Chapter 74: The Man Who Shouldn’t Exist

Chapter 74: The Man Who Shouldn’t Exist

SCARLETT POV

John stood a few feet away, the mist curling around his boots like smoke from some unseen fire. The morning light struck his face, and it was him, the sharp jawline, the storm-blue eyes, the way his presence seemed to command the very air around him. And yet… something was wrong.

The bond that should’ve blazed between us the invisible thread of heat and pull flickered weakly, like a dying ember. His scent wasn’t right either. The forest air around him smelled of rain and iron, but beneath it was something darker like old blood and ashes.

I whispered his name again, barely audible. “John?”

His lips curved into that familiar, dangerous smile. “You still say it like a prayer.”

The sound of his voice hit me like a memory too vivid, too painful. Every nerve in my body screamed to run, but my feet stayed rooted. “You’re supposed to be dead,” I said hoarsely. “I felt you die.”

He took a slow step toward me, the fog shifting to make room for him. “I was,” he murmured. “But death didn’t want me.”

There was no heartbeat beneath his words. No warmth in the air around him. And yet, he was real—the faint crunch of leaves beneath his boots, the way his breath stirred the mist. Every instinct inside me recoiled and reached for him at the same time.

“How?” My voice trembled. “How are you here?”

John tilted his head slightly, studying me the way a predator studies its prey. “Do you remember the beacon?” he asked softly. “The moment it burst, everything changed. You took my soul, Scarlett half of it. The other half clawed its way back here.”

“That’s impossible,” I whispered. But even as I said it, I felt the truth pulsing in my veins the echo of his power that had lived inside me since that day.

He stepped closer, until I could see the faint shimmer in his eyes. It wasn’t just blue anymore. Gold flickered at the edges of Kael's gold.

“You’re not supposed to exist,” I said again, stepping back. “You’re a fragment.”

John smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Maybe. But fragments can still kill.”

He moved faster than I could react. One heartbeat, he was in front of me; the next, his hand was wrapped around my throat, pressing me against the nearest tree. My body reacted on instinct power surged up from deep inside me, making the ground tremble. His grip faltered, just enough for me to twist free.

“Don’t make me hurt you,” I warned, my voice trembling between fear and fury. “You’re not him. You’re something twisted wearing his face.”

He laughed, low and cruel. “You think you can hurt me, little wolf? You already did. You ripped me in half.”

The air shimmered around us. Shadows thickened at the edges of my vision, Kael's presence stirring inside me, restless and angry. He’s not real, Kael’s voice growled in my mind. End it before he takes control.

“Stay out of this!” I hissed aloud, my body trembling from the strain of keeping both voices of both men inside me. My power sparked again, silver light flashing along my arms.

John’s expression softened suddenly, heartbreak flickering through the cold mask. “Scarlett, I didn’t come to fight,” he said quietly. “I came to finish what we started.”

I hesitated. “What we started?”

He nodded. “The bond. The prophecy. The Moon’s curse. You think you’re carrying us inside you because of fate?” He stepped closer again, his voice lowering to a whisper. “No, Scarlett. You chose us. You opened the door. And now the Goddess demands her price.”

I shook my head. “You’re lying. The Goddess told me to find the Seer of Ashvale. She said—”

“She said what she always says.” His tone turned sharp, mocking. “That you can choose your destiny. That you can save us. But she didn’t tell you what happens if you fail.”

A cold shiver ran down my spine. “What happens?”

John’s eyes glowed brighter, like twin stars burning through the fog. “The world ends. The packs devour each other. And the Goddess builds a new one out of you.”

My stomach twisted. “That’s not true.”

He smiled faintly. “Then why does the Moon flicker every time you lose control?”

I didn’t have an answer. The image of the Moon dimming in the sky flashed through my mind, and fear clawed at my chest.

John took another step closer. “You can’t run from this anymore. The Seer won’t save you. She’ll break what’s left of you to release us. But there’s another way.”

I stared at him warily. “What way?”

“Merge with me.” His voice softened, almost pleading. “Let the other half of me inside. We can become whole again together. The chaos will stop. The pain will end.”

It should have sounded like temptation. It should have sounded like love. But all I heard was ruin. “And Kael?” I asked.

Something dark flashed across his face. “Kael is an infection. He doesn’t belong. If you let me in, he dies.”

The air crackled between us. Inside me, Kael’s voice roared. Don’t listen to him! He’ll unmake you.

“Scarlett,” John said, stepping closer still, his breath ghosting against my skin. “You loved me once. You still do. You can’t hide that.”

I wanted to deny it but the ache in my chest betrayed me. My body remembered every kiss, every touch, every scar he’d left on my soul. “I did love you,” I whispered. “Maybe I still do. But not this version of you.”

For a heartbeat, something flickered in his eyes hurt, maybe, or guilt. Then it was gone, replaced by fury. “Then you’ve chosen him,” he snarled.

“No,” I said softly. “I’m choosing myself.”

The world erupted in light.

Silver and gold power surged from my body, clashing against John’s shadow like lightning striking oil. The forest exploded with sound branches cracking, earth shaking, the very air trembling with power.

John lunged, his claws flashing. I caught his wrist mid-strike, our auras colliding in a blinding shockwave. The force threw us both backward. I hit the ground hard, gasping, but my energy didn’t falter this time. It grew.

He rose slowly, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, and for a moment, he looked human again lost and furious and heartbreakingly real.

“This isn’t over,” he said, his voice trembling with rage. “You can’t hold both of us forever, Scarlett. Sooner or later, one of us will win.”

“Then I’ll make sure it’s me,” I said, my voice steel.

His gaze lingered on me, filled with something I couldn’t name longing, regret, maybe madness. Then the mist thickened around him, and in the blink of an eye, he was gone.

The forest around me was scorched and trembling. My heart pounded like a drum. I sank to my knees, exhausted, my hands shaking from the power still sparking beneath my skin.

Kael’s voice came then, faint but steady. He’s becoming stronger. The longer he walks the world, the weaker you’ll grow.

I swallowed hard. “He’s not just walking,” I murmured. “He’s hunting.”

Then you’ll have to find the Seer before he does, Kael said. Or none of us will survive this.

I nodded weakly, my vision blurring as exhaustion crept in. “Ashvale,” I whispered. “Crimson river… I’m coming.”

And as I closed my eyes, I could almost hear the Moon cracking overhead a faint, haunting sound like glass breaking in the distance.