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Khalid POV

We opened the door and saw Alex there, he had already tidied up the room, and then Hélios gently placed Sophia on the bed, as if she were the most precious and fragile thing in the world. My heart tightened seeing her so vulnerable. Despite everything we've been through, I still don't know if this will last, if this connection will remain intact when the storm passes.

‘What will Sophia think when she wakes up?’ I thought to myself, feeling the weight of that doubt in my chest.

I sighed, automatically adjusting my suit, just to keep my hands busy. My eyes turned to Hélios, who now observed Sophia with a serene expression, something rare to see in him. I was still impressed at how someone so explosive and unpredictable could seem so calm at that moment.

“No, I didn't know… At least not with 100% certainty, but I already suspected that something like this could happen.” Hélios finally turned to me, after adjusting Sophia better on the sheets. “What woke me up was feeling the bond that united Sophia and Perseus being cut. That's why he didn't appear when Gáta cast the spell. I believe the witch wasn't expecting such a reaction either.”

“Sophia… She would never be united with someone who hurt her.” Aquiles spoke, his voice filled with conviction and a trace of latent fury.

I nodded. The bonds between mates were sacred, but not unbreakable. Sophia, even without realizing it, managed to do the unthinkable, which only proved her strength.

“That's why Sophia had resistance to Perseus's blood. Unconsciously, she cut the connection.” Hélios continued his explanation, his eyes glowing with deep understanding. “I knew the bond needed to be complete… That it couldn't remain fragile. And the only person Sophia would accept without problems would be you, Khalid… Or Alex.”

Alex, who until then had maintained a firm and attentive posture, instinctively shook his head, as if denying even the possibility of something like that.

“Because of Alex's affinity with Sophia.” I added, unable to completely hide the pang of jealousy that arose in my chest, which was completely unthinkable for someone like me.

“It could have been Alexandre, but the Gods wouldn't do such a thing, as Alex's role in Sophia's life is already defined.” Shara's voice echoed through me, taking control of my body with an ease I had long accepted. I let him speak, as I knew he had more knowledge about all this than I did.

“At first, I didn't understand how a human could see me, how a human could look at me and not go crazy.” Shara smiled mysteriously. “And I let time run to see what would happen. I didn't stop my vampire from getting close to her, from getting involved, and I even mocked how he followed this path without even fighting.”

“It's not entirely true. I tried to fight, yes… I just lost the battle.” I intervened, knowing that, no matter how much I tried to deceive myself, Shara was right.

“In part, Khalid… You could have tried better. You could have chosen to stay away.” Shara laughed sarcastically. “He did much more than in any other job. I didn't influence him to stay, but Khalid chose to do so. And that's why I kept provoking him, laughing when he let his thoughts show.” Shara then looked directly at Alex, as if he were studying his reaction.

“I was one of the first to notice Khalid's approach.” Alex assumed, his voice neutral, but his gaze showing that he had analyzed this situation long ago.

Aquiles let out a low growl, a clear warning of his irritation.

“And you didn't say anything?” Aquiles asked, crossing his arms, his posture showing he didn't like this revelation at all.

“There was no need… If Khalid had tried something with Sophia, Sophia herself would have killed him.” Alex replied and shrugged, his confidence in the Luna being unshakable. “I trust my Luna…”

Shara let out a low laugh, almost amused.

“But I'm surprised that the Gods accepted to connect us to werewolves… I can say this is something worthy of being put in history books. Mixed domains or packs are extremely rare.” Shara spoke.

“This is only possible because of Sophia.” Hélios completed. “She is a Chimera. Her very existence is a mixture of various races… Some would say she is a Hybrid.”

“Actually, it makes sense.” Isak's voice echoed through the room, catching our attention.

I turned to see him entering, his gaze filled with knowledge and curiosity.

“One of the greatest symbols of power is something simple, and relatively easy to achieve: a pentagram.” Isak explained as he walked to where we were gathered around Sophia. “When I heard that Ivar had kidnapped Sophia, I read the Chimera's diaries. In one of them, there are rituals and explanations about runes and the meanings of magical symbols.”

He then pointed to all of us.

“My theory is that the Gods put Sophia together with Ivar because he must also have some divine touch or hidden power. When it didn't work and Ivar was consumed by the curse, they helped the unknown Coven to separate her from him.” Isak then looked at Hyperion.

“I kept Isak informed about everything that was happening in the meeting.” Hyperion explained.

“Exactly… But going back to what I was saying…” Isak then looked at Sophia. “The Gods then put her together with Perseus and Aquiles, thus forming a group of five: Sophia, Perseus, Aquiles, Alexandre, and Ivar. A pentagram can be formed. In addition, we have two stars: a larger one with nine points, counting their spiritual and human parts, and a smaller one with only four points with the spiritual parts.”

Isak moved his hand in the air and a thin blue line appeared, forming the drawing he mentioned, making the explanation clearer for all of us.

“In the center is the curse.” He made a small green circle appear, which soon began to twist, trying to escape the lines that held it. “It is much more difficult for the curse to escape while there is such strong protection.”

“So when the rejection ritual happened, between Sophia and Ivar, the Gods united us, as they knew the pentagram had to continue.” Hélios completed.

“Exactly, and the person closest, with the greatest affinity, was Khalid…” Aquiles spoke.

“If I hadn't been in that room, Sophia could have been linked to Azrik or Shangō.” I said, surprised to discover so many things.

“Probably, as they were the strongest.” Isak agreed with my statement.