Chapter 26 Lucian
Lilith woke to an empty bed.
The sheets beside her were cold. Cain was gone.
She sat up, heart sinking. Dawn light filtered through the windows, purple-red from the three moons, fading into something closer to morning. How long had she slept?
A note sat on the pillow where Cain had been.
Didn’t want to wake you. You looked peaceful.
Stay safe, sunshine.
~C
Lilith pressed the note to her chest. The room still smelled like Cain, smoke, fragrance, and something earthier. But she was gone. Back to her kingdom. Back to her people.
Lilith was alone.
She dressed quickly, braided her hair, and headed back to her own chambers. The palace felt different in the morning light, quiet and empty. It felt as if something vital had been drained from it when the brothers left.
Sera was waiting in Lilith’s room, looking like she had not slept much either.
“They’re gone?” Lilith asked.
“Left an hour ago. All of them except Lucian.” Sera handed her bread and fruit. “Eat. You need energy.”
Lilith ate mechanically. The food tasted like nothing.
“Where’s Lucian?”
“Library, I think. Or maybe his chambers. He is hard to track.” Sera paused. “Are you okay?”
“I don’t know.” Lilith set down the bread. “Cain left while I was sleeping.”
“Probably easier that way. For both of you.” Sera’s voice was gentle. “Goodbyes are hard.”
“We didn’t even get to say goodbye.”
“You had last night. That is more than nothing.”
Lilith supposed that was true, but it did not make the empty feeling in her chest any lighter.
A knock at the door interrupted them.
“Come in,” Lilith called.
Lucian stepped inside. His mirror eyes reflected the room at her, showed her own face, tired and worried, showed Sera standing protectively beside her, showed the unmade bed and the books scattered across the desk.
“Good morning,” he said. “May I come in?”
“You’re already in.”
“May I stay then?” His smile was slight. “I promise I’m not here to manipulate or scheme or whatever you think I’m doing.”
“What are you here for?”
“To talk. To offer information. To be honest, for once.”
Sera snorted. “That will be a first.”
Lucian’s smile widened. “Fair. I have not exactly been trustworthy.” He looked at Lilith. “But my brothers are gone. You are stuck with me. And let us establish some ground rules.”
“Ground rules?”
“For the next few days. Or weeks. However long they’re gone.” Lucian moved to the window, looking out at the courtyard. “You do not trust me. I understand why. I showed you those records to manipulate you, to plant seeds of doubt.”
“At least you admit it.”
“I’m Envy. I see what others have, and I want it, including you.” He said it matter-of-factly. “But I also see everything. And right now, what I see is dangerous.”
Lilith exchanged glances with Sera. “What do you mean?”
“The attacks. The Crossing. The constructs.” Lucian’s mirrors shifted, showing her images, flashes of destruction, grey creatures, melted armour. “Whoever is doing this is not random. They are organised. Powerful. And they are moving faster than my brothers realise.”
“So tell them.”
“I have. They are securing their kingdoms, fortifying borders, doing what they think will keep their people safe.” He turned back to face her. “But they are missing something.”
“What?”
“You.” Lucian’s eyes fixed on her. “You are here, in the Vestibulum, with minimal protection. Only me and a handful of guards.”
The implication hit like cold water.
“You think they will attack here?” Lilith said slowly.
“I think the Vestibulum is the most strategic target in all seven realms. It is where the portals connect, where the brothers meet. Where are you?” Lucian moved closer. “And if I were planning an invasion, I would strike now, while the brothers are scattered.”
Sera stepped between them. “Then why are you still here? Why didn’t you go with them?”
“Because someone needed to stay, someone who could watch everything at once.” Lucian’s mirrors flickered. “My eyes see across realms. I can monitor all seven kingdoms simultaneously. If something happens, I know immediately.”
“That’s convenient,” Sera said suspiciously.
“It is useful.” Lucian looked at Lilith. “Which is why I’m offering you a deal.”
“What kind of deal?”
“Information for trust. I tell you everything I see, everything I know. No games. No manipulation. Only truth.” He paused. “And in return, you don’t treat me like the enemy while we are here together.”
Lilith studied him. His mirror eyes showed her nothing, only reflected her own uncertainty at her.
“Why should I believe you?”
“Because I have nothing to gain by lying right now. My brothers are gone. You already distrust me. Playing games would only make things worse.” Lucian’s expression was serious. “And because the alternative, you not trusting me and us not working together, leaves both of us vulnerable.”
He had a point.
“What do you want to show me?” Lilith asked carefully.
“Everything. The attacks. The patterns. What my mirrors have seen that my brothers dismissed.” He gestured toward the door. “Come to my chambers. I will show you.”
“Your chambers?” Sera’s voice was sharp.
“My mirrors are there. All of them. I can show you what I’ve been tracking.” Lucian looked between them. “Both of you can come. I am not trying to isolate her.”
Lilith looked at Sera. A whole conversation passed in that glance.
“We go together,” Sera said. “And we leave when we want.”
“Agreed.” Lucian moved toward the door. “Follow me.”
Lucian’s chambers were nothing like Lilith expected.
The walls were covered in mirrors. Not decorative ones, but functional ones. Hundreds of them in different sizes, showing various images. Some reflected the room. Others showed places Lilith did not recognise: kingdoms, battlefields, and cities.
“Welcome to Envy’s eyes,” Lucian said. He moved to the center of the room where a large mirror stood on its own frame. “This is my primary. It shows me whatever I ask it to show.”
“That is incredible,” Lilith whispered.
“It is useful. Also maddening. Imagine seeing everything, all the time, and being unable to look away.” His smile was self-deprecating. “But it has advantages.”
He touched the large mirror. The surface rippled like water. An image appeared, the Crossing before the attack.
“This was two days ago,” Lucian said. “Watch.”
The mirror showed the Crossing in daylight. People moving through the neutral territory. Guards on patrol. Children playing. Everything normal.
Then the grey shapes appeared at the edges, moving too fast and surrounding the outposts.
The attack happened in minutes. Brutal. Efficient. The constructs tore through defences as if they were nothing. Guards fell. Buildings collapsed. People ran.
Some were drained, the constructs touching them and life pouring out. Others were burned or cut down.
In fifteen minutes, the Crossing was gone.
Lilith’s stomach turned. “You saw this happen?”
“After. My mirrors show me the past as well, what happened when I wasn’t looking.” Lucian’s voice was grim. “But here is what matters.”
He touched the mirror again. The image zoomed in on one of the constructs. Grey skin. Too many joints. Claws dripping black.
“These things are not random. They are built. Designed. Someone is creating them with specific purposes.” He zoomed in further. “And look here.”
On the construct’s arm was a small, almost invisible symbol.
“What is that?” Sera asked.
“I don’t know yet. But it is on every construct we have found.” Lucian changed the image, showing different attacks, different creatures, the same symbol. “Whoever is building these things is marking them, like a maker’s mark.”
“Can you trace it?”
“I’m trying. Whoever they are, they are good at hiding.” Lucian’s mirrors shifted, showing different angles. “What I know is this, the attacks are escalating. They are getting closer to major cities, more frequent, more devastating.”
“And the Vestibulum?” Lilith asked.
“It has not been touched. That worries me.” Lucian looked at her. “Because it is the most valuable target. And they have ignored it.”
“Maybe they can’t reach it.”
“Maybe. Or maybe they are waiting for the right moment.” He touched the mirror again. It showed the Vestibulum from above. “My brother's leaving. You're staying. Minimal defences. If I were planning an attack, I would choose now.”
The words hung heavy.
“So what do we do?” Sera asked.
“We prepare. We watch. And we do not tell the brothers.” Lucian’s eyes met Lilith’s. “If I am wrong, I do not want to drag them away from their kingdoms. If I am right…”
“If you are right, we handle it ourselves,” Lilith finished.
“Can you handle it?” Lucian asked. Not mocking and genuinely asking. “You manifested power in the courtyard and pushed all seven of us apart. Can you do it again? Stronger?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then we find out. Because if they come, when they come, you will need every ounce of power you have.”
Lilith looked at the mirrors, at the images of destruction, at the symbol on the constructs’ arms.
“Teach me,” she said. “Show me everything you know. Help me figure out my power.”
Lucian smiled, genuine this time. “Now we’re getting somewhere.”
He touched the mirror again. New images, training plans, strategies, and information appeared.
“Let us begin.”