Aria’s world tilted.
Darkness pressed against her senses, thick and suffocating, but there was sound—muffled voices, the distant roar of fire, the sickening scent of blood in the air.
Pain pulsed through her skull, radiating down her spine. She tried to move, but her limbs felt like stone, weighed down by something unseen, something wrong.
Then—a voice.
Low. Smooth. Amused.
"You’re awake."
A sharp chill ran through her veins.
Selene.
Aria’s eyes snapped open.
Blinding light seared her vision before the world came into focus. Cold metal walls. Dim, flickering bulbs overhead. The scent of sterile chemicals mixed with the undeniable stench of death.
She wasn’t in the safehouse anymore.
She was in the Shadow Order’s fortress.
And she was trapped.
Chains bound her wrists, thick and heavy, humming with an unnatural energy that made her muscles ache. She struggled against them, but the restraints wouldn’t budge.
Selene stood a few feet away, her crimson eyes gleaming. She looked… pleased.
That made Aria’s blood boil.
"Let me guess," Aria growled, her voice hoarse. "You finally ran out of cowards to do your dirty work?"
Selene chuckled, the sound like silk wrapping around a blade. "Still sharp, even when caged. I admire that."
Aria hated the way she spoke—like this was a game. Like Aria was nothing more than a piece on her board.
She clenched her fists, ignoring the searing pain that shot through her arms. "You should’ve killed me when you had the chance."
Selene tilted her head. "Oh, but that would’ve been such a waste."
She stepped forward, her presence a weight in the air, suffocating and undeniable.
"You don’t understand, do you?" Selene murmured. "You were never meant to be killed, Aria."
A cold knot formed in Aria’s stomach.
Selene crouched in front of her, close enough that Aria could see the faint cracks of power beneath her pale skin, like veins pulsing with something ancient and unnatural.
"You were meant to become something more."
Aria forced herself to stay still.
Not to flinch. Not to let Selene see the fear curling at the edges of her mind.
She narrowed her eyes. "You keep saying that. But I don’t see how you plan to convince me."
Selene smiled. "Oh, I don’t need to convince you."
The door behind them hissed open.
Aria turned her head, and the breath caught in her throat.
Lucian.
Bloodied. Shackled. His silver hair was damp with sweat, his usually sharp eyes dull from pain—but he was alive.
Aria’s heart slammed against her ribs.
"Lucian," she breathed.
He looked at her, something dark flickering in his gaze. Regret. Warning.
Selene stood, watching with quiet amusement. "Ah, yes. Your dear brother. Quite the fighter, but even he has his limits."
Aria's teeth clenched. Rage burned inside her.
Selene circled her like a predator. "You see, Aria, I’ve spent years waiting for this. Watching. You think you’re just some accident? A mistake?"
Selene leaned closer, her lips curving into a mocking smirk.
"You were created for this."
A cold shiver ran down Aria’s spine.
She refused to believe it.
But deep down, something inside her whispered otherwise.
Selene sighed, as if disappointed. "You can fight it all you want, but it doesn’t change what you are."
She turned toward Lucian, who didn’t look away.
"Tell her," Selene murmured.
Lucian’s jaw tightened. He lifted his gaze to Aria.
And then—he spoke.
"It’s true."
Aria felt like the ground had been ripped from beneath her.
She barely heard the chains rattling as she lunged forward, fury and betrayal surging through her. "You’re lying."
Lucian’s silver eyes burned. "No, I’m not."
Selene’s smirk widened.
Aria’s breath came fast. Shallow.
"No," she whispered.
Her parents had tried to stop the Shadow Order. That was the truth. That had to be the truth.
Lucian sighed, his voice hoarse. "They tried to undo what they started, Aria. But by then, it was too late."
Aria shook her head. "No."
Selene chuckled. "Denial is such a fragile thing."
Aria wanted to scream.
Wanted to tear through these chains, rip Selene apart.
But the power inside her?
It was silent.
Selene crouched again, her eyes gleaming with something dark. "You don’t get it, do you?"
She reached forward—and pressed a hand against Aria’s chest.
Aria’s body seized.
Pain. Raw and endless.
It wasn’t physical.
It was something else.
Something deep inside her, unraveling.
She gasped, but no sound came out.
Selene’s voice was soft. Almost gentle.
"You were made for this."
The power inside Aria stirred.
Her vision blurred.
Memories flickered—memories that weren’t hers.
A lab. A voice murmuring calculations.
A pair of hands—not in kindness, but in design.
Then—
A sharp pull, like something inside her was being unlocked.
Selene’s fingers tightened.
"Stop—" Aria choked out.
Selene smiled.
And let go.
Aria collapsed, gasping.
She felt wrong.
Like something inside her had shifted.
Selene straightened, pleased. "You’ll see soon enough."
Lucian was struggling against his chains. His expression was one of rare, sharp panic.
"Aria, don’t let her in," he warned. "She’s trying to—"
Selene flicked her fingers.
Lucian crashed to the floor, unmoving.
Aria screamed.
Selene sighed, rubbing her temple. "Dramatic, isn’t he?"
Aria couldn’t breathe.
Lucian wasn’t dead—she could see the slow rise and fall of his chest—but he was out cold.
"Now," Selene murmured, turning back to Aria.
She crouched again, her crimson eyes burning.
"You have two choices."
Aria glared up at her, panting. "Go to hell."
Selene laughed. "Charming."
She reached forward, gripping Aria’s chin, forcing her gaze to meet hers.
"You can accept what you are," Selene whispered. "Join me. Become what you were meant to be."
Her fingers tightened.
"Or," she purred, "you can watch everyone you love burn."
Aria’s stomach twisted.
Her pulse pounded.
Selene wasn’t bluffing.
Aria knew that much.
She had seen what Selene was capable of.
She clenched her fists, shaking.
She would rather die than become Selene’s puppet.
But if she refused?
Would she really be the only one to suffer?
Would Selene go after her pack?
Would she go after Dante? Kai? Sebastian? Cassian?
Would she hunt them down, one by one, just to prove a point?
Aria’s breath hitched.
Selene smiled.
And whispered, “Choose.”