The world was still spinning when Amila opened her eyes.
Not fully.
Just enough to see shapes moving above her—Claire's terrified face,her mother's trembling hands,the courtyard's broken stone.
But there was something else.
A shadow standing behind them.
Watching.
Silent.
Unmoving.
Uninvited.
Her heart lurched.
No one else seemed to see him.
Only her.
The tall, dark figure stood at the far end of the ruined courtyard, half-formed, like a mirage.All black smoke and silver edges.No face—just the outline of a man carved from the absence of light.
But she knew who it was.
She felt it in her bones.
Raeth.
Not fully here.Not fully corporeal.But present enough to watch.
Present enough to smile.
"Amila? Amila—look at me."Claire cupped her cheeks, pulling her gaze away.
But Amila's breath shook.
Because even with Claire holding her—even with her mother whispering her name—
she still felt him.
Watching her.Studying her.Knowing her.
And loving the fire that had nearly consumed her.
THE QUEEN FEELS SOMETHING WRONG
The Queen stiffened.
Not because she saw Raeth—she couldn't.But because she felt the absence he left behind.
A cold breath across the remnants of the light.A foreign pulse in her daughter's aura.
Her wings bristled.
"Something touched her," the Queen whispered."Something ancient."
Claire swallowed hard.
"Like… her aunt?"
"No."The Queen's eyes darkened."Older."
Claire's stomach dropped.
"How much older?"
The Queen didn't answer at first.
Then—
"Before the clans. Before the Thrones. Before the Dawn Court existed."
Claire stared.
"So… like, prehistoric nightmare older?"
The Queen gave her a look.
Claire shut up.
THE SHADOW THAT SHOULDN'T BE THERE
Amila tried to sit up.
Her mother and Claire helped her.
But her gaze drifted again—sharp, involuntary—toward the far wall.
Raeth hadn't moved.
He didn't breathe.
He didn't blink.
He didn't need to.
But when she looked at him—
his shape leaned forward.
Just slightly.
Like a predator noticing prey stirring.
Her chest tightened.
And then—
a whisper filled her head.
Not a memory.Not a hallucination.
A voice.
Deep.Velvet.Patient.
"Little dawn."
Her breath hitched.
"You burned beautifully."
She clutched Claire's sleeve.
Claire panicked instantly."Hey—hey, what's wrong? Talk to me!"
But Amila couldn't.
Because Raeth wasn't done.
"You are waking too fast."
She shook her head, trying to block him out.
"And when you burn like that…every chain around me cracks."
The courtyard suddenly felt smaller.
Airless.
Dangerous.
"And you enjoyed it," Raeth murmured."I felt it."
"Stop," she whispered under her breath."Stop talking to me."
But he only chuckled.
A sound like thunder trying not to laugh.
"You can't close the door anymore, Serael."
That name.
Her true celestial name.
Her forbidden name.
Her mother froze.
Claire felt Amila's whole body lock in fear.
And Raeth…
…Raeth finally moved.
One step forward.Slow.Inevitable.
He lifted a hand, palm open—toward her.
Not touching.
Just reaching.
Claiming.
"Soon," he whispered.
And then—
he vanished.
Not faded.
Not dissolved.
Just gone.
Like he had never been there.
AMILA BREAKS
Her body collapsed forward violently—like the moment he disappeared ripped something out of her.
Claire caught her again.
"Amila! Talk to me—please—what happened?!"
Amila was shaking.
Hard.
Her voice cracked when she finally managed:
"He… he was here…"
The Queen's blood ran cold.
"Who?"
Amila looked up.
Tears spilled down her cheeks.
"The Devourer."
Her mother's wings snapped wide in horror.
Claire froze.
And Amila whispered the part that terrified her the most:
"And… he wasn't trying to hurt me."
She swallowed.
"He was admiring me."