Chapter 63 #2
The other shoe dropped. "My sister."
"That was not your sister," the Seer said gently. "It was an entity wearing her face, sent to fool the wards and weaken you. It watched Elariya and waited for the right time to strike."
The thought of that thing wearing Zyrra's likeness to stalk us and use Elariya made me want to rip the world apart. "I can't believe I didn't sense it."
"It used its power to hide from you, but it appears to have lingered since your father's death, waiting for you to find the ring."
Bitterness burned through me. "So it all ties back to him. To my father's death."
"Sadly, yes, my boy." Her eyes softened. "I do not yet know why Elariya's father carried the ring into the mortal lands, but the darkness you face wants it returned. And it does not want you to find it first. It has interfered every time you sought to find the ring, trying to stop you.”
My fists tightened at my sides.
“When you found Elariya, it sent the Ruskiel to take her.” Her gaze flicked to Elariya then back to me.
“When the witch failed, the entity drew close, choosing instead to use your search to find the ring for itself.
It wormed its way near enough to deceive.
The moment Elariya conjured the rose in the library, it saw the truth at once.
It recognized the power of time burning in her veins.
That is why it tried to take her. And it will try again. "
"You must have some idea who this is," I pressed, my voice tight with strain.
"No, my boy. Some truths lie hidden from my reach and will not be revealed until their hour comes.
Even I cannot force that hour to arrive sooner.
" She brought her hands together, fingers locking.
"That said, I suspect it is a great power.
Older than I. But I believe it is not yet whole.
If it were, ruin would already blanket this realm.
It would not need the Ruskiel, nor the necromancer, nor the rebels to serve its hand.
It would not need to feed on Fae souls at the camp. Such hungers betray limits."
Rage twisted my gut.
What the fuck were we up against?
It was hard enough to fight what you couldn't name. Harder still when you knew you were already out of your depth.
Beside me, Elariya's hand trembled where it rested against her skirt. She was clearly scared, but beneath the fear, I saw it. A raw determination to fight.
I still felt like I'd damned her by bringing her into my world, but she didn't look like a ziyka anymore. The fledgling mage had stepped into her place in this world, ready at last to become who she was meant to be.
"We need to find the ring and stop this madness before it gets worse," Elariya spoke up. "But all I have is three days until I forget. That will set me back."
"Fret not, child. Yes, the curse will be invoked on the rise of the new moon and you will forget. But you will find your way again."
"What if I don't? What if I'm different?" She glanced back at me. "What if... we're different?"
The worst thing about that question was there was no answer for it. Not right now. All we could do was wait and see what happened.
The Seer turned Elariya back to face her and lifted her hand with the shackle.
"Hear me, child. You fear that the reset will steal him from you, that the hours will strip away what you hold most dear including the progress you've made with your powers. But that is not the case."
"Isn't it?"
"No. What you've built together leaves an imprint on the soul, so what you gain is never truly erased.
The resets may scatter the sand, but each time it falls, it settles closer to its true form.
You are not being undone, Elariya. You are being shaped.
And now that you have each other, you know what must be done. That is a blessing we cannot overlook."
Elariya nodded. "It does make things easier, knowing what to do. Before, we spent five years stumbling in the dark."
"Indeed. And take comfort in this, you do not need to seize the ring with your own hand.
You need only locate it. The moment your magic pierces the veil and shows where it lies, the memory-loop curse will break.
Then every memory you have lost across these five years will return.
Every heartbeat, every touch, every moment of love restored. "
The words struck like dawn breaking through a long night. Elariya gasped, hope blazing in her eyes. The same hope that surged through me, fierce enough to steal the strength from my knees. She would remember me. She would remember us.
Our gazes caught, her smile soft and luminous. And though I knew I would remain cursed until the ring sat on my finger, in that moment I felt triumph. Not for myself, but for her.
She turned back to the Seer and squeezed her hand. "Thank you. Thank you so much."
"You are most welcome, my dear." The Seer inclined her head, eyes brightening with some private knowing. "Am I correct in assuming you wish to keep your shackle?"
"Yes."
"Then let me give you something more. A spark to hold when the dark presses close.
" Her hands glowed gold over Elariya's wrist, light spilling in radiant strands.
"I cannot sway your choices, but I can tether your hearts.
So you will always feel your love for him.
Yet remember such a tether will only hold if your mind is willing. "
"My mind?"
"Yes. For when the heart cannot feel, the mind commands. But I have faith that yours will beat for him still, as it does now."
"That means more to me than I can say." Elariya's voice brimmed with awe.
"Fret not, child," the Seer murmured, her tone soft but carrying the weight of eternity.
"The road will be cruel at times, but worth it in the end, no matter what awaits.
" She gave Elariya a gentle smile before straightening.
"Now, I must speak with your Lord in private before I take my leave.
I look forward to our next meeting, Elariya Grayson. "
"And I with you, my Lady," Elariya replied.
She stepped back, the golden glow still lingering faintly on her wrist like threads of sunlight. I caught her hand before she could turn away and pressed my lips to her knuckle. Her eyes met mine, and in that brief moment the world narrowed to the two of us.
Reluctantly, I released her and she continued toward the door, her skirt whispering against the stone. When the door closed behind her, the silence in the Hollow Room shifted. Heavy. Expectant.
I looked back at the Seer. Her gaze was no longer softened by warmth but sharpened with something weightier—grave truths she had held back until now.
Things she hadn't wanted Elariya to hear.
"I'm guessing this is where the hard truths come in." I sighed.
"I am sorry, my boy."
I nodded once, my face grim. "Go on, then. Tell me what you didn't want her to hear."
"These are truths meant for you alone." Her eyes hardened with resolve.
"Fine, give me the worst thing first." I might as well take the blade to the gut and get it over with.
"You have chosen her, Wolfe Nightblade. Bound her to your soul as mate and more. But... she may not always choose you."
The words split me open worse than any wound of flesh. My chest constricted, shadows rippling restlessly around me. "I'll never accept that." The growl scraped raw from my throat before I could stop it.
Her gaze didn't waver. "Love is no chain, my boy. You may give her your eternity, but her heart is still hers to offer or to withhold. You must be prepared to bear that truth."
The thought of Elariya slipping from me by choice tore through me. "No. I'll fight to make it the truth."
"That is not how love works." Her voice was gentle, but it fell like a stone into the silence.
My hands curled into fists. "You just told her she'd remember everything when she locates the ring." My hands curled into fists. I clung to that hope with everything I had, refusing to let her steal it from me.
The Seer dipped her head, her silver charms whispering against each other.
"Indeed. But we do not know how long it will take you to reach that stage.
" Her eyes locked on mine. "It could be weeks, months.
.. years. And with each reset, Elariya is changed.
Every life lived shapes her anew. Even with the aid of her journals, she must feel those moments herself.
That is why there are no guarantees she will love you as she does now. "
Her words slashed deeper than she could ever know. My chest heaved. The thought of never having another chance to win Elariya’s heart was unbearable. "I just found her. And she is mine. My mage. Nothing can take that away from me."
"I am sorry. There are some things even you cannot change. This is one of them."
I shook my head hard, as if I could fling her words from me. "You don't understand. I don't care about anything else. I just want her. Only her."
Her lips pressed into a sorrowful line. "That choice may not be yours, Wolfe Nightblade."
The burn in my chest flared hotter, restless with fury. "Fine. Then what's next?" I forced the words out, sharp, final. I couldn't stand another second of this.
"Wolfe—"
"I said, what's next?" The snarl snapped out of me, cutting through the Hollow Room.
The Seer stepped closer, her presence pressing into the air with quiet gravity. Her hand rose, cool and steady, brushing against my cheek.
"Your determination has always impressed me, Wolfe Nightblade," she murmured. "I have faith in you. But hear me. This truth, if it comes to pass, will break you. It will destroy you in ways no blade ever could."
"Then let it break me." The words bled out of me, sharp with love and fury alike. "I love her. That has to count for something. I have to believe it matters. In three hundred years I have only loved one woman. That’s her."