The night after Elyon's attack was too quiet.Too still.
Aarohi couldn't sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw flashes of that golden light colliding with Arin's darkness — saw him shielding her, his body trembling under the force of a god's wrath.
She sat by the old church window, knees drawn close, watching him.He hadn't moved in hours.
Arin sat in the center of the room, eyes closed, his energy wrapped around him like a living storm. The shadows that obeyed him seemed… restless.
He was healing — or trying to.
And the air around him pulsed with quiet, unbearable power.
The Pulse
Aarohi reached toward him — hesitant, uncertain.
The moment her fingertips brushed the edge of his aura, a shock ran through her.A memory.
Not a vision — but a feeling.
Hands clasped in fire.A kiss in the middle of a burning battlefield.His voice whispering against her lips — "If the gods won't forgive us, then let them watch."
She gasped, pulling back.But the mark on her chest burned brighter.
Arin's eyes opened instantly — black, glowing faintly red around the edges.
"You shouldn't have touched me."
"I— I didn't mean to."
He exhaled slowly. "The bond is unstable. My curse feeds your flame… your flame feeds my darkness. If either of us loses control—"
She interrupted softly. "The world burns again."
He nodded once.
The Warning
They sat in silence for a long moment — the distance between them electric, dangerous.
Finally, Aarohi whispered, "You said before… you lose a piece of yourself every time you bring me back. What did you mean?"
Arin's jaw tightened.
"Every resurrection takes from me — memories, strength, sanity. I'm not the same man I was the first time I loved you."
"Then why keep doing it?"
"Because losing you hurts worse than losing myself."
The confession hit harder than fire.
She looked at him, really looked — the faint exhaustion in his eyes, the centuries of guilt, devotion, and loneliness carved into every word he spoke.
"You think that's love?" she said quietly. "That's torture."
"Love is torture, Flame. You of all souls should know that."
The Loss of Control
The room trembled.Aarohi's mark flared suddenly, her skin glowing bright red.
Arin stood instantly. "Aarohi—"
But it was too late.
Flames erupted from her hands, wild and violent. The church walls cracked, air bending under the heat. The fire didn't burn the world — it unmade it, turning wood and stone into white ash.
She screamed, clutching her chest."It won't stop!"
Arin moved forward, grabbing her hands. "Focus on me."
"It's burning!"
"Then burn with me!"
He pulled her close — their marks colliding, light and shadow merging. The explosion that followed shook the ground for miles.
The world outside went silent — birds vanished, wind died, time itself seemed to hold its breath.
When the light faded, they were still standing — wrapped in a cocoon of intertwined fire and shadow, breathing as one.
Arin's arms were around her, his voice barely a whisper against her ear.
"This is the price of the Flame. You don't control it. You become it."
Her tears fell silently. "Then teach me before it consumes us both."
The Divine Hunter
A sudden crack split the sky.The sound of wings — enormous, metallic, unnatural.
Arin stiffened instantly.
"They've sent the Hunter."
"Who?"
"The one who kills gods."
The church roof exploded in a flash of silver light. A figure descended — armored in celestial steel, its face hidden behind a mask of light.
Its voice echoed like thunder.
"The Flame and the Shadow have risen again. By decree of the High Heavens, your existence ends tonight."
Aarohi's hands clenched. "Let them try."
Arin's smirk was cold, dark, and dangerous.
"Flame," he said softly, "ready to see what we destroyed the first time?"
She met his eyes — no fear, only fire."Show me."
They moved together — light and darkness spiraling into one.Her fire became a blade; his shadow became armor.When the Hunter struck, the night itself screamed.
And as their powers collided with divine wrath, the mark on their skin fused — black and crimson merging into one single sigil.
For the first time in centuries, they were whole.For the first time… the gods trembled again.