Lyra's POV
The goddess in my room smiles like she knows every secret I've ever kept.
I should scream. Call for guards. Do something other than stand here frozen.
But I can't move. Can't think. Can't do anything except stare at this woman who appeared from literal darkness.
Don't be afraid, Nyx says, her voice smooth as silk. If I wanted to hurt you, you'd already be dead.
Somehow, that doesn't make me feel better.
How did you get in here? My voice shakes. This tower is protected. Guarded. No one can
I'm the Goddess of Shadows and Secrets, child. Locked doors mean nothing to me. She moves closer, circling me like smoke. I go where I please. See what I wish. And right now, I wish to see you.
Why?
Because you're confused. Scared. Wondering why the god speaks only truth while the evidence screams his guilt. She tilts her head. Tell me, Lyra what do you hear when I speak?
I listen carefully, waiting for music.
Nothing. Just her voice, clear and honest.
Silence, I whisper.
Nyx's smile widens. Interesting. So I'm telling the truth. Or perhaps... She leans closer. Perhaps your curse doesn't work the way you think it does.
My hands clench into fists. Everyone keeps saying that. But no one will explain what it means!
Then let me be clear. Nyx stops circling. You're not simply cursed, Lyra. You're created. Designed. A weapon forged specifically for tomorrow's trial.
That's impossible.
Is it? Her silver eyes pierce through me. How does a mortal child survive twenty-three years in a realm that burns humans to ash? How can you perceive divine lies when mortals shouldn't even be able to see gods clearly?
I open my mouth. Close it. I've never questioned those things before. Just accepted that my curse made me different.
You're not fully mortal, Nyx continues softly. You're half-divine. The Council created you when you were an infant, implanting divine essence into your body. That's why you can survive here. Why you can hear what others can't.
My legs feel weak. No. My parents
Sold you, Nyx finishes. Yes, I know. But what do you think they sold you for? Just gold? She laughs, but there's no humor in it. They sold you to become an experiment. The Council's perfect lie detector. Their weapon against anyone who threatens their power.
The room spins. I grab the edge of my bed to steady myself.
Why? I manage to ask. Why create me?
Because only a being who is both mortal and divine can kill an ancient god, Nyx says. Regular weapons don't work on beings like Kairos. But you? You're different. You're the perfect weapon.
Horror crawls up my spine. They want me to execute Kairos.
Not just execute. Murder. Nyx's expression hardens. Because Kairos is innocent, Lyra. He didn't kill Fate. The Council did.
What? The word comes out as a gasp.
Fate saw too much. Knew too much. She discovered the Council's plans to seize control of all destiny, all futures. So they killed her and blamed the one god powerful enough to stop them.
My mind races. But the evidence the witnesses
All lies. All manufactured. Nyx moves to my window, looking out at the stars. The Council has been planning this for years. They created you as a baby specifically for this moment. To legally execute Kairos so the other gods can't object.
I sink onto my bed, shaking. This can't be real.
Can't it? Nyx turns back to me. Think, Lyra. Has the Council ever treated you as a person? Or always as a tool?
Images flash through my mind. Being taken from my parents. Trained in isolation. Used to condemn hundreds of people. Never thanked. Never valued. Just... used.
They're going to force you to execute Kairos tomorrow, Nyx says quietly. And when you do, they'll have complete control over time and destiny. No one will be able to stop them.
Tears burn my eyes. What can I do? I'm just
You're not 'just' anything! Nyx's voice sharpens. You're powerful, Lyra. More powerful than you know. Fate made sure of that.
Fate? But you said the Council created me.
They tried to. But Fate was clever. Nyx smiles. When they performed their ritual to make you a weapon, Fate secretly wove in her own magic. She turned their creation into something else. Something that could choose.
My breath catches. Choose what?
Your own path. Your own truth. Nyx extends her hand toward me. Come with me right now. Leave this trial. I have a realm between shadows where the Council can't reach. You'd be safe. Protected. Free.
I stare at her offered hand. Freedom. Safety. Everything I've ever wanted.
But
What about Kairos? I ask. If I leave, they'll just kill him anyway.
I'll find another way to save him, Nyx promises. But you matter too, Lyra. You deserve more than being used and thrown away.
There's genuine care in her voice. Warmth I haven't heard from anyone in years.
Why do you care what happens to me? I whisper.
Nyx's expression softens. Because Fate was my closest friend. Before she died, she made me promise to protect you if things went wrong. And because... She pauses. Because I've lived for eons without meeting someone who questions everything in a world that demands blind obedience. You're remarkable, Lyra. And you deserve to know that.
Something warm blooms in my chest. Someone thinks I'm remarkable. Not useful. Not valuable as a tool. Remarkable as a person.
I almost take her hand.
Almost.
But then I remember Kairos's eyes. The pain when he talked about Fate. The way he looked at me like I mattered.
I can't run, I say slowly. Not yet. Not until I understand everything.
Nyx looks disappointed but nods. Then investigate quickly. You have less time than you think. She starts fading back into shadows. When you need me, just call my name. I'll come.
Wait! I stand. How do I know you're telling the truth? How do I know you're not manipulating me too?
Nyx pauses, half-dissolved into darkness. You don't. That's the terrifying part about truth, isn't it? You have to choose what to believe.
She vanishes completely, leaving me alone.
I stand in the empty room, my mind spinning with impossible information.
Created as a weapon. Half-divine. Fate's secret magic woven into me.
Could any of it be true?
I move to my window, pressing my forehead against the cool glass. The stars outside look strange. Wrong somehow.
That's when I see it.
A figure standing in the courtyard below. Watching my window.
I squint, trying to see who it is.
The figure steps into the light.
My blood turns to ice.
It's my mother.
The woman who sold me twenty-three years ago. Who I thought I'd never see again.
She's here. In the Celestial Court.
And she's wearing Council robes.
My mother works for the Council. She's been here the entire time.