Chapter 57
Luna P.O.V
I sat in silence on the palace balcony, overlooking the glowing forest of the Fairy Kingdom. The moonlight laced the treetops in silver, and the flowers below glowed in soft pulses of magic. It was beautiful, but something in me twisted. Not from fear—but from truth. And the truth was beginning to bloom like a bruise beneath my skin.
Adrian sat beside me, his hands loosely folded, eyes darting toward the trees. He hadn’t said much since the meeting. Neither had I. What was there to say?
“Do you think your grandmother is hiding something?” he finally asked, voice barely louder than the whispering wind.
I didn’t answer right away. “Yes,” I said. “But so am I.”
Adrian turned to me, his eyes searching. “Is it about Sita?”
I nodded slowly. “There’s something about her… about me. The way my powers react. I don’t think I’m just her vessel. I think—I think I am her. Reborn.”
He didn’t flinch. “Then that means Ravana’s not just after your magic. He’s after the last thread connecting him to his defeat.”
“Exactly.” I swallowed. “And if I am Sita, then I’m the key. The question is… to lock the door or open it.”
Adrian reached for my hand. “Whatever choice you make, we’ll fight for you.”
I squeezed his hand but didn’t respond. The wind picked up, and I heard a soft rustle—not from the trees—but from within the palace behind us.
I stood, instantly on alert. Adrian followed, both of us quiet as shadows. We crept down the halls of the palace, following the sound. A whisper, a shuffle, and then a sharp intake of breath.
We turned the corner just in time to see Kinsey slip into a sealed room—a room I was told was forbidden.
My heart dropped.
Adrian looked at me, questioning. I shook my head.
We waited until the door clicked shut, then I pressed my ear to the cool surface. Faint voices echoed on the other side. Two of them.
One was Kinsey.
The other was unmistakable.
“…you’ve been watching her this whole time,” the voice rumbled softly.
Ravana.
My heart thundered. I backed away from the door, nearly gasping.
Adrian caught me. “What is it?”
“She’s been speaking with him,” I whispered. “Kinsey—she’s been in contact with Ravana.”
Adrian’s mouth opened, then closed. He looked just as shocked as I felt.
“She said she was trying to save him,” I muttered, “but what if she’s the one… giving him everything he needs?”
“We need to leave,” he said. “Now.”
I hesitated. “No. I need to hear it all. I need to know if she’s still with us.”
I stepped back to the door just as it began to open.
Kinsey’s eyes met mine.
She froze.
“Luna,” she breathed, startled. “You weren’t supposed to—”
“How long?” I asked. “How long have you been working with him?”
“I’m not working with him,” she snapped. “I’m trying to save him.”
I shook my head. “You’re trying to save someone who willingly gave himself to darkness.”
“He was our uncle,” she whispered. “Before Ravana. Before all of this.”
“And now?” I asked. “Who is he now?”
The silence stretched.
“I don’t know,” she said finally. “But I think a piece of him still exists—and if we lose that, we lose everything.”
I stepped back. Hurt twisted through me like a knife. “You should’ve told me.”
“I wanted to protect you.”
“You’re not protecting me,” I said, backing away. “You’re protecting him.”
And then I turned and walked away, leaving Kinsey standing in the doorway of secrets—caught between loyalty and betrayal.
Dre P.O.V
Back in my home village, I stood over my father’s sleeping form, watching as the medicine pulled him into calmness. But even sedated, his hands twitched. His body recoiled from something invisible.
Ravana still lingered in his veins.
I heard movement behind me. Michael entered the room, his expression grim.
“There’s something else,” he said. “One of the warriors—he said he saw Dad talking… to nothing. Then a voice answered back.”
My stomach sank. “He’s still in contact.”
“We need to sedate him harder,” Michael suggested. “Keep him from… shifting.”
I looked down at our father. “Or we need to find a way to pull Ravana out.”
Michael blinked. “How?”
“I don’t know yet,” I said. “But Luna is the key. If she can find the source, we’ll know what to destroy.”
He nodded. “Then we better hope she finds it fast.”
Because the cracks were spreading.
And the storm was getting closer.