the very begining
Before the story begins...
Many generations ago...
A king stood over his queen, greed burning brighter than love within his eyes.
Power demanded a sacrifice.
And she was the price.
Without hesitation, he plunged a dagger into her chest.
He carved out her very heart.
A betrayal.
A broken promise.
A broken heart.
As life slipped from her body, she offered one final prayer to the Beyond.
“Then let no man who claims this throne escape the cost of his ambition.”
And so...
The curse was born.
It has haunted every king ever since.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 1
Lyra
I walked into the familiar barracks with a bag holding my phone and a few essentials. Enchanted lights cast a warm glow across the stone walls while charging stations lined the wall beside racks of polished swords and spears.
A few guards murmured as I passed by. I caught bits and pieces of their conversations but didn’t pay them much mind.
A guard called out, “Hey, Lyra! Got a job for ya!”
I looked over and made my way to the guard.
“What is it?”
The other guards exchanged amused looks but tried to hide them by busying themselves cleaning swords or scrolling through their phones.
“Got a prisoner in the enchanted cell, and he’s your problem, sweetheart.” He held out a key. A bitter laugh escaped him as I took it.
“Cell 101. Your dad’s down there keeping watch now. Only one willing to guard him.”
I made a face.
“Theron isn’t my dad... he just raised me.”
“Right... anyway, better get going, little fae.”
I ignored his laugh and headed toward the stairwell leading down to the cells.
The stairwell was old, possibly as old as the oldest king. The bricks were covered in moss and vines, and broken bits crumbled beneath my feet.
The farther I went, the staler the air became, thick with the smell of dust and iron. A few of the enchanted lights were out, so I used my phone’s flashlight so I wouldn’t fall.
Each step I took echoed through the narrow space.
It made my skin crawl.
As I stepped off the last stair and into the corridor lined with cells, I saw Theron stepping out of Cell 101.
“Lyra? What are you doing here?”
I closed the distance between us.
“They sent me to guard 101.”
He made a face I couldn’t quite read.
“Oh. Really?”
He glanced back at the cell door, his expression shifting through a few emotions before he quickly masked them.
“Yeah. Are you gonna move?”
He nodded.
“Yeah... just be careful. This guy... he’s not like the others. He’s dangerous, Ly.”
I crossed my arms, looking him up and down. Something in his eyes told me there was a lot he knew about this guy that he wasn’t saying.
“So who is it, anyway?”
Theron looked almost surprised that I’d asked.
“His name is Nythris.”
He hesitated.
“They call him... the Shadow.”
A cold chill ran down my spine at the name. I was sure I’d heard it before, but I couldn’t remember where.
“Hmm. The Shadow, huh?”
Theron nodded.
“Guess I’m meeting the Shadow.”
Theron stood there for a moment longer, his mouth opening and closing before he finally rested a hand on my shoulder.
“Careful, Ly. Call if you need me.”
He finally stepped out of the way and walked off.
I grabbed the key, unlocked the cell door, and stepped inside.
My eyes scanned the dimly lit room before settling on a towering man chained to the wall by his wrists. The shackles were enchanted, of course.
Moonlight spilled through the small window, gathering across his broad, scarred chest. His long black hair fell over his face, his head hanging low.
"So you're the so-called Shadow everyone's so scared of?"
I asked, pulling a chair over before taking a seat across from him.
Silence.
"So, Shadow... do ya like music?"
I looked over at him. His head was still hanging low, strands of black hair hiding his face. I waited for a response.
None came.
I pulled out my phone and scrolled through my playlists.
"Any particular genre?"
Still nothing.
I shrugged to myself, picked a random playlist, and hit play. The music echoed softly around the stone cell as I quietly sang along.
His shoulders stiffened.
"Cut that shit off. Now."
I looked over at him. He was still staring at the floor, his shoulders tense beneath the weight of the enchanted shackles.
"Or what?"
I asked innocently.
A long silence settled between us.
"Or I'll make you."I tilted my head in thought."And how would you make me?"The music played softly in the background as he shifted against his shackles, turning his head just slightly."Do you really want me to show you, little fae?"A pause."Because I'll show you."The shadows in the room coiled around me like snakes.Waiting to strike.Even chained to the wall, he somehow felt like the most dangerous thing in the room."Is that supposed to scare me?"I watched him slowly raise his head.The shadows settled around him as moonlight spilled through the narrow window, catching the sharp angle of his jaw first.A scar stretched across full lips before trailing over the bridge of a broad nose.Long strands of black hair slipped away from his face as he lifted his head the rest of the way.Then...Pools of warm amber met mine.They didn't waver.They simply watched me.My breath caught.For a second, I forgot he was chained.This man looked like some kind of dark god.Beautiful.Terrifying.Strangely impossible to look away from.He tilted his head, slowly looking me up and down as if assessing me."You're not worth the trouble, little fae."I stared at him for a long moment. I couldn't pull my eyes away from the beautiful beast before me."Should I be offended?"I asked once I managed to get my throat to work again.
