Chapter 65 Breaking Point
NYX
The nightmares started that night.
Three thousand faces frozen in terror. Eyes wide. Mouths open in silent screams. Hearts beating slower until it almost stopped.
Almost.
I woke up screaming.
Mother was there instantly.
"You're safe."
They almost died because of me." "But they didn't." She climbed into bed near me. "You made a mistake. It was fixed by you. That's what matters." "What if next time I can't?"
She was quiet for too long. "Then we deal with it together.
But you can't live in terror of next time."
I wanted to believe her. However, I was aware that a single mistake may result in thousands of deaths. I hate this," I whispered. "I know."
Morning came gray and cold. In the library, surrounded by books on time magic, my father discovered me. You can't learn it from books," he remarked.
"Then how?"
"By doing. By failing. By getting back up."
He sat across from me. "I killed a man in training when I was younger. Lost control."
I gazed. "What did you do?"
"I trained harder. Made sure that never happened again." His eyes met me. "You're not the first with deadly gifts, Nyx. Just the first in this generation."
"How can I make sure it doesn't happen again?"
"You practice. Every day. Push to the edge of control. Then push further."
"That sounds terrifying."
"It is. But so is living in fear of yourself." He stood. "Come. We start now."
He took me to the training yard. Theron and Grandmother Arianna were waiting.
Father said, "We're going to see what you can do."
"Push you until you break. Then teach you how to break safely."
My stomach turned. "What if I hurt someone?" You won't.
We have safeguards." Arianna gestured at symbols covering the courtyard. "If you lose control, these will contain it."
"Are you sure?"
"No. But we try anyway. That's what courage is."
They made me practice stopping time. Over and over. A falling leaf. A bird in flight. A blade mid-swing.
Each time the power surged, wanting to spread. And each time I pulled it back.
Mostly.
Three times I lost control. Three times the wards held. Three times I collapsed.
"Again," Father said.
"I can't."
"Yes you can. Get up."
I despised him right then. I hated that he pushed me and wouldn't let me quit.
But I got up.
Six hours. By the end, I could barely stand. My nose bled. Everything hurt.
"Good," Grandmother said. "You found your limit. Tomorrow we push past it."
Mom caught me after I had been staring at nothing. "That was harsh," I said.
"Yes."
"Father was cruel."
"He was preparing you."
She sat next to me. "He pushes because he knows what will happen if you're not ready." I really don't like it.
"Good. Hate fuels growth." She touched my hair. "But you did well. Better than I did at your age."
"You had time magic?"
"Shadow magic I couldn't control. It killed people before I learned." Her voice went quiet. "That's why he pushes. So you don't make our mistakes."
A knock interrupted. Lyra entered. "We have a problem."
"What now?"
"The Purists. They're targeting Nyx." She handed over a letter. "They'll attempt to assassinate the princess within the month."
My blood froze. "Why tell us?"
"They want you to run. To hide." Lyra's smile was sharp. "But we're setting a trap."
"Using my daughter as bait," Mother said flatly.
"Using their arrogance against them." Father appeared in the doorway. "We can't run forever. Eventually we face them."
"Not with our seven-year-old daughter."
"She needs to learn that being powerful means being hunted." His eyes met mine. "Unless you want to spend your life hiding?"
I thought about it. I could hide. Stay in the palace. Never use my power.
Or I could fight.
"I fight," I said.
Mother looked between us. "You're both insane."
"Probably." Father smiled. Cold. "But we're right. Hiding teaches fear. Fighting teaches strength."
"Then we make sure she doesn't get killed." He turned to Lyra. "What's your plan?"
"We leak information. Make it look like Nyx will be vulnerable during the Blood Moon. Alone in the garden." Lyra's eyes gleamed. "Then we fill it with guards and traps."
"And if it goes wrong?" Mother asked.
"Then I stop time." I stood.
"I can do this." You are seven years old. I'm also the strongest vampire in the world.
She looked at me.
Then laughed, bitter. "Fine. But if anything happens to her, I burn the world."
"Understood."
We spent the week preparing.
The night of the Blood Moon came red and heavy. I wore a simple dress.
Strolled by myself through the garden.
I felt them before I saw them. Thirty assassins moving through shadows.
They attacked. Blades. Poison. Magic.
I stopped time.
Not for everyone. Just them. Froze thirty assassins mid-strike while the world moved normally.
Guards poured in. Arrested them all.
I released time slowly. Let them realize what happened.
"Next time I won't be merciful," I told them. "Next time I let time stop forever. Understand?"
They understood. Terror. Respect.
We threw them in the dungeons. Father wanted executions. Mother wanted exile. I wanted answers.
"Why?" I asked their leader, Marcus. Old. Scarred. Tired.
"Because you're a monster. Power like yours makes people bad." His eyes were blank. "We've seen it before." Vampires that have too much power usually lose.
Always destroy."
"By killing a child?"
"By stopping a monster before it became one."
I looked at him. Really looked. Saw fear underneath the hate.
Saw someone lose everything to strong vampires who didn't care. I told them, "I'm not a monster." "But I'll become one if you keep attempting to kill me. So, you have a choice.
Leave. Disappear. Never come back. Or stay, and I show you what monster I can be."
"You would let us go?"
"I'll give you one chance. More than you gave me." I stepped closer. "But if I see you again, if I hear you're plotting again, I stop your time permanently. No mercy. Just ending."
He nodded slowly. "I accept."
We released them at dawn. Watched them disappear into the Shadowlands.
"That was foolish," Father said.
"That was mercy."
"Mercy gets you killed."
"Fear gets you hunted forever.
I would rather be chased and kind than safe and cruel." I looked at him. "You taught me that. When you choose to spare enemies. To build instead of destroy."
Something shifted in his expression. Pride maybe. Or fear. "You're growing up too fast."
"I know."
"I want you to stay small. Stay safe."
"I'm always yours. That doesn't alter because you are powerful. I gave him a hug. "But I can't stay little. The world won't let me.
He held me close. He said, "I'm proud of you." "Terrified. But proud."
"I am terrified, too. But I am trying anyway."
We stood in the dawn light. Father and daughter. King and heir.
"What now?" he asked.
"Now I train harder. Become strong enough that no one dares threaten us." I pulled back. Smiled. "And maybe eat breakfast. I'm starving."
He laughed. "You are definitely your mother's daughter."
"I am both of yours. That is what makes me dangerous."
We walked back to the palace. Past guards who bowed. Past nobles who whispered. Past a world that would always fear me.
But I was done being afraid of their fear.
I had power. I had family. I had purpose.
And anyone who sought to take that away from me would find out why the prophecy said I was salvation.
Or destruction.
Depending on how smart they were.