The silence after the storm was louder than the screams.
Seraphina sat in the dim light of the living room, her knees pulled up to her chest, Eryn's oversized jacket wrapped tightly around her. Blood still smeared the floor—Eryn's blood, vampire blood. A chair had been shattered in the fight, a picture frame broken. The scent of iron still clung to the air like a warning.
But the loudest thing in the room was her heartbeat.
She'd survived.
No—she hadn't just survived. She'd done something. Unleashed something. Something powerful. Terrifying. Ancient.
The shockwave that exploded from her body wasn't just energy—it was her very soul responding to danger.
She glanced at her wrist. The mark had faded again, leaving only a faint outline. The Blood Seal and the Moon Crest. Both still etched there, silent but watching.
"You're not safe anymore," Eryn said quietly from the kitchen, her voice hoarse as she pressed an ice pack against her ribs. "Not here. Not anywhere close."
Seraphina didn't respond.
She was still trying to understand what had happened. One moment, she had screamed—and the next, vampires were flying through walls. And she'd felt it. That terrifying power rising from within her chest like a tidal wave breaking free.
"I need to go," Seraphina whispered. "I need to know more."
Eryn looked up sharply. "Absolutely not."
"I can't stay here. They'll come back. And I can't… I can't keep reacting. I need to be ready."
Eryn crossed the room slowly and knelt beside her. "There are things in this world, Seraphina, things that don't care about your need to be ready. You don't find answers by rushing into danger."
"I don't want to wait for death to come knocking," Seraphina said, her voice trembling. "Not again."
Eryn stared at her. Then sighed. "Then we'll leave. There's someone who might help. An old friend. She lives past the ridge, near the abandoned ruins of Shadowfang."
"Another wolf?" Seraphina asked.
Eryn hesitated. "No. A Seer."
They left just before dawn.
The journey to Shadowfang was long and cold. The further they rode through the forest, the more Seraphina felt her senses sharpening. She could hear the cry of an owl from miles off, smell the morning dew before it touched the leaves.
Vael joined them at the halfway point, emerging from the shadows like he'd been waiting for her all along.
"You're not going to stop stalking me?" she asked with a weak smile.
His face stayed serious. "Not until I know you're safe."
Despite the tension, his presence steadied her. He said little, but his gaze never left her. It wasn't romantic—it was something deeper. Something protective. Like he saw the parts of her she hadn't uncovered yet.
Hours later, they reached the old ruins.
The Seer's home was carved into the side of the mountain, moss-covered and guarded by two stone wolves that glowed faintly under the morning sun.
"She's expecting us," Eryn said.
Of course she is, Seraphina thought.
The Seer was older than anyone Seraphina had ever met. Her skin looked like parchment stretched over brittle bones, but her eyes… her eyes were galaxies. They seemed to see right through Seraphina.
"You've awakened," the Seer said, without a hint of surprise.
"Yes," Seraphina replied, though it sounded more like a question.
The Seer tilted her head. "No. Not fully. You've opened the door, but the storm still waits outside."
"I don't understand—"
"You carry a legacy born from blood and moon, child. Do you think your awakening will come without cost?"
The room seemed to darken as she spoke. The Seer moved to a stone basin filled with water and crushed herbs. She cut her own finger and let a drop of blood fall in.
Images swirled—flashes of war, screaming, flames, a crown burning.
Seraphina stumbled back.
"What is that?!"
"Your future. Or one of many. The storm chooses no favorites."
"Then tell me what I am," Seraphina demanded. "Tell me what I'm becoming."
The Seer turned to her fully, eyes glowing. "You are the child of dusk. You were not meant to exist. Your very breath is a defiance of natural law. But you are here. You are real. And you are dangerous."
A pause.
"Because you do not yet know where your loyalties will lie."
Seraphina felt her stomach twist. "I'm not evil."
"No," the Seer whispered. "But power makes all things bend. Even hearts."
Vael stepped forward. "That's enough."
But the Seer raised her hand.
"Her journey is just beginning. And already, fate begins to shift. The blood you carry will call to you. The moon will tug at your soul. And one day, you will be asked to choose between the two."
Seraphina's voice cracked. "Why me?"
"Because prophecy doesn't choose the willing. It chooses the necessary."
That night, Seraphina stood at the edge of the ruins, watching the moon rise.
"Do you believe her?" she asked Vael, not turning.
"Yes," he said honestly. "But I believe in you more."
She exhaled shakily. "I don't want to hurt anyone."
"You might have to," Vael said. "But you'll choose who you become."
She turned to him. "And you? What are you?"
Vael looked down. "A boy who's lost everything. A boy who hoped the prophecy was just a myth. Until I saw you."
"Do you trust me?"
He nodded slowly. "With my life."
She looked away again.
She didn't trust herself.
Not yet.
But when she closed her eyes, she could still feel it. That power. That hunger. Like a flame deep inside her waiting for more than just defense. Waiting to be used.
And the voice from her dream echoed again—
You will either make the world kneel… or burn.
Which one would she become?
Author's Note:
🔥 Chapter 9 brings more answers—and more danger. Do you think Seraphina will lean into the power or resist it? And what do you think Vael is hiding? Let me know in the comments. Chapter 10 is where the pace explodes.