ELARA'S POV
I can feel his heartbeat.
Not through the bond. Not through magic.
I can literally feel Kaelen's heart beating in my chest alongside my own.
Two hearts. One body. Or is it one heart in two bodies?
I don't know anymore.
"This is impossible," I whisper, still in his arms on the floor. "How can we be... how can we share a soul?"
"I don't know." Kaelen's voice sounds as shaken as I feel. "This has never happened before. The bond was supposed to just connect us, not merge us."
"So change it back!"
"I can't." He helps me sit up, and I feel his muscles move like they're my own muscles. "A merged soul bond is permanent. There's no reversing it."
Panic floods through me—my panic or his, I can't tell—and suddenly I'm drowning in too many emotions at once.
Fear (mine).
Guilt (his).
Anger (both of us).
And underneath it all, a strange sense of rightness that terrifies me.
"I need you to leave," I say quickly. "Right now. Get out."
Kaelen stands, and I feel the movement in my own legs even though I'm still sitting. It's like I'm in two places at once.
"Elara—"
"GET OUT!"
He vanishes into shadows, and the moment he's gone, I can finally breathe again.
Except I can still feel him.
Still sense his presence somewhere in the palace. Still feel his emotions tangled up with mine.
I curl into a ball on the floor and try not to scream.
What have we done? What have we DONE?
Through the merged soul, I feel Kaelen in his chambers, pacing, asking himself the same question.
This is a nightmare.
No. It's worse than a nightmare because I can't wake up from it.
I don't know how long I sit there. Minutes? Hours? Time feels strange when you can sense someone else's time running parallel to yours.
Finally, there's a knock on my door.
"Go away!" I shout.
"It's Riven. I'm coming in whether you like it or not."
The door opens and Kaelen's second-in-command walks in, takes one look at me, and curses.
"He merged your souls, didn't he?"
"You can tell?"
"You're glowing. Both of you are. There's a golden thread connecting this room to his chambers visible to anyone with magical sight." Riven crosses his arms. "What happened?"
"The curse tried to kill me. We fought it. And somehow we..." I gesture helplessly. "This."
"You merged completely to overpower the curse." Riven nods like this makes perfect sense. "Smart. Stupid, but smart."
"Can you fix it?"
"No."
"Can anyone fix it?"
"No." He sits on the edge of my bed. "A merged soul bond is the most powerful magic in existence. Once it's done, it's eternal. You and Kaelen are literally two halves of the same soul now."
I want to cry. Or scream. Or both.
"There has to be a way to—"
"There isn't." Riven's voice is firm. "Accept it, Elara. You're bonded to the Dark King for the rest of your life. However long that is."
However long that is.
The words hit me like ice water.
"The curse," I say slowly. "If the curse kills Kaelen..."
"It kills you too. Yes."
"And if something kills me..."
"Kaelen dies with you. Yes."
We're completely tied together. One life. One death.
"This is insane," I whisper.
"Welcome to the Shadowlands." Riven stands. "Now get up. You have a court session in an hour."
"I can't face a court like this! I can barely think straight!"
"Then you'd better learn fast, because the Shadow Court doesn't care about your feelings. They care about whether you're a threat or an asset." He heads for the door. "I'll send someone with clothes. Try not to have a breakdown before then."
He leaves.
I sit there, feeling Kaelen's emotions swirling with mine, and wonder if I'm going to survive the day.
The clothes arrive twenty minutes later. Black and silver, fitted perfectly even though no one measured me.
Magic, probably.
I get dressed, my hands shaking the whole time.
Through the bond, I feel Kaelen doing the same. Getting ready for court. Dreading it as much as I am.
"Can you hear me?" I think at him.
His response comes instantly, clear as if he spoke aloud: Yes.
This is horrible.
I know. I'm sorry.
Stop apologizing and help me survive the next hour.
A pause. Then: Don't show fear. The court respects strength. If they sense weakness, they'll tear you apart.
Literally?
Some of them, yes.
Great. Just great.
Stay close to me. I won't let anything happen to you.
You say that like you have a choice. If I die, you die too.
Exactly. Which means I'm very motivated to keep you alive.
Despite everything, I almost smile.
Riven comes to escort me to the throne room.
The walk feels endless. Every shadow seems to watch me. Every corridor feels like it's closing in.
And through it all, I feel Kaelen waiting in the throne room, tension coiling tighter and tighter in our shared chest.
The doors open.
The throne room is packed with shadow beings. Hundreds of them, all turning to stare at me.
And sitting on the throne, looking every inch the Dark King, is Kaelen.
Our eyes meet across the room.
Through the bond, I feel his command: Walk to me. Head high. Like you belong here.
I force my spine straight and walk forward.
The crowd whispers. I catch fragments:
"...just a human..."
"...bonded to the king..."
"...glowing with his power..."
"...abomination..."
I keep walking until I reach the throne.
Kaelen stands. "Elara Thorne. Come forward."
It's formal. Official. For the court's benefit.
But through the bond, I feel his actual message: You're doing perfectly. Don't stop now.
He takes my hand and pulls me up to stand beside his throne.
The whispers get louder.
"SILENCE." Kaelen's voice thunders through the room. Everyone goes quiet instantly. "This is Elara Thorne. She carries ancient magic in her bloodline. I have bonded with her—completely—and she is under my protection. Anyone who harms her answers to me."
A tall shadow warrior steps forward. I recognize him from Kaelen's memories. Draxis. One of the court's most powerful members.
"My king," Draxis says smoothly. "Surely you don't expect us to accept a human as your consort. It weakens your position. Makes you look desperate."
Through the bond, I feel Kaelen's rage spike.
But before he can respond, I speak.
"Desperate?" I step forward. "The king has survived three hundred years of a curse that would have killed anyone else. He's built a kingdom in the darkness while your realm of Aeloria sent tribute after tribute to die. If that's desperation, then what do you call strength?"
Draxis's eyes narrow. "Careful, human. You're in our world now. You have no power here."
"Don't I?" I feel Kaelen's power thrumming through the bond. Feel it responding to me. "I'm bonded to your king. His power is my power. His strength is my strength. Which means when you insult him, you insult me. And I don't take insults well."
The room goes dead silent.
Draxis looks at Kaelen. "Are you going to let her speak to me like that?"
"She can speak however she wants," Kaelen says calmly. "She's right. And if you have a problem with it, you're welcome to challenge me directly."
No one moves.
Through the bond, I feel Kaelen's satisfaction. And something else.
Pride.
He's proud of me.
"The court is dismissed," Kaelen announces. "We'll reconvene tomorrow."
The shadow beings file out, shooting me dark looks.
When we're alone, Kaelen turns to me.
"That was—"
"Stupid?" I finish. "Reckless? Probably going to get me killed?"
"I was going to say impressive."
We stare at each other.
Through the bond, emotions swirl between us. Too many to name. Too complicated to untangle.
"We need to talk to Lyris," Kaelen says finally. "If anyone can explain what you are, it's her."
"When?"
"Now. Before the court decides to test whether killing you really will kill me too."
"Would they?"
"Some of them have wanted me dead for centuries." He offers his hand. "Come. Lyris's sanctuary is in the heart of the shadow forest. It's not a pleasant journey."
I take his hand.
The moment our fingers touch, power explodes through the bond.
Golden light fills the room, so bright we both have to shield our eyes.
When it fades, we're both staring at our joined hands.
There's a mark on both our palms. A symbol that glows softly.
"What is that?" I breathe.
"A soul mark. Physical proof of the merge." Kaelen traces the symbol on my palm with his thumb, and I feel the touch on my own palm like he's touching both our hands at once. "It means the bond is complete. Permanent. Unbreakable."
I should be terrified.
Instead, I feel something else entirely.
Safe.
For the first time in years, I feel safe.
Through the bond, Kaelen feels my emotion and his eyes widen.
Then the palace shakes.
A massive explosion rocks the foundations, sending us both stumbling.
"What was that?" I gasp.
Kaelen's face goes pale. "The wards. Someone's attacking the palace."
"Who?"
Before he can answer, Riven bursts through the doors.
"My lord! It's Aeloria! They've sent an army to the Gateway. They're trying to force their way through!"
My blood runs cold. "Why would they attack now?"
Kaelen and Riven exchange a look.
Through the bond, I feel Kaelen's realization hit like a punch to the gut.
"Because they know about the merge," he says quietly. "They know we're bonded. And they want to kill you to kill me."
The palace shakes again, harder this time.
And through the bond, I feel something else.
Someone else.
A presence on the other side of the Gateway. Someone
powerful and familiar and filled with malicious satisfaction.
Varen.
He's come to finish what he started.
And he's brought an army to make sure I die.