The news spread like blood in holy water—silent at first, then violent and unstoppable.
Phuwin was gone.
Taken.
And the Naravit estate—once a place of pride, protection, and legacy—had become a cathedral of dread.
The council arrived first, robed in sanctimony and veiled concern. Elders. Lawkeepers. Arbiters of peace. And behind them, allies, friends, family—Off and Gun, tight-lipped with fear; Santa, clutching her swollen belly and trembling beside Perth; Dunk and Gemini; Joong like a lion in chains.
And at the center sat Pond.
Cold. Silent. Staring ahead, face carved in stone.
---
**"Let him go."**
The words came from the eldest councilman, as cold as the marble floor beneath them.
"Your omega's abduction is a tragedy, but retaliation would cost armies. Peace. We advise you, Enigma or not… to grieve. And move forward."
Another added, "To save one omega at the price of the world—is it worth it?"
**Crack.**
Pond's fist shattered the ancient table between them.
Silence collapsed on the room like a guillotine.
He stood. Slowly. Calmly. His voice dropped to something lower than rage—**vengeance sharpened into quiet.**
"You dare… tell me to walk away from what is *mine*?"
His stare swept over them like fire across a field of dry bone.
"You told me to give him space. To be soft. To let him go."
He turned to his family, to the friends who loved him.
"And I listened."
His hands curled, veins shimmering with a subtle light beneath skin.
"And now he's gone. *Because of you.*"
---
Then his eyes found the council again.
"You see a mate. I see the one person who made this cursed blood feel peace."
He stepped forward, voice like the tolling of a death bell.
"If you asked me to choose between the world or Phuwin, I would burn the sky, drown cities, and *choose him without a second glance.*"
---
**"You cannot leave,"** the council tried.
"You cannot risk awakening what sleeps in your blood—"
But they were already too late.
Pond's head lifted slowly.
**His irises shifted.**
They cracked like molten glass.
Dark. Iridescent. Slitted like something no longer human.
The ground trembled.
The air thickened, folding in on itself. Ancient magic poured through the room like a tidal wave of black water.
**Everyone dropped to their knees.**
Off. Gun. The council. Friends and strangers alike.
No one stood when the Enigma awakened.
Santa clutched her belly, gasping. "He's... changing—"
And Pond—his breathing suddenly stopped.
Then—
**A vision.**
Stone. Blood. Chains. Phuwin's battered form curled on the floor of a cell. The Mirror Court's sigil burning on the walls.
Phuwin whispered in his vision: *"Pond… I still believe you'll come."*
Pond's voice split the air. **Not in Thai. Not in any known language.**
🜂 *"Vel'han Phuwin. Dreka rhen'en vel dohaen."*
(*Phuwin is mine. His breath depends on mine.*)
🜂 *"Vah-lor eht'enak drae enrakh."*
(*No law, no throne, no god will stand between us.*)
The **table exploded** in a burst of divine pressure.
Walls cracked. Magic trembled.
The council whispered in terror:
**"Enigma… Enigma…"**
But Pond was already **gone**.
---
**Five Minutes Later**
The doors **detonated** inward.
And there he stood.
**Pond Naravit.**
Shirt torn. Chest glowing with searing sigils. Blood down his neck and arms.
In his arms—
**Phuwin.**
Scarred. Bare. Shivering. Safe.
**Everyone fell again.**
No resistance.
**No one could stand before him.**
The language returned, thick and divine. Time itself seemed to still.
🜂 *"Erahk ven'nah drae felkor."*
(*He is mine, before gods, before stars.*)
🜂 *"Kesh'val do'haen. Vel'enk Phuwin."*
(*He lives because I say so. His name is etched in my bones.*)
Phuwin stirred in his arms. His scent—cracked but alive—flooded the room.
Pond knelt.
**The Claiming began.**
He cupped Phuwin's bruised face. Their eyes locked.
Without hesitation, Pond tilted his omega's throat.
His canines extended.
Phuwin breathed, shaky but willing.
And then—
**He bit.**
Hard. Deep.
Phuwin gasped—not in pain, but in complete surrender.
The bond snapped into place.
The mark flared golden against pale skin, and the room drowned in the scent of **ownership**.
Pond rose slowly, fangs bloodied, eyes **glowing Enigma gold**.
**"Mine."**
The word echoed through every wall and bone.
---
**Then the Final Act**
Behind him, the council's stone bench **fractured**, then **imploded**, crumbling like ash beneath his fury.
One elder vomited.
Another sobbed.
Gun and Off held each other tightly, silent in their shame and awe.
Joong fell back. Gemini trembled. Dunk wept.
Santa collapsed, whispering through tears, "The world has just changed."
Pond stood over them all, voice a curse and a crown:
🜂 *"I am no longer your law."*
🜂 *"I am the Enigma."*
🜂 *"And he is the last thread holding this world above ruin."*
He smiled.
But it was not kind.
**It was final.**
"Let any clan, kingdom, or god come for him again…"
His gaze darkened.
**"…and I'll bury your empires in his name."**
The grand dining room of the Naravit Estate had hosted many powerful gatherings-clan meetings, council visits, even marriage proposals.
But tonight, as the crystal chandelier flickered above them, **no one dared raise their voice**.
The table was beautifully set. Santa, now seven months pregnant, had arranged the gathering himself-despite his swollen ankles and aching lower back. He needed this. Needed his family to feel like it hadn't broken apart since Phuwin was taken. Since *Pond returned... different.*
He sat at the head of the table, Perth behind him like a silent shadow, one hand gently resting on his shoulder in comfort.
Gemini passed plates. Dunk poured drinks. Joong helped Phuwin ease into his seat.
Pond?
He was already seated-*before anyone else*-with Phuwin beside him.
He didn't speak. He didn't move.
His **eyes**, no longer their warm chestnut brown, were fixed on Phuwin with such intensity it felt like the room had no oxygen.
Every motion Phuwin made-every breath-was mirrored by Pond. When Phuwin shifted in his seat, Pond's fingers brushed his lower back. When Phuwin winced softly from the leftover ache in his bones, Pond's hand slid beneath the table and held his knee gently, possessively.
Everyone noticed.
---
**Off** tried to lighten the mood first. He lifted his glass.
"To Phuwin's safe return."
The room hesitated. Then followed his lead with quiet murmurs of "To Phuwin."
Everyone, except Pond.
Phuwin leaned in, whispered something into Pond's ear.
Only then did Pond **raise his glass**, eyes never leaving his mate. He clinked it with Phuwin's gently-and drank.
The table exhaled.
But it didn't last.
---
**Gun**, soft-voiced and hopeful, tried next. "Pond, you haven't really spoken to us since... the council. I know things are still raw, but we-"
Pond did not look at him. He didn't blink.
It was as if Gun's voice **didn't exist**.
Phuwin reached out, brushing Pond's hand.
"Love," he whispered, "they're worried."
Pond turned. Slowly. His gaze slid across the table-not to Gun, not to Joong, not to Santa or Off-but directly into **Phuwin's eyes**.
🜂 *"I'm not angry."*
That voice. Deeper. Ancient. Like power barely disguised as human.
🜂 *"I just don't care to waste my breath."*
Phuwin frowned slightly. "They love you."
🜂 *"And yet they told me to let you go."*
A heavy silence followed.
**Joong** set his fork down with a sharp sound. "Pond, we were trying to protect you. You were out of control-"
🜂 *"You advised me to sacrifice him."*
The table rattled. The lights flickered.
🜂 *"My mate. The one thing in this world that is mine."*
Pond never raised his voice. But each word felt like a prophecy.
---
**Santa**, ever the peacekeeper, rubbed his stomach and gave a soft smile. "We were scared, that's all. You're... stronger now. Maybe too strong. We don't understand it, but we still-"
Pond finally looked up.
The moment their eyes met, **Santa flinched**. Not from aggression-but from the **raw power** glowing in Pond's iris. A ripple of golden-black flashed through them, ancient symbols briefly forming and fading again.
🜂 *"I was never yours to understand."*
Phuwin quickly reached across, brushing Pond's cheek.
"Enough," he said gently. "Please. Just eat something, love."
And just like that, Pond relaxed again.
He lowered his eyes. Picked up his spoon. Began to eat.
**Only because Phuwin asked.**
---
**The rest of the meal was unbearable.**
Pond said nothing more.
Joong tried a joke. Pond ignored it.
Gemini asked about his training. Pond didn't flinch.
Dunk brought up the baby's name. Pond remained silent.
Santa talked about the nursery. Pond didn't blink.
But the moment Phuwin murmured, "You want another drink, darling?"-Pond **lifted his cup** without a word, watching his omega pour him tea.
And when Phuwin gently wiped something off the corner of Pond's lip, Pond leaned into the touch like he hadn't felt air in years.
---
After dessert, the silence was too much.
**Off stood.** "Pond," he said, voice cracking. "This isn't you. We're your family."
Pond finally looked up again-eyes glowing.
🜂 *"That boy died the moment they touched Phuwin."*
He slowly stood. The table **groaned beneath his power**.
🜂 *"You keep expecting the son you raised. The friend you trained beside. He's gone."*
The chandelier trembled above them.
🜂 *"What remains... is his mate's wrath."*
Pond turned to Phuwin.
🜂 *"Come."*
Phuwin stood without hesitation.
They walked out together.
And no one dared follow.