Chapter 146 Elara's Writing
Elara's POV
I crumpled Uncle Aldric's letter in my fist. "He wants to meet at dawn. Says there's something about our bloodline we don't know."
"It's obviously a trap," Thorne said.
"Maybe. But he's family." I looked at Drakon. "And he mentioned the Codex. How would he know about it unless he knows something real?"
"Then we both go," Drakon decided.
"He said come alone."
"I don't care what he said. We face threats together."
I smiled despite everything. "Always together."
Thorne and Faye left to rest before the meeting. But sleep felt impossible. Too many thoughts spinning.
The Codex. The sacrifice. Faye's corruption. Uncle Aldric's secrets. War coming. The Void Empress hunting us.
I needed to do something. Anything to feel productive.
I pulled out blank paper and a pen. Started writing.
"Once upon a time, a poor seamstress was forced to pretend to be a princess..."
The words flowed. Our story. From the beginning. The lies. The fear. The slowly growing love.
Drakon found me hours later, surrounded by pages.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Writing. Our story. Everything that happened." I set down my pen. "Future generations need to know. How we overcame prejudice. How we chose love over fear. How unity actually works, not just theory."
Drakon picked up a page. Read it. Smiled. "You make me sound heroic."
"You are heroic."
"I'm terrified most of the time."
"That's what makes it heroic. Being scared but doing it anyway." I pulled him down to sit beside me. "Help me write this. Add your perspective. What you were thinking during all these moments."
"You want my thoughts?"
"I want the truth. Both sides. So people understand it wasn't easy. Wasn't perfect. But it was worth it."
Drakon took a pen. Started adding notes to my pages.
"Elara walked into the throne room and I thought she was the most terrified person I'd ever seen. I wanted to comfort her. Protect her. Even though she was supposed to be my political bride."
I read his words. "You wanted to protect me from the start?"
"From the first moment." He kept writing. "Even when I was angry about the lies, I never stopped wanting to keep you safe."
We wrote together for hours. Trading the pen back and forth. Sharing memories.
Some made us laugh. Like when I'd tried to act like a princess and kept using the wrong fork.
Some made us cry. Like when our mating bond first snapped into place.
"This is good," Drakon said, reading over what we'd created. "Important. People need to know struggles like ours can have happy endings."
"If we survive long enough for a happy ending," I said quietly.
"We will." He pulled me close. "We have to. Too many people are counting on us."
Dawn approached too quickly. We prepared to meet Uncle Aldric.
"Take this," Mother said, pressing something into my hand. A small medallion. "It's the Moonstone family crest. The real one. If Aldric is truly my brother, he'll have his own."
We rode to the border. Just me and Drakon, as promised.
Uncle Aldric waited with one guard. He held up his hand, showing an identical medallion.
"Helena's children," he said. "We need to talk. About what the Moonstone family really is."
"We know," I said. "Ancient seal keepers. Magical nobility. Hunted and killed."
"That's the story Helena knows. But she left before learning the whole truth." He dismounted. "The Moonstones weren't just seal keepers. We were prophesied. Chosen by ancient magic itself."
"Chosen for what?"
"To birth the one who would either save the world or destroy it." He looked directly at me. "A human queen with ice in her veins. Who would unite all kingdoms and bring lasting peace. Or fail and doom everything to void."
My heart stopped. "A prophecy about me?"
"About you specifically. Written eight hundred years ago." He pulled out an ancient scroll. "Your name is in it. Elara. The seamstress queen who marries a dragon. Who combines magics. Who stands against the void."
"That's impossible," Drakon said. "How could anyone predict..."
"Because it's not prediction. It's destiny." Aldric unrolled the scroll. "The prophecy says more. Says you'll face three trials. First, uniting your kingdom, you did that. Second, facing the void empress, you're doing that. Third..."
He paused, face grave.
"Third?" I prompted.
"Third, you must choose. Between love and duty. Between personal happiness and the world's survival. Between saving one person you love or saving everyone else."
The Codex flashed in my mind. The sacrifice it required.
"When?" I whispered. "When does the third trial happen?"
"The prophecy says when the moon turns red. When the stars align in the dragon constellation. When..."
His guard suddenly collapsed. Eyes glowing void-red.
"Now," the Void Empress's voice said through the guard. "It happens now."
The guard stood up, moving wrong. Jerky. Possessed.
"I've been waiting for this moment," the Empress continued. "When the prophecy revealed itself. When you'd finally understand your purpose."
"What do you want?" Drakon demanded.
"I want to change the prophecy. Corrupt it. Make sure Elara chooses wrong." The guard pulled out a knife. "And I know exactly how."
He stabbed himself. But instead of dying, he exploded into void creatures.
They didn't attack us.
They ran toward our kingdom. Toward the castle.
Where Lily was. Where Mother was. Where everyone we loved waited, unprotected.
"Choose, Elara," the Void Empress's voice echoed. "Chase these creatures and save your loved ones. Or stay here and learn the prophecy's full truth from your uncle. You can't do both. Time is running out."
Uncle Aldric grabbed my arm. "The prophecy has a loophole! A way to win without the sacrifice! But I need ten minutes to explain..."
An explosion in the distance. From our castle.
Screaming carried on the wind.
"They're attacking now!" Drakon shifted into dragon form. "We have to go!"
"But the loophole!" I looked at Aldric desperately.
"I can't explain it in seconds! It's complex! You need to understand the full history..."
Another explosion. Closer.
"Elara!" Drakon roared. "Decide!"
Save my family now, or learn how to save everyone forever?
The prophecy's third trial.
And I had ten seconds to choose.