ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴇᴛʀᴏᴛʜᴇᴅ ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴇᴛʀᴀʏᴇᴅ
She sprinted down the treacherous path, her feet slipping in the slick mud. With a quick recovery, she pressed on, determined to reach her destination.
“Come on, legs—don’t give out on me now,” Verity muttered through gritted teeth, her breath ragged from the strain.
She sprinted through the tempestuous storm, her hair whipping wildly in the gusts of wind and the rain pelting her skin.
“If I can just make it past the ridge... just a little farther,” she whispered, the words nearly lost in the howling wind.
She attempted to transform into her lupine shape, hoping to tap into the enhanced senses and swift speed of her wolf form to evade her pursuer. However, a gleaming silver bullet pierced her thigh, causing her to collapse and rendering her unable to shift.
“No—no, not silver... not now...” Verity gasped, collapsing into the mud as pain exploded through her leg.
The ominous rumble of thunder and distant lightning flashes accompanied her pursuer’s cackling as it echoed through the night.
“Keep crawling, little goddess,” Leen’s voice rang out mockingly from the darkness behind. “Maybe if you pray hard enough, your divine powers will save you.”
Verity tried to drag herself forward, the mud clinging to her fingers.
“You always ran ahead of me, Verity. Not today,” Leen taunted, her footsteps squelching closer.
She attempted to rise, but her relentless pursuer swiftly closed in, pressing a booted foot upon her, forcing her to the ground.
“Did you really think you could outrun me?” Leen sneered, pressing down harder with her boot. “You? With all your training, your titles... pathetic.”
“Leen...” Verity gasped, squirming beneath the pressure. “You won’t get away with this.”
“But I already have,” Leen said with a smirk, leaning in close so Verity could feel her breath. “This is me winning.”
“For what reason are you engaging in such a perilous endeavor, Leen?” Verity rasped, her voice laced with agony. “We are kind of the same bloodline. Why must you inflict such harm upon me?”
“Sisters?” Leen echoed, her voice rising above the storm. She stepped back slightly, allowing Verity a moment to breathe.
“Nah, you are mistaken,” she said coolly. “We are but stepsisters, bound by the whims of fate and the union of our parents. Our lineage did not intertwine, for we were not born of the same bloodline. Only my wretched mother, who yearned for safety, sought refuge in your father’s care. But now that my powers have grown since the days of yore, I am more than capable of safeguarding her myself. Your presence, nor that of your sire, is no longer required.”
“What... do you intend to do to my father?” Verity asked, her voice strained but steady, a flicker of concern in her eyes.
Leen laughed, the sound sharp and cruel. “Your father, you say? You should be worried about yourself, not your father.”
“For what reason do you engage in such a perilous pursuit?” Verity asked again, desperate to understand, as Leen took her leg off and retreated a distance of one meter. With great effort, Verity raised herself up and gazed intently at her, anticipating a reply.
The rain continued to pour down relentlessly, and in the far-off distance, the mournful howl of a wolf echoed through the air.
Her eyes were awash with tears, blending with the deluge that was cascading down her countenance.
“You have earned yourself an excellent reputation, I must say,” Amir said coolly as he strode into view, his eyes fixed on the path before him.
Verity’s breath caught in her throat. She blinked against the rain, stunned. “Amir?” she choked out. “You... you came to save me?”
She tried to crawl toward him, hope flickering in her chest—but she halted abruptly as he burst into laughter, cruel and mocking. Leen joined in, the sound of their betrayal echoing through the storm.
“Rescue you?” Amir repeated, his voice dripping with contempt as he stepped closer. “Can’t you discern? Leen and I are bound by a sacred pact, forged in the fires of destiny. Our fates intertwined, we journey forth as one… just to put you down.”
A numb chill settled over Verity as his words sank in. Her lips trembled. “You... conspired against me?”
Amir crouched, meeting her gaze with mocking pity. “I administered a lethal concoction to you. That was the only way to give Leen an opening. How else could we have struck so swiftly while you were still in peak form?”
“You…” Verity whispered, her voice shaking. “You poisoned me?”
“Indeed,” Amir murmured. “You are but a step away from ascending to godhood. We had to cripple you first—to level the battlefield.”
A sharp pang tore through Verity as her leg throbbed anew. The silver bullet. The cursed potion. The betrayal. It all fit. She looked at them with disbelief, her once-glowing spirit dimming.
Amir tilted his head, smiling faintly. “You’re dumber than I expected. You never once suspected that Leen and I were betrothed from the very beginning?”
Leen took a bold step forward, her hand sliding into Amir’s as if to seal the truth. “You are mighty, I’ll give you that,” she said. “A step from godhood. A druid with unparalleled knowledge of weaponry. Goodness, you even have alchemy skills. But in matters of the heart, Verity… you’re an utter fool.”
Verity stared, her mouth slightly open, her thoughts swirling.
Leen leaned down, her voice dripping with venom. “Amir and I were together even before he started pursuing you. We agreed he’d woo you—gain your trust—so that when you completed the goddess trials and gained the rewards, we’d kill you and take them for ourselves.”
“The 500 tests,” Verity whispered. “You used me… for that?”
“Of course we did,” Leen spat. “And you fell for it—every kiss, every whispered promise. You, the future goddess of Luna... brought to her knees by love.”
The rain pounded harder, as if mourning her shattered faith. Verity clenched her jaw, trying to hold back a scream of anguish.
“You have no idea,” Leen continued, her voice a blade, “how painful it was to hear you two make love, night after night. How you paraded him around like he was yours. But that’s fine—because now, I’m the one having the last laugh.”
With that, Leen strode forward and delivered a swift kick to Verity’s abdomen.
Verity let out a groan, the pain radiating through her chest. She crumpled again into the mud, the taste of betrayal bitter on her tongue.
In the realm of magic and supernatural creatures like myself, the notion of soulmates was little more than myth. A romantic legend whispered among the elders — that some wolves might one day find the one whose spirit sang in harmony with their own. But for the rest of us, courtship was trial and error, hope and heartbreak.
She had thought Amir and she were different. That they were fated. She believed their bond was rare — sacred, even.
And yet, there he stood, hand in hand with the woman who had haunted Verity’s steps since childhood, who now sought to end her for the power she had earned through blood and pain.
She stared at them, broken and bleeding, the cold rain disguising her tears.
The rain wasn’t just cold—it was punishing. It slapped her skin like accusations.
Each droplet was a reminder of how foolish she’d been.
The 500 trials of divinity were the most grueling torment I had ever endured. I had fought monsters of the void, survived illusions meant to rip my soul apart, faced the deepest fears of my ancestors — all to gain the strength to protect my father… and them.
And now?
They had stolen the final breath of my belief.
“You always looked down on me,” Leen said, her voice smug. “Always pretending to be so noble. But look at you now — curled in the dirt, begging for answers. You’ll die knowing you were never truly loved.”
