CHAPTER NO 9
The Trial of Thorns
The morning of the trial arrived cloaked in mist. A thin veil of fog crept through the palace grounds, whispering against the marble columns and the white rose vines that covered the courtyard walls.
Selene stood before the Queen's council, her hands bound with silver thread. It burned faintly against her skin, but she made no sound. Her hair shimmered pale pink under the dim light, a fragile flame against a world of stone.
From the balcony above, Nyra watched in silence. Her armor gleamed darkly, her expression unreadable. But her eyes her crimson eyes never left Selene's face.
"The Trial of Thorns," the High Priest intoned, "will decide if the mortal carries light or corruption within her soul. If she bleeds without pain, she is pure. If the thorns draw blood that burns, she carries the curse."
The Queen nodded, her voice cold as winter.
"Begin."
A guard stepped forward, holding a vine of white thorns, each tip glistening like frost. He wrapped it around Selene's wrist. The thorns bit into her skin she flinched, but the pain was bearable, steady, almost familiar.
Then the vine glowed faintly. Silver, not red. The guards exchanged uneasy looks.
"Silver," whispered one of the nobles. "That's the light of purity."
But before relief could settle, the thorns pulsed again this time faint crimson shimmered beneath the silver. The air grew tense. The Queen rose from her throne, her eyes narrowing.
"A dual flame," she murmured. "Neither curse nor purity… but something in between."
The priest stepped back. "Impossible. The prophecy spoke only of shadow or salvation."
Nyra descended the balcony stairs slowly. Each step echoed like a heartbeat. When she reached Selene, she didn't look at the others only her.
"She bleeds both light and shadow," Nyra said quietly. "That means she belongs to neither world… or to both."
The Queen's gaze turned to ice. "And that makes her the most dangerous of all."
The guards moved, but Nyra stepped forward, blocking them.
"The trial is over," she declared. "By blood and oath, I claim her fate under my protection."
The Queen's voice thundered through the hall.
"You defy the crown for a mortal?"
"No," Nyra said, meeting her mother's gaze with fierce calm. "I defy fear."
The Queen's silence was sharp and heavy. Then, with a wave of her hand, she dismissed the court. "So be it. Keep your mortal. But remember, Nyra love never saves a vampire. It consumes one."
When the chamber emptied, Nyra turned back to Selene. She reached out, unwrapping the thorns gently. Her fingers brushed Selene's skin, and for the briefest moment, warmth passed between them unspoken, fragile, real.
"You should rest," Nyra whispered. "This is only the beginning."
Selene looked up, eyes shimmering with fear and something softer. "I'm not afraid… not if you're with me."
Nyra hesitated then smiled faintly, the first true smile she had ever shown.
"Then may the gods forgive us both."
Outside, the silver moon rose once more half red, half white mirroring the strange, impossible bond that now tied their hearts together.