The wind howled through the shattered clearing as though the forest itself had inhaled sharply at the sight of something impossible. Aria stood frozen, her pulse crashing against her ribs, her breath trembling, her hands trembling even harder. Malakai—her demon, her protector, the being who commanded shadows with terrifying grace—was kneeling on one knee, his obsidian wings dragging limply behind him, torn. Blood—thick, dark, and shimmering like molten midnight—dripped from a deep gash slashed across his ribs. It steamed when it hit the ground.
Demons weren't supposed to bleed.
The realization numbed every thought in her mind.
"Malakai…" Aria whispered, taking a step toward him though her legs were shaking so badly she barely felt them. "You're hurt."
He let out a strained, humorless laugh. "So it would seem."
His voice was rough, jagged, like gravel pulled over metal. Shadows around him flickered weakly, struggling to re-form. Aria had never seen him like this—never imagined she could. Malakai was always calm, always in control, always a breath away from terrifying. Seeing him wounded felt wrong, like the universe had shifted off its axis.
She dropped to her knees beside him. "Who did this? That thing—was it another hunter?"
"No," he rasped, catching her wrist with enough strength to stop her from touching the wound. "Not a hunter. Hunters can't cut me like this."
His breath hitched. Malakai, the demon who faced down nightmares without blinking, was in pain.
Aria's heart clenched so tightly she had to inhale twice before she could speak. "Then what attacked us?"
"A sentinel," he murmured, jaw tightening.
"A guardian of the deeper realms. It wasn't meant to come this close to the mortal plane." His eyes flicked toward the forest, scanning for movement even though his vision was clearly dimming.
"Something is forcing them out. Something that wants you vulnerable."
Her throat tightened. "Because of my awakening."
"No." His gaze snapped to her, burning despite the strain. "Because of what you will become."
The chill that went through her was so sharp she sucked in a breath.
"What I will become?" she whispered, barely able to form the words.
Malakai exhaled slowly, as though the answer itself was dangerous. But before he could speak, his body jerked violently, and he clenched his jaw hard enough the tendons in his neck stood out. The wound pulsed with a sickly glow—silver light, not crimson, not shadow. Something that didn't belong to him.
Aria felt her own pulse hitch. "That isn't normal demon blood."
"No," he said, voice low. "The sentinel carries celestial markings. Their blades are forged with starlight. Even the strongest demons are vulnerable to them."
Celestial.
The word sent a ripple through her, cold and warm at once.
"Let me help you," she said, reaching toward him again.
"You can't." Malakai caught her wrist again, but his grip was weaker this time. "Your power isn't stable. Touching this wound could kill you."
"Then tell me what to do."
His jaw locked, and he looked away. "There is nothing you can do."
Aria felt a flare of anger beneath the fear. "Don't lie to me now. Not when—when you're like this." She swallowed hard, her voice breaking. "You protected me. Now let me protect you."
Malakai's expression flickered—conflict, frustration, something darker—and then something she had never seen before.
Fear.
Not for himself.
For her.
"Aria," he said softly, and the way her name fell from his lips made her chest constrict painfully. "If you attempt to pull the celestial energy from this wound, it will consume you."
Celestial energy.
The same type she had felt crackling in her bones during the nightmare ritual in the stone circle.
The same that made her awakening unpredictable.
She stared at him, mind racing. "You said my energy was different. That my awakening wasn't like regular mortals. What if—"
"No." His voice sharpened, even weak. "I won't risk you."
"But you'll risk yourself?" she snapped. "You'll just sit here and bleed out because you think I'm too fragile?"
Malakai's eyes flashed. Even wounded, his presence filled the air like a storm. "You are not fragile." His fingers curled around hers, cold and trembling. "You are the one thing in this world I must not lose."
Her breath caught.
Everything around them—the whispering forest, the trembling shadows, the fading light—seemed to vanish.
"You're not going to lose me," she whispered.
His gaze softened in a way that made her heart twist painfully.
But when he released her wrist, his shadows faltered and he slumped forward, catching himself just before he hit the ground.
"Malakai!"
Aria caught his shoulder, her hand burning where her skin touched his. She felt his pulse stutter—too slow, too uneven. Panic clawed up her throat.
He was dying.
Demon or not. Power or not.
He was dying.
And Aria refused to let him.
Her hands trembled, crimson energy beginning to churn beneath her skin. Fear wasn't weakening her—it was fueling her. The bond between them pulsed, awakening something deep inside her that Aria didn't fully understand yet but felt down to her soul.
She placed both hands on his wound.
Malakai's eyes snapped open in shock. "Aria—NO!"
Too late.
Energy exploded between them like colliding storms.
Aria screamed as cold celestial light surged up her arms, mingling with her crimson energy, wrapping around her bones, shredding through her nerves with lightning. Malakai grabbed her wrists, trying to wrench her hands away, but his strength failed him.
"Let go!" he shouted.
"I won't!" she cried, tears streaming down her face. "I won't let you die!"
Light and shadow swirled violently, crashing into each other. The celestial energy tried to consume her, burning like liquid starlight. Her crimson power pushed back, wild and unrestrained. Somewhere between them, Malakai's shadows wrapped around her arms protectively, as though instinctively trying to shield her.
The force grew hotter, brighter—
Then everything detonated.
Aria was thrown backward, slamming into the ground. Her ears rang. Her vision blurred.
For a moment, she thought she had failed.
Then she heard Malakai breathe.
Not ragged.
Not fading.
But steady.
Strong.
She forced her eyes open.
Malakai was standing.
Standing.
His wings spread wide, fully restored, rippling with fresh darkness. His wound was gone—sealed, healed, glowing with faint crimson where her energy had touched it. He stared at his hands, stunned, as though unsure how he was alive.
Slowly, he lifted his gaze to her.
"Aria," he whispered, voice heavy with shock, awe… and something she couldn't name. "You… healed a celestial wound."
She tried to sit up, but pain flashed through her body, and she gasped.
Malakai was at her side instantly, gathering her into his arms with a gentleness that contradicted his power.
"Don't move," he murmured, voice breaking. "You took too much of the celestial energy into yourself."
Her head fell against his chest, exhaustion crashing over her. "Did I… do it right?"
Malakai pressed his forehead to hers. She felt him trembling. Malakai never trembled.
"You defied celestial law," he said, voice low and shaken. "You healed a demon with forbidden light. That is impossible."
But she had done it.
For him.
His shadows curled around her like warm smoke, protective, reverent, possessive.
"Aria…" he whispered, voice rough. "Do you understand what this means?"
She blinked up at him weakly. "That you're not allowed to die on me?"
His breath hitched in something like a laugh—broken, relieved, overwhelmed.
But then his expression shifted.
Darker.
More serious.
"No," he said softly. "It means the celestials felt what you did." His thumb brushed her cheek, a gesture too soft for a creature made of shadows. "They will come for you now."
Her breath stopped.
"And the demons…" His voice dropped even lower. "My world… my kind… will sense you as well."
She swallowed, fear and fire mixing in her chest. "Both sides?"
"Yes," he murmured, pulling her closer. "Heaven and Hell will hunt you."
"But you're here," she whispered.
Malakai's wings wrapped around her completely, sealing her against him. "Always."
The forest trembled.
And far above, the sky cracked with pale golden light.
The celestials had noticed her.
And they were coming.