Alone in a chamber of black glass that reflected nothing but faint streaks of violet light, Seris stared at herself.
The mark glowed faintly beneath her collarbone, pulsing with Mason's obsession like a heartbeat she could feel across the distance.
He is always watching.
The thought both enraged and fascinated her. She had survived humans, demons, even gods—but this… this was different.
It was not power.
It was not magic.
It was him.
She could almost hear his voice, low and smooth, threading through her mind: You cannot hide. You never could.
Her hands shook as she touched the mark.
"Why me?" she whispered to the shadows. "Why not one of them?"
Because she was different, the Abyss answered silently.
Different enough to resist. Different enough to wound. Different enough to obsess over.
The door behind her creaked. She knew who it would be before he stepped into the chamber.
Mason.
No warning. No fanfare. Just the shadow folding around him until he was there, standing closer than any mortal had ever dared to approach.
"Do you think you can escape me in reflection?" he asked, voice soft, almost intimate.
Seris turned sharply, eyes blazing. "I will never—"
"You think you have a choice," Mason interrupted, stepping forward, each motion deliberate, heavy, inevitable. "But the mark chose you before you even drew breath."
The air shimmered around him. Even the Abyss seemed to pause, acknowledging his claim.
"I hate you," she said, voice cracking. "I hate you for what you've done to me."
He tilted his head slightly, studying her. "Good," he murmured. "Hatred lasts longer than love… and you will feel both. Both for me."
A pause, heavy, suffocating. Mason reached out, brushing the edge of her shoulder—not enough to touch fully, just close enough that the heat of his presence made her knees weak.
"I do not ask you to submit," he said quietly. "I only ask you to understand… you cannot escape me. You cannot survive without me. And eventually…" His gaze darkened, infinite. "…you will want to belong to me."
Seris's breath caught. Rage warred with fear. Desire warred with terror.
And somewhere in the Abyss, Mason smiled.
Because he knew she had already begun to lean toward him.
Even if she didn't yet understand why.