Seraphina's POV
The stone creatures circled us like wolves hunting prey.
"Stay behind me," Cassian ordered, positioning himself between me and the monsters.
"There are too many!" I counted at least eight of them, their half-stone bodies grinding and clicking as they moved. Red eyes glowed with unnatural hatred.
The closest one lunged. Cassian grabbed a heavy book and smashed it across the creature's head. The book shattered. The creature didn't even flinch.
"Your power!" Cassian shouted at me. "Use your power!"
"I don't know how!" Panic clawed at my throat. My hands were shaking too much. The golden warmth from earlier felt distant, unreachable.
Another creature charged. This time, Cassian shoved a bookshelf between us and it. The shelf crashed down, but the creature just climbed over it.
We were going to die. Here. In this dusty library. Torn apart by stone monsters.
"Seraphina, listen to me." Cassian grabbed my shoulders, forcing me to look at him. "Remember what the book said. Your power is strongest when protecting those you love. Feel that. Feel the connection between us."
"I can't—"
"Yes, you can." His silver eyes burned into mine. "I know you can. Because I feel it too. That golden thread linking us. Focus on it. Focus on me."
I closed my eyes. Searched inside myself for that warmth. For that connection.
And there it was. Faint but real. A golden thread stretching from my heart to his.
I grabbed onto it with everything I had.
Power exploded through me.
Golden light burst from my hands, brighter than before. It hit the stone creatures like a tidal wave. They screamed—horrible, grinding screams—and crumbled into dust.
All of them. Gone in seconds.
I collapsed, gasping. The power drained out of me, leaving me weak and dizzy.
"You did it," Cassian breathed, catching me before I fell. "You actually did it."
"I feel awful," I mumbled. My head spun. My hands tingled painfully.
"Using that much power at once—your body isn't used to it yet." He helped me sit down. "Rest. Just breathe."
But we didn't have time to rest.
The door burst open.
Guards flooded in—but not to attack. They formed a line, standing at attention.
Then King Theron walked through, calm and collected as if stone monsters hadn't just tried to kill us.
"Well," he said pleasantly. "That was impressive. You destroyed all eight of my test subjects."
My blood ran cold. "Test subjects?"
"Did you think those creatures were an accident?" Theron smiled. "I sent them. I needed to see what you could do. How strong you really are." He looked at me like I was a fascinating insect. "And now I know. You're even more powerful than Morgana suspected."
Cassian stepped in front of me. "Stay away from her."
"Or what, brother?" Theron asked mockingly. "You'll fight me? You can barely stand. And she just used all her power destroying my creatures. You're both helpless."
He was right. I could barely lift my arms. Cassian looked exhausted too.
Theron circled us slowly. "Here's what's going to happen. Seraphina will come with me. I have... plans for her."
"No," Cassian growled.
"It wasn't a request." Theron snapped his fingers. Guards moved forward. "Take her."
"Wait!" I struggled to stand, my mind racing. We couldn't fight. We couldn't run. But maybe... "I'll make you a deal."
Theron raised an eyebrow. "A deal? You're in no position to negotiate."
"Aren't I?" I forced my voice steady despite my fear. "You want my power. Fine. But you need me alive and cooperative to use it, right? If I fight you, if I resist, my magic won't work properly. Healers have to choose to use their gifts."
Interest flickered in his eyes. "Go on."
"Let me stay with Cassian. In the Forbidden Wing. Keep us locked up if you want. But together." I met his gaze. "In exchange, I'll... cooperate. I'll let you study my power. I won't fight you."
"Seraphina, no—" Cassian started.
"But," I continued, ignoring him, "if you separate us, if you hurt him, I'll never use my magic for you. I'll let it burn inside me until it kills me before I help you."
Silence. Theron studied me carefully.
"You'd die for him?" he asked. "After knowing him one day?"
"Yes."
"Interesting." Theron tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Most people beg for their own lives. You're bargaining for his."
"Most people haven't been thrown away by everyone they trusted," I shot back. "Cassian is the first person who's seen me as more than nothing. So yes. I'll die for him if I have to."
Cassian's hand found mine. Squeezed tight.
Theron laughed. "You're either very brave or very stupid. Maybe both." He considered for a moment. "Fine. I accept your deal. You stay with my cursed brother. But understand this—you belong to me now. Your power, your blood, everything. And if you break our agreement, I'll make you watch while I execute everyone you care about. Starting with Sir Elias."
My stomach dropped. "Elias is alive?"
"For now. Consider him insurance that you'll behave." Theron gestured to his guards. "Return them to the Forbidden Wing. Double the guards outside. No one enters or leaves without my permission."
The guards surrounded us. Cassian tried to argue, but Theron cut him off.
"Be grateful, brother. I could have killed you both. Instead, I'm letting you play house with your little healer." He leaned close. "But make no mistake—this is temporary. Once I've learned what I need from her, you're both expendable."
They marched us back through the palace. Every servant, every noble who saw us looked away quickly. We were prisoners. Everyone knew it.
Back in Cassian's room, the guards locked the door from outside. We heard them taking positions in the corridor.
"You shouldn't have bargained with him," Cassian said quietly once we were alone. "Theron never keeps his word."
"I know. But it bought us time." I sank into a chair, exhausted. "Time to figure out my power. Time to find a way to save Elias. Time to stop whatever Theron is planning."
"He's planning to use you," Cassian said bitterly. "Your blood. Your power. Everything."
"Then we'll have to make sure I'm ready when he tries." I looked at him. "You said there are books here about curses and magic, right?"
"Yes, but—"
"Then we study. We learn. We get stronger." I stood up despite my shaking legs. "I'm not some helpless girl anymore. I'm a Healer. The last of my bloodline. And I'm going to figure out how to control this power if it kills me."
Cassian stared at me. Then, slowly, he smiled. "You really are insane."
"I learned from the best." I smiled back.
For the first time since this nightmare began, I felt something other than fear.
I felt determined.
Hours passed. We read every book we could find about Healers and curses. Cassian taught me what he knew about magic theory. I practiced calling up that golden warmth, little by little.
By sunset, I could make my hands glow on command. It wasn't much, but it was progress.
"The transformation is coming," Cassian said, watching the darkening sky. "You should rest. You've used so much power today."
"I want to try something," I said. "When the stone takes you, I want to try healing it. Really healing it. Not just easing the pain—actually breaking the curse."
"That's dangerous. You saw what happened to those creatures. What if—"
"What if I can save you?" I interrupted. "What if this is exactly what we've been preparing for?"
He wanted to argue. I could see it in his eyes. But finally, he nodded.
"Together," he said.
"Together," I agreed.
The sun touched the horizon. Cassian's face tightened with pain.
The transformation began.
This time, I was ready. I placed both hands on his chest and called up every bit of power I had. The golden warmth flooded through me, stronger than before.
The stone spread up his legs—but slower. I pushed harder. The warmth intensified.
For a moment—one beautiful moment—the stone actually reversed. Started receding.
"It's working!" I gasped.
But then something went wrong.
The golden light turned white. Blazing. Burning.
Cassian screamed.
"No!" I tried to pull back, but the power had its own momentum now. It was too strong. Too much.
The white light exploded outward.
Everything went black.
When I woke, I was on the floor. My body ached everywhere. Cassian was beside me, completely stone.
But something was different.
The stone wasn't grey anymore.
It was gold.
And through the golden stone, I could see his eyes—still conscious, still aware.
But now they were looking past me. At something behind me.
I turned.
The grey-haired woman from the throne room stood in the corner of the room, though the door was still locked.
"Hello, child," she said gently. "My name is Aria. And I'm here to tell you the truth about what you really are—and why everyone wants you dead."