The light faded slowly, like the world was taking a breath.
When Elara opened her eyes, she was standing on marble that shimmered like moonstone. The air smelled of rain and smoke and something old—magic itself. Towers of black crystal rose in the distance, their spires twisting through clouds of silver mist. Strange runes pulsed along the walls, casting soft light that rippled like water.
"This…" Elara whispered. "This can't be real."
"It's as real as you are," Darius said beside her, his tone unreadable. "Welcome to the Shaded Realm."
People—if they could be called that—moved through the streets beyond the marble steps. Their forms flickered between human and shadow, faces too beautiful and too hollow to be mortal. Eyes glowed faintly, like candle flames inside glass.
Elara shivered. "Who are they?"
Darius's jaw tightened. "The Court."
She turned to him. "The Shadow Court?"
He nodded once. "The ones who rule this world."
Her voice dropped. "And you… you're one of them?"
For a heartbeat, Darius didn't answer. Then he said quietly, "I was."
Elara studied him—the scar cutting along his neck, the exhaustion behind his eyes, the way he never quite met her gaze when he spoke of this place. He didn't belong here anymore.
"Why did you leave?" she asked.
His expression hardened, but something flickered there—pain. "Because the Court doesn't protect people like you, Elara. They hunt them."
She frowned. "People like me?"
He stepped closer, his voice a whisper. "Marked ones. Those chosen by the Veil. You're not the first—but you might be the last."
A chill ran through her. "Why me?"
"Because you were born from both worlds," he said. "Half mortal, half shadow. That mark isn't just power—it's a claim."
Elara stumbled back, shaking her head. "No. I'm not… that's impossible!"
"Your mother was human," Darius said softly. "But your father wasn't."
The world tilted again. Elara pressed a hand to her chest. "You knew him?"
For the first time, Darius looked directly at her. "I killed him."
The words hung in the air, heavy and sharp.
Elara's breath caught; her heart felt like it had stopped beating. "You… what?"
He turned away, his voice low. "It was long before I knew what he was—or who you'd become. The Court ordered his execution. I obeyed."
Lightning flashed outside the glass towers, thunder rolling across the shimmering horizon. Elara stared at him, torn between fury and disbelief.
"Why tell me now?" she demanded.
"Because you deserve the truth," he said. "And because… the same Court that made me kill your father will come for you next."
He finally looked at her then—truly looked—and in his eyes, she saw not the coldness of a soldier but the guilt of a man who had been broken by his choices.
Elara's voice trembled. "Then why save me?"
"Because," he said quietly, stepping closer until his shadow touched hers, "I won't make the same mistake twice."
For a long moment, neither spoke. The air between them hummed—dangerous, fragile, alive.
And deep inside, beneath the fear and the fury, Elara felt something shift.
Something that had nothing to do with destiny…
and everything to do with him.
✨ End of Chapter 4 ✨