Seraphina's POV
Cassian breaks the chains.
The silver metal shatters like glass, falling away from his wrists. His eyes—they're not gray anymore. They're glowing pure silver, bright as moonlight.
"That's impossible!" Prince Lucien stumbles backward. "Those chains were enchanted! No one can break—"
"You talk too much, cousin." Cassian's voice is different too. Deeper. Echoing with power.
He moves faster than my eyes can follow. One second he's at the post. The next, he has Lucien by the throat, lifting him off the ground.
The dark mages surrounding them panic. Purple energy crackles as they prepare to attack.
"Don't!" I scream, running forward. "You'll hit your own prince!"
But they don't care. Dark magic blasts toward Cassian from all sides.
He doesn't even flinch.
The magic hits some kind of invisible barrier around him and bounces back, striking the mages who cast it. They scream and collapse.
"What is he?" someone whispers in the crowd.
Cassian drops Lucien, who gasps for air on the ground. "I am what I've always been. What my family has hidden for three generations."
He turns to face the rising sun, and I see something that makes my blood freeze.
Silver markings are appearing on his skin. Ancient symbols glowing with pale light, spreading across his arms, his neck, his face.
"The curse you wanted to complete?" Cassian's laugh is bitter. "It was never a curse. It was a seal. A seal keeping my true power locked away."
Lucien coughs, trying to stand. "You're... you're a..."
"Lycan." Cassian finishes. "Not just an emperor. Not just a man. I'm the last true Lycan of the royal bloodline."
The crowd gasps. I've read about Lycans in history books. Ancient beings with power beyond normal werewolves. Creatures that could level cities and command armies with a thought.
They died out centuries ago.
Or so everyone thought.
"My grandfather sealed this power when I was born," Cassian continues, his silver eyes scanning the crowd until they find me. "He feared what I could become. Feared I would destroy everything like the Lycans of old. So he created the 'curse'—a story to explain why disaster followed my family. But it was just a seal weakening with each generation."
"And you thought killing me would complete it," he turns back to Lucien. "You thought my death would unleash the power and you could take it for yourself. But seals don't work that way, cousin. They can only be broken by the one they bind."
Lucien's face twists with rage. "Then I'll just kill you the old-fashioned way!"
He lunges with the ceremonial blade.
Cassian catches his wrist easily. "You can try."
The blade shatters in Lucien's hand.
"Your Majesty!" Commander Aldric appears with reinforcements, imperial guards flooding into the arena. "We've secured the perimeter!"
"Take Prince Lucien into custody," Cassian orders, his voice back to normal. The silver glow in his eyes fades slightly. "Charge him with treason, attempted assassination, and conspiracy to commit mass murder."
Guards surround Lucien. He struggles, screaming. "This isn't over! The prophecy says—"
"The prophecy was wrong." Cassian's eyes find mine again across the distance. "There is no curse. There never was."
My legs suddenly feel weak. All this time, I thought I was running from a death prophecy. Thought the story demanded my death.
But there was no curse.
Just a powerful family hiding an even more powerful secret.
"Seraphina." Cassian starts walking toward me. The crowd parts for him automatically, fear and awe on their faces. "You came. Even after I told you not to."
"You're welcome," I manage to say, though my voice shakes.
He stops right in front of me. Up close, I can see the silver markings are fading from his skin, disappearing like they were never there.
"I could have handled it myself," he says, but his eyes are soft.
"You were literally chained up waiting to be sacrificed."
"I was waiting for sunrise to break the seal. I had it under control."
"Oh really? And how long have you been planning this dramatic reveal?"
A small smile tugs at his lips. "Years. Though I admit, having you show up with a dagger was not part of the plan."
I look down. I'm still clutching Lucy's dagger in my hand, knuckles white.
"I thought..." My voice cracks. "I thought you were going to die."
"I know." He gently takes the dagger from my hand and tucks it into his belt. "That's why I told you not to come. I didn't want you to see..."
"See what? That you're a Lycan? That you have incredible power?" I shake my head. "Cassian, I've died and traveled through time. A little magic doesn't scare me."
He stares at me for a long moment. Then he laughs—really laughs, the sound warm and genuine.
"You're insane," he says.
"So are you. We're perfect for each other."
The words hang in the air between us. Around us, the crowd is still processing everything. Guards are dragging away unconscious dark mages. Healers rush to tend the wounded.
But in this moment, it's just us.
"The engagement," Cassian says suddenly. "It's not official yet. The binding ceremony was never completed. You could still walk away. Go home. Live a normal life."
"After everything that's happened?" I raise an eyebrow. "After I literally rode through the night to save you? You think I want normal?"
"I think you deserve a choice." His voice is serious now. "You deserve to know what you're agreeing to. I'm not just an emperor, Seraphina. I'm a Lycan. My power is dangerous. The council will want me to marry someone who can... who can..."
"Handle you?" I finish. "Someone strong enough to stand beside a man who can break enchanted chains with his bare hands?"
"Yes."
I step closer, close enough that I have to tilt my head back to look him in the eyes.
"Then it's a good thing I already died once and came back stronger," I say firmly. "Besides, you chose me, remember? In front of the entire empire. You can't take it back now."
"I don't want to take it back." His voice drops to a whisper. "But Seraphina, there's something else you need to know. Something about why I really chose you."
My heart skips. "What do you mean?"
"The seal on my power—it wasn't just any seal. It required a key to break. A specific bloodline with the ability to—"
An explosion rocks the arena.
We both stumble. Screams erupt from the crowd.
"What now?" Cassian snarls, his eyes flashing silver again.
Commander Aldric runs toward us, his face pale with terror. "Your Majesty! The prisoners! Someone opened the holding cells!"
"What prisoners?" I demand.
"The three assassins we captured last month." Aldric's voice shakes. "The ones who tried to kill the Emperor's previous bride candidates. We've been interrogating them to find out who hired them."
My blood runs cold. "What happened?"
"They're dead. All three of them. Poisoned." Aldric looks at Cassian desperately. "But before they died, they left a message written in blood on the cell wall."
"What message?" Cassian demands.
Aldric swallows hard. "It says: 'The real game starts now. Kill the girl before the wedding or the Lycan dies with her.'"
Silence.
Then Cassian grabs my hand, his grip fierce. "We're leaving. Now."
"But the arena—"
"Is compromised. Someone on my council knew about the assassins. Someone let them die to deliver that message." His eyes scan the crowd wildly. "Someone here wants you dead before we can complete the binding ceremony."
"Why? I thought there was no curse—"
"There isn't. But there's something else. Something I haven't told you yet." He starts pulling me toward the exit. "Your bloodline, Seraphina. Your silver hair and violet eyes. They're not just rare. They're—"
Another explosion.
This one is massive, tearing through the western wall of the arena. Stone and fire rain down.
Through the smoke and chaos, I see her.
A woman standing on top of the rubble. She's beautiful in a terrible way, with white hair and eyes that burn like red flames. She wears black armor covered in strange symbols.
And she's staring directly at me.
"Found you," she says, her voice carrying across the destruction. "Hello, sister."
I stop breathing.
"What?" I whisper. "I don't have a sister. I don't—"
"Oh, but you do." The woman smiles, showing teeth that are too sharp. "Did you really think you were the only one? The only girl born with moon blood?"
She raises her hand, and dark energy swirls around it.
"Mother had twins, Seraphina. You just don't remember. Because they took me away when we were babies." Her smile widens. "They took me to the Temple of Blood and turned me into what I am now. A weapon designed for one purpose."
She points at me.
"To kill you and steal your power before you can wake the Lycan King."
Then she attacks.