The palace was quiet on a stormy night. The wind was strong outside. The guards stood still, their armor was wet. The Queen's light flickered,making shadows on the wall.
In the east wing, Kael walked through the corridor alone. His boots echoed against the marble floor. The torches flickered as he passed. His eye, no longer fully human, reflected gold under the flame.
He couldn't sleep.
The blood still burned in him since the last full moon.
He stopped by a tall window and looked out over the city. The rooftops were wet with rain, but below, torchlight gathered. Another protest. Another night of angry chants.
He clenched his fist.
"They hate us," he whispered.
A voice behind him said, "No. They fear us."
It was Nyra.
She stood barefoot, her long black hair tangled. Her violet eyes seemed to glow.
Kael looked at her closely. "Why are you walking the halls at this hour?"
"I had a vision," she said. "Again."
His heart sank. Nyra's visions were never small. They came like storms, and they never lied.
"What did you see?"
She looked out the window. "A crown burning. Wolves howling. A boy standing in the dark, and behind him… a hand made of fire."
"Draven?" Kael asked sharply.
Nyra nodded slowly. "He's changing faster than we did. Too fast. Something's wrong with the land. The balance is broken."
Kael felt a strange chill. He remembered how Draven's eyes had glowed red during their last fight, how he had vanished into the forest for hours and came back with torn clothes and blood under his nails.
"We need to protect him," Kael said.
"From what?" Nyra whispered. "The villagers? The gods? Or from himself?"
They didn't speak for a while. The silence was heavy, filled with old truths and new fears.
Then Nyra turned to him. "The Queen did something, didn't she? Something in the Forbidden Grove."
Kael nodded slowly. "She came back different. Like something inside her broke. Or woke up."
Nyra looked down the hall, toward the throne room.
"We need to know what she did," she said.
Queen Amira sat alone on the high throne. Her crown rested beside her, forgotten. She held a scroll in her hands, old and cracked with age. It was the Blood Oath—written in symbols few remembered.
The more she read, the more her heart trembled.
*"Blood to bind. Bone to awaken. The land shall echo the shape of its ruler's soul."*
She had made a mistake.
In trying to save her children from rebellion and war, she had given power to something ancient. Now, it lived in their blood.
Venna entered the hall, her steps slow.
"My Queen," she said. "There is news."
Amira looked up, tired.
"The village of Green Hollow has vanished."
Amira's breath caught. "Vanished?"
"No smoke. No bodies. No signs. Just... gone. The land is empty."
Amira rose to her feet, the scroll falling to the floor.
"Send a scout team quietly and double the guards on the palace walls."
Venna hesitated. "There's more. The Shadow Court… someone painted their symbol on the chapel doors."
Amira's face turned pale. The Shadow Court, the cursed ones, the banished ones, the broken ones who served Elder Varek. She had prayed they were only myths.
But deep down, she knew they were real. And they were coming back.
In the western wing, Draven knelt in front of the fireplace in his room. He stared into the flames like they were alive. His small hands were covered in dirt. His nails were sharper now, like claws.
A voice whispered in his mind.
**"Come to us. You are one of us."**
Draven tilted his head. "Who are you?"
In the palace library, Kael and Nyra flipped through old texts with dust rising from every page.
"This book speaks of the Grove," Kael said. "The blood oath was forbidden for a reason."
Nyra read over his shoulder.
*"The oath was not made for mortals. It was a gift stolen from the gods. A curse hidden in power."*
"Mother thought she was saving us," Kael muttered. "But she made us part of something ancient… and angry."
Nyra turned a page, and something caught her eye.
A drawing. A wolf's head, split in half. One side white and human-eyed. The other black, fanged, monstrous.
"It's us," she whispered. "That's what we are."
Kael closed the book slowly. "And that's what the people see when they look at us."
Draven was still in his room.
The voice answered Draven. We are :
**"The forest. The bones. The blood. The curse."**
He touched the flame, and it didn't burn.
He smiled.
Outside the palace walls, torches moved in the dark. Dozens of villagers, hoods drawn, crept toward the city gates. They carried ropes, axes, and knives.
"We end this tonight," said a man with a crooked nose. "The Queen has cursed the land."
They reached the walls, unnoticed by tired guards.
But above them, watching from a rooftop, a cloaked figure stood.
Elder Varek.
His eyes gleamed beneath his hood.
He turned to a figure beside him, tall, wearing a mask of bones.
"They're ready to burn her," Varek said. "We need only light the match."
The masked figure whispered, "What of the children?"
Varek's smile widened. "They are the match."
Later that night, Kael stood at his window again. But this time, he saw more than torches.
He saw smoke.
"The chapel," he gasped.
Flames danced high above the trees and bells rang.
Nyra ran into his room, panicking in her voice. "They're inside the walls!"
Kael grabbed his sword.
"Wake the Queen," he shouted. "Protect Draven!"
They ran through the halls, meeting palace guards already drawing steel. Screams echoed through the eastern courtyard. The villagers had broken through.
Kael reached the steps just as a soldier swung at him. He blocked with his blade, the steel singing in the air.
He pushed forward, his eyes glowing brighter, muscles growing stronger.
Nyra raised her hands, and the torches exploded in light, blinding the attackers. Her power was fierce, wild and uncontrolled.
The palace floor cracked under the weight of their magic.
Queen Amira arrived at the throne room doors, followed by Venna and three guards.
"What's happening?" she demanded.
"They're here for you," Venna said. "They think you've brought ruin."
"I have," Amira whispered, heartbroken. "But not the way they think."
Suddenly, a window shattered above them. Draven dropped through it, landing like a beast.
His eyes were blood-red. His hands clawed. His mouth was twisted in a snarl.
"Draven!" Amira cried.
But he didn't answer.
He looked at her and then at Kael and Nyra, his siblings.
Then he screamed, a sound not human, not wolf. Something else.
Something cursed.
Smoke filled the palace halls. Screams rang like broken bells. Steel clashed against steel. The scent of fire and blood danced in the air. The fight became more fierce.
Kael's chest heaved as he pushed through the chaos. Nyra followed behind him, her hair wild and glowing with faint purple light. Both their faces were streaked with soot and sweat.
"Where is he?" Kael shouted.
They searched through the broken glass and bodies scattered across the floor. Guards and villagers lay groaning, some dead, some worse. Kael's sword dripped red. He didn't remember how many men he had cut down.
Nyra held a fireball in her hand, lighting the hall.
"Draven jumped toward the west wing," she said. "He's running."
Kael growled low in his throat. The wolf in him stirred again.
"We have to find him before the villagers do."
But a loud growl echoed behind them.
They spun around.
At the far end of the hall stood Draven.
But he was no longer just a boy.
His body had twisted, his arms were longer, his fingers like claws. His hair was thick and wild, and his skin shimmered with something unnatural. His eyes glowed red, and veins pulsed along his face.
He looked like a monster.
"Draven," Kael said, stepping forward. "It's me."
The boy growled louder, his teeth sharp like knives.
"Don't come closer!" he roared. "I don't want to hurt you!"
Nyra held up her hand. "Let us help you. You're changing because of the curse."
Draven shook his head wildly. "Something's inside me! It's... talking! Screaming! I can't stop it!"
Kael tried to take another step, but Draven lunged forward with lightning speed. Kael barely raised his sword in time.
The two crashed into the wall.
Kael rolled aside, heart pounding. "He's not in control," he gasped.
Nyra raised her other hand and whispered words in the old tongue. Her powers were in the air, glowing in symbols around her wrists.
But before she could cast her spell, Draven vanished, his body leaping through a broken window and into the night.
Kael cursed and slammed his hand against the wall.
"We've lost him. Where is Draven? Has he been taken by the enemies ?"
In the throne room, Queen Amira stood still while the flames outside threw flickering light across the marble walls. Her crown lay forgotten at her feet.
Venna stood beside her, pressing a blood-soaked cloth to her arm. "You need to leave the palace," she said. "It's not safe."
"I will not run from my own people," Amira said. Her voice was steady, but her eyes trembled.
"They attacked your home, Your Majesty," Venna whispered. "The people think your children are demons."
Amira looked down at her hands. "Because they are afraid. And maybe they're right. Maybe I did curse my bloodline."
She knelt beside the scroll she had dropped earlier. The Blood Oath. Her fingers traced the ancient words.
"I need to return to the Grove," she said. "That's where it started. That's where it must end. The gods must answer me tonight. I demand an answer from them."
Venna paled. "No one returns to the Forbidden Grove and lives."
"I did, twice ," Amira said. "And I brought this curse back with me. I must go again."
The next morning came slowly and cold. The city was quiet, like it was holding its breath. Smoke still curled in the air above the chapel ruins. The villagers had retreated, but whispers spread quickly.
"The Queen's youngest is a beast."
"She let demons into the palace."
"The gods are angry."
Kael stood on the palace balcony, looking over the streets. He saw nothing but fear in the eyes below. He still wonders where Draven could be.
Amira hasn't discovered Draven is nowhere to be found after the fight.
Nyra joined him, her cloak wrapped tight against the wind.
"We can't stay here much longer," she said.
"I know," Kael replied. "But where would we go? The mountains are crawling with cursed ones. The forest hides things worse."
Nyra glanced at him. "Then we go to the source."
Kael raised an eyebrow. "The Grove?"
She nodded. "Mother is planning it. I saw it in her dreams."
Kael didn't ask how. He had learned long ago not to question Nyra's riddles.
"I don't trust that place," he said. "The last time she went there, everything changed."
Nyra's voice was soft. "And maybe that's the only way to change it back."
" Kael! About Draven, I saw him in my visions, he has gone to the mountains."
On hearing this, Kael's shoulders fell.
Draven ran far beyond the city.
He walked through the forest roots. His breath came heavy, steaming in the cold mountain air. The beast inside him whispered louder now, laughing in his mind.
He couldn't remember his name.
He couldn't remember the last time he felt like a boy.
He fell to his knees in a clearing surrounded by dead trees. The moonlight poured down like silver blood.
And there, standing among the stones, was a figure in a black cloak.
Elder Varek.
Draven tried to stand, but his legs shook.
"Who are you?" he growled.
"I am the truth no one told you," Varek said. "The part of your family you were never allowed to know."
Draven bared his teeth. "You're a liar."
Varek smiled. "Amira lied to you. She told you this curse was an accident. A mistake. But she never told you what the bloodline was really meant for."
Draven blinked. "What?"
Varek stepped closer, slow like a wolf circling prey.
"You are not cursed. You are chosen. You and your siblings are vessels, meant to hold the power of gods. You were made to destroy the old order and create something new."
Draven's eyes widened. "You mean… we're supposed to be like this?"
"More than that," Varek whispered. "You are the future of the land. But only if you stop fighting what you are."
Draven's hands twitched.
The beast inside purred.
Queen Amira rode alone through the forest. Her horse moved slowly, careful of every broken branch. Mist curled around her like a living thing.
The Forbidden Grove lay ahead, dark, ancient, and full of memory.
She passed the tree where she had made the blood oath years ago and visited a few days ago. Its bark still bled black.
"I came to protect my children," she whispered. "But I gave you too much."
The grove seemed to listen.
Voices rose from the wind.
Now the gods answered.
**"Amira… you have returned."**
She turned toward the sound. In the center of the Grove, a pool of still water reflected nothing. It was where the gods once spoke.
She knelt before it.
"I need to break the curse," she said.
The water rippled.
**"There is no curse. Only the truth."**
Amira's breath caught.
**"You swore the oath with your heart. The land answered. Your children are not cursed, they are what the land has become. Wild, broken and powerful. Now I have given you the answers you demanded."**
Amira trembled. "Then tell me what I must do."
The water rose into mist, forming a shape.
A face. Her father, King Alden.
"Daughter," the figure said. "You are not the first to carry this burden."
Amira's eyes filled with tears. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"I tried to protect you," the figure said. "But the blood in our line is old. It remembers things older than the gods."
"Is there a way to save them?" she asked.
King Alden's image nodded. "Yes. But it will come with a price."
Back at the palace, Kael and Nyra packed the little they needed. The palace had grown quiet, too quiet.
As Kael wrapped his sword, he looked at Nyra.
"If anything happens to me"
"Don't," she interrupted. "We go together. We survive together."
Kael smiled faintly.
Suddenly, a knock at the door.
A messenger stood there, pale and shaking.
"My lords… the Queen has vanished."
Kael's heart stopped. "What?"
"She left before dawn. Alone."
Nyra's eyes darkened. "She's gone to the Grove."
Kael turned to her. "Then we follow."
Night fell again.
Draven stood at the top of a cliff, the wind tearing through his hair. Behind
him, Elder Varek placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Are you ready to claim your place?"
Draven didn't speak.
His red eyes stared down at the kingdom.
Something ancient moved inside him.
And far below, the land itself began to groan.
The gods were waking.
Draven was scared, what would Elder Varek request from him? Which place was he talking about? Draven trembled.