Chapter 25 THE VOICE BENEATH THE EARTH

Chapter 25 THE VOICE BENEATH THE EARTH
CHAPTER 25: THE VOICE BENEATH THE EARTH
The ground beneath us wouldn’t stop trembling.
Kael’s hand was still on my shoulder, anchoring me as the last traces of red mist evaporated from the air. The portal was gone, the forest returning around us—blackened trees, splintered stone, the scent of blood and magic thick enough to choke on.
But beneath it all, I could still hear it.
That whisper. Low. Sinister. Ancient.
Did you really think it would end so easily, little wolf?
I stiffened, my gaze locking on the fissure splitting the ground before us. It glowed faintly crimson, pulsing like a wound that refused to close.
“Ria,” Kael said softly, following my stare. “Stay back.”
His voice was steady, but I could hear the tension hiding beneath it—the Alpha in him recognizing something he couldn’t control.
“I can feel him,” I whispered. “Darius. He’s still here.”
Kael’s jaw tightened. “No. You killed him. You closed the Gate.”
I shook my head. “I didn’t destroy him, Kael. I sent him somewhere.”
The air shivered again, and the fissure widened, releasing a low growl that sounded almost alive. My wolf whimpered inside me, backing away even as the mark on my chest flared bright, answering the call.
Kael saw it, too. His eyes flashed silver. “You’re not going near that thing.”
“I don’t have a choice,” I said, stepping forward before he could stop me. “It’s reacting to me, not you. Whatever he’s become, it’s tied to the bond between us. I can feel it.”
Kael moved in front of me, blocking my path. “Then we sever it.”
I froze. “What?”
He looked at me, the storm in his eyes darkening. “If the bond is what’s keeping him alive—if it’s what’s keeping you connected—then I have to break it.”
My heart lurched. “You can’t.”
His jaw flexed. “I can. It’s the only way to protect you.”
“By cutting me off from you?” My voice cracked, anger and fear twisting inside me. “That’s not protection, Kael. That’s punishment.”
“I’m not going to let him use you again.”
I stepped closer, refusing to back down. “You think this is just about him? This—” I pressed a hand against the burning mark “—isn’t Darius’s magic anymore. It’s mine. And if you break the bond, I’ll die with it.”
For a moment, silence stretched between us. The tremors eased, as if the world was holding its breath.
Kael’s expression softened, the fury giving way to something rawer. “You can’t ask me to risk you.”
I met his gaze, unflinching. “You can’t ask me to stop fighting.”
He exhaled, long and slow, his shoulders sagging with exhaustion. “You drive me insane, you know that?”
“Good,” I whispered, a shaky smile tugging at my lips. “Keeps you alive.”
Before he could reply, the earth cracked open again.
A burst of red light shot upward, knocking us both backward. I hit the ground hard, the impact stealing my breath. The light arched into the air, twisting, taking shape—limbs, a face, eyes glowing like molten iron.
Darius.
But not as he was.
His body was no longer human. The shadows had fused with him, turning his skin black as obsidian, his veins glowing crimson. His voice, when it came, was both Darius and something older.
“You thought you could kill me with a blade,” he hissed, his form flickering. “You merely freed me.”
Kael pushed himself up, standing between us. “You’re not welcome in this realm, brother.”
“Brother?” Darius laughed, the sound cracking the air. “You forfeited that word the day you bound yourself to her.”
His eyes—those blood-red eyes—snapped to me. “Do you know what she is, Kael? Do you truly know?”
Kael didn’t answer.
Darius grinned. “She’s not your Luna. She’s the gatekeeper. The last vessel of the Shadow King’s bloodline.”
The world tilted. My breath hitched. “That’s not true.”
“Oh, but it is,” he said smoothly. “Your mother hid it from you. The curse wasn’t meant to bind you—it was meant to awaken you.”
I shook my head, stumbling backward. “You’re lying.”
“Am I?” His smile widened. “Then why do you think you survived the auction? Why do you think your wolf resisted every binding spell I cast?”
Kael growled, low and dangerous. “You’re twisting the truth.”
“Am I?” Darius spread his arms, the shadows swirling around him like wings. “Ask her. She can feel it. The darkness inside her isn’t mine—it’s hers. It’s always been hers.”
My chest burned, the mark pulsing violently now. My wolf howled inside me, caught between denial and awakening.
Kael reached for me, but I stumbled away, clutching my chest. “Stop. Just—stop!”
The red light exploded outward.
Kael cursed, shielding his face. When the light faded, I was standing at the edge of the fissure—alone—with Darius’s shadow towering before me.
“You can fight me,” he said softly, “or you can embrace what you are. Either way, the choice ends with blood.”
“Why me?” My voice broke. “Why not Kael? Why not anyone else?”
“Because only you can open the second gate.”
Before I could react, his shadow lunged.
Kael moved faster. He slammed into me, throwing us both out of the way as the ground erupted. The shockwave tore through the clearing, splitting trees like matchsticks.
When the dust settled, Darius was gone—but his voice lingered.
The Blood Gate is only the beginning.
Kael pulled me against him, his breath ragged. His body trembled—not from fear, but from something deeper.
He buried his face in my hair. “I thought I lost you again.”
“You didn’t,” I whispered, gripping his arm. “But he’s not done, Kael. Whatever this ‘second gate’ is… it’s coming.”
He pulled back, his thumb brushing over my cheek, his eyes burning with that fierce protectiveness I’d once mistaken for control. “Then we face it together.”
I wanted to believe him. I wanted to drown in his strength and pretend the world hadn’t just shifted beneath our feet. But the mark on my chest told a different story.
It was no longer Kael’s scent that anchored it—it was something older, darker. Something that hummed like a heartbeat buried deep beneath the earth.
And as the wind howled through the broken forest, I swore I heard it again—soft, distant, but undeniable.
A voice that wasn’t Darius’s.
A voice that whispered my name like a promise.
Ria… come home.
I froze.
Because this time, it wasn’t coming from the shadows.
It was coming from inside me.
—
Kael noticed the change instantly. His hand tightened around mine. “Ria?”
I forced a smile, though my voice trembled. “I’m fine.”
He studied me for a long moment, then nodded slowly. “Let’s get back to the tower. We regroup, find out what this ‘second gate’ means.”
I nodded, though I barely heard him. The voice was still there, curling through my mind like smoke.
When Kael turned to lead the way, I glanced back at the fissure.
For a second, I thought I saw something move in the darkness below—a pair of eyes, watching.
Golden. Familiar.
Lyra Vale’s eyes.
And then they were gone.