Lyra POV:
"Stay with him."
Seraphine's voice is firm, directed at the healers surrounding Kael.
I don't move at first. My hand is still wrapped around his. His grip is weak, but it's there. Barely.
"Lyra," Seraphine calls again.
I look up.
"We need to move," she says. "Now."
Orion stands beside her, watching me closely. "The attacks will not stop. If there is anything left to discover, it must be done before the next surge."
I release Kael's hand slowly.
"I'm coming back," I tell him.
His eyes barely open. He doesn't speak. But his fingers twitch once. That is enough. I stand.
"Where are we going?" I ask.
Seraphine turns without answering. "Follow me."
We move through the inner corridors quickly. No guards. No explanation. Just urgency.
"This isn't toward the council chambers," I say.
"No," Seraphine replies.
"Then where?"
"You'll see."
Orion walks behind us, silent, observant. I don't like this.
We exit through a narrow passage I've never used before. It leads beyond the palace walls, toward the forest edge.
I stop. "We don't have time for this."
Seraphine stops too. Turns to face me.
"This is exactly why we do," she says.
Her tone doesn't leave room for argument. I follow.
We reach the forest quickly. The air shifts the moment we step inside. Magic. Old. Quiet. Watching.
Seraphine moves like she knows the path. No hesitation. No pause.
"You've been here before," I say.
"Yes."
"How long?"
She doesn't answer immediately.
"Long enough," she says finally.
That is not good enough.
"Seraphine "
"Focus, Lyra."
Her voice sharpens.
"Whatever comes next, we fight it together. Questions can wait."
I exhale slowly. Fine. For now.
We reach the ruins without warning. Broken stone. Ancient markings. Faint glow beneath the cracks.
I step closer, running my fingers over the carvings.
Lunar script. Older than anything in the palace library.
"How did we miss this?" I ask.
"We didn't," Seraphine says.
I turn.
"What?"
"It was hidden," she says simply. "Sealed. Protected."
"By who?"
"By those who knew what was coming."
A chill runs through me. Seraphine steps forward, placing her
hand against one of the stones.
The markings react instantly. Light spreads across the surface, revealing a hidden chamber beneath.
The ground shifts. A passage opens. I stare at her.
"You've done this before."
"Yes."
"How many times?"
"Enough to know what's inside."
My grip tightens on my staff.
"And you didn't think to tell me?"
"I needed to be certain."
"Certain of what?"
"That you wouldn't fail."
Her words hit harder than any spell. Before I can respond. The ground trembles.
Orion steps forward immediately. "We're not alone."
I feel it too. Heavy. Slow. Approaching.
The first ice giant crashes through the trees. Then another. And another. Three in total.
Each one massive, their bodies formed of thick, jagged ice. Their eyes burn with the same cold light as the wolves.
"They followed us," I say.
"No," Orion replies. "They were sent."
"Same difference," I mutter.
The first giant swings its arm down. I react instantly, raising a barrier. The impact shakes the ground beneath us.
Kael should be here. The thought comes uninvited. I push it away. Focus.
"Lyra!" Seraphine calls. "Hold them!"
"What are you doing?" I demand.
"Finishing what I started."
She moves toward the chamber.
"No, you don't "
Another удар slams into my barrier.
It cracks. I reinforce it, pushing more energy through.
"Orion!"
"I see them," he says calmly, already casting.
Chains of glowing magic shoot forward, wrapping around one of the giants' legs. It slows, but doesn't stop.
"They're stronger," I say.
"Of course they are," Orion replies. "Everything is."
The barrier shatters. I drop low, rolling to the side as the giant's arm slams into the ground where I stood.
I rise, staff already glowing.
"Move!" I shout.
Orion steps back as I release a concentrated blast. It hits the giant's chest cracks spread across its body, but it doesn't fall.
"Not enough," Orion says.
"I can see that!"
The second giant charges. Orion intercepts it, summoning another chain, binding its arm mid-swing.
"Lyra, now!"
I understand instantly. I redirect my magic, focusing on the point where the chain holds.
"Break!"
The energy surges. The arm shatters completely. The giant roars. But it keeps moving.
"Lyra!" Seraphine calls again.
I glance back. She stands inside the chamber now. Holding something. A relic. It glows faintly. Silver. Pulsing with lunar energy.
My breath catches.
"That's "
"Yes," she says. "This is what I came for."
"Then use it!"
"I can't."
"What?"
"It won't respond to me."
Another giant slams toward us. I block, barely holding the impact.
"Then why bring it?!"
"Because it might respond to you!"
I don't hesitate.
"Orion, cover me!"
He nods once. I break from the fight, sprinting toward Seraphine. The third giant moves to intercept. Too fast. Too close.
"Lyra!" Orion shouts.
A chain wraps around the giant's leg just in time, pulling it off balance. I keep running.
I reach the chamber. Seraphine holds the relic out to me.
"Take it," she says.
I do. The moment my fingers touch it. Power surges through me.
Stronger than anything I've felt before. Sharp. Bright. Alive. I gasp, almost dropping it.
"Focus," Seraphine says.
"I am!"
"No you're reacting. Control it."
I tighten my grip. The energy steadies slightly. Outside, another удар echoes.
"They're breaking through!" Orion calls.
I step out of the chamber. The giants turn toward me instantly. All three. They feel it. The relic.
"Good," I whisper. "Come closer."
One charges. I raise the relic. Instinct takes over. The energy flows through me, into the relic, then outward.
A beam of lunar light strikes the giant directly. It freezes mid-step. Then Shatters. Silence. For a second. Even Orion looks surprised.
The remaining two giants hesitate. Then attack together. I brace myself.
"Lyra," Seraphine says behind me, "you don't just destroy with it."
"What?"
"You redirect."
I don't understand But I try anyway. The next strike comes.
I lift the relic again, but this time, I don't push the energy outward.
I pull. The magic shifts direction.
The force of the giant's attack bends redirected slamming into the second giant instead. Both stagger. Orion reacts instantly.
"Now!"
His chains strike both at once. I release another surge. The giants crack. Then collapse.
Silence returns. Heavy. Final.
I lower the relic slowly. My hands shake.
"...It works," I say.
Seraphine steps beside me.
"Yes."
I turn to her.
"You knew about this."
"Yes."
"You've been searching for this the whole time."
"Yes."
"And you didn't tell me."
She meets my gaze.
"I needed to know you could survive this."
I take a step closer.
"Kael is dying," I say quietly. "I didn't have time for your tests."
Her expression softens just slightly.
"I know," she says. "That's why I brought you here now."
Orion approaches, studying the relic.
"This changes things," he says.
"Yes," I reply.
"It also makes things more dangerous."
"I know."
He looks at me sharply.
"Do you?"
I tighten my grip on the relic.
"I don't care."
A distant roar echoes through the forest. Louder than before. Stronger. More coming.
Seraphine exhales slowly. "We need to return."
I nod. But I don't move immediately. I look down at the relic. Then back toward the city. Toward Kael.
"This can save him," I say.
Seraphine doesn't answer. Orion does.
"Or destroy him faster."
I lift my gaze.
"I'll take that risk."
Another roar. Closer this time. The ground trembles again. No more time. I turn toward the path back.
"Then we move," I say.
Kael is still alive. Barely. And now. For the first time I have something that might save him. Or end everything.