The world outside the ruins felt impossibly far away.
But distance meant nothing to fate.
By dawn, they were moving again. The air was damp, clinging to their skin, carrying with it the smell of moss and rain. The shattered halls gave way to twisting tunnels carved with murals—scenes of battles, roses blooming from wounds, women crowned in thorns.
Elena slowed, tracing a finger over one of the carvings. The woman's face was worn, her crown half-erased, but something in the curve of her eyes felt achingly familiar.
"Who is she?" Elena asked softly.
Adrian studied the mural"A queen, maybe or a martyr. The Order paints history however it suits them."
"But what if she's me?" The words slipped out before Elena could stop them. Her voice shook "What if all of this has already happened and I'm just repeating it?"
Adrian's silence was heavy. When he finally spoke, his voice was low, firm "Then we change the ending."
The mural's empty eyes seemed to follow them as they walked on.
By the time they emerged from the ruins, dawn had broken fully. The sky was streaked with red and gold, as if the heavens themselves were bleeding.
Elena stopped at the threshold, the light spilling across her face. Her body trembled with exhaustion, but her heart raced with something else—fear, yes, but also fire.
Behind them, the ruins of Carthia whispered with ash and echoes. Ahead lay the wildlands, and beyond that, the Order's stronghold.
Adrian came to stand beside her, his presence grounding, his hand steady as it slid into hers.
"You're not alone," he said simply.
Her eyes stung. She squeezed his hand back, clinging to the words like armor "Neither are you."
For a moment, the world seemed to pause—the rising sun, the whispering wind, even the Codex's faint pulse.
Then, from somewhere far behind them, a horn sounded... Deep...Hollow.... A call to the hunt.
Adrian's jaw tightened "They're coming."
Elena looked toward the horizon, her chest tightening with both terror and resolve.
"Then let them come," she whispered.
Together, they stepped into the light.
Dawn's first light stretched across the land, painting jagged cliffs and forests in amber. The air was crisp but carried a tension that prickled Elena's skin. Every rustle of leaves, every distant birdcall felt magnified, warning her that they were being watched.
Adrian strode ahead, sword sheathed but hand never far from its hilt. His senses, honed from years of surviving the Order's ambushes, were alert to every whisper of movement. Elena followed, Codex strapped to her side, its faint pulse echoing her heartbeat.
"The Order won't wait long," he said, voice low but tense "They'll send hunters ahead, scouts, anything they can throw at us before we even reach the plains."
Elena swallowed, tightening her cloak "Then we need a plan... We can't just keep running."
Adrian's gaze met hers, storm-gray eyes shadowed with concern "We don't have the luxury of a plan right now. We survive, move and keep the Codex safe. Every second we waste debating, they get closer."
The wind shifted suddenly, carrying a sharp metallic tang. Elena froze, every instinct screaming danger.
Adrian's hand went to her shoulder "What is it?"
"Hunters," she whispered.
He nodded, scanning the forest "Three... No, five. Moving fast, using the terrain. They know our scent."
Before she could react, a branch snapped. Figures darted from the undergrowth—clad in black with crimson sigils, daggers glinting in the sunlight. The Order's scouts had found them.
Adrian moved without hesitation, drawing his blade in a fluid motion that sent the closest hunter sprawling back. Elena followed instinctively, Codex in hand. A pulse of crimson energy surged through her fingers as the first hunter lunged. The Codex glowed, and a wave of energy knocked him off his feet.
The others regrouped, circling them. Adrian's blade sang as he met each attack, precise and brutal. Elena felt a rush of fear and power intertwine—the thrill of combat and the dread of her own awakening abilities.
One hunter broke through Adrian's defense, dagger aimed at her chest. Elena's hand shot out instinctively, the Codex emitting a flare of crimson fire that sent him backward, screaming.
Adrian's eyes widened, and for the first time, fear crossed his features "Elena… control it."
She bit her lip, forcing herself to calm. The Codex's pulse slowed, the fire dimming but leaving her trembling fingers tingling with residual heat.
The hunters withdrew, their eyes wary "This isn't over," their leader hissed before vanishing into the forest.
Adrian sheathed his sword, exhaling sharply "Every encounter is worse than the last. The Order is preparing and Seraphine… she's orchestrating all of it."
Elena nodded, clutching the Codex "Then we'll have to be faster, smarter."
They moved through the forest cautiously, the undergrowth thick and oppressive. Every step seemed to echo, every shadow whispered of unseen enemies.
"Elena," Adrian murmured, glancing at her, "how long can you maintain the Codex's energy without collapsing?"
Her jaw tightened "I don't know.... It's… exhausting but I'm learning."
He studied her, storm-gray eyes softening "I know you are and I'll be here to keep you steady...Always."
Her heart thudded "I don't want to lose myself in it, Adrian. What if I become like… Seraphine?"
He reached for her hand, squeezing it "Then I'll pull you back every time. You're not alone and whatever happens, we face it together."
She leaned into his warmth, comforted by the presence that had been her anchor through every trial but the comfort was fleeting.
A shadow flitted through the trees—a figure standing too still, waiting. Elena stiffened "They're here."
Before Adrian could respond, arrows whistled through the trees. Two struck the earth dangerously close.
"Move!" Adrian shouted. They ran, dodging the barrage. The forest became a labyrinth, twisting paths and thick roots tripping them at every step.
Elena's senses were stretched to the limit. She could hear the hunters moving through the foliage, smell their sweat and steel, feel the Codex's pulse quicken in warning.
"Adrian, left!" she cried, pointing toward a narrow ravine. They dove into it just as another arrow struck the branch above, sending splinters down around them.