جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 70

The air between them was molten, every breath charged with unspoken promises. Mae’s skin still tingled where Lucien’s hands had touched, and though no words passed between them, she felt the weight of everything unsaid pressing closer than his body.Lucien’s lips brushed hers again, slower this time, deliberate, as if he wanted her to feel each second stretch. His touch was both grounding and consuming, tethering her to something solid even as the world seemed to unravel.Mae’s fingers traced the lines of his chest, memorizing the shape of him beneath her hands, each curve sparking a wave of heat. His strength was undeniable, but what struck her most was his restraint, the way he trembled slightly under her touch, as though holding back more than she could fathom.Her breath caught as his hand slid to the small of her back, drawing her closer. “You are not afraid of me,” he murmured, almost a question, almost a confession.Mae shook her head, her lips brushing his jaw. “I never was, n

The three of them stood in silence, the weight of Sethis’s question still lingering in the air. Mae’s heart thudded in her chest, uncertain whether it was from the sudden shift in the conversation or from Lucien’s nearness. Sethis’s gaze lingered on her for a moment longer, unreadable, then a sly smile tugged at his lips. He winked at her, a flicker of mischief in his eyes that did not quite hide the ache behind it, and with a casual turn he walked away, leaving them in the quiet that suddenly felt too heavy.Mae exhaled slowly, only then realizing how tightly she had been holding her breath. Her eyes darted towards Lucien, but he did not move at first. He simply watched her, his silence more potent than words. She felt his presence coil around her like smoke, dark and magnetic, impossible to escape.When he finally stepped closer, Mae’s body reacted before her mind did, heat rushing through her veins at the way his gaze locked on hers. His hand lifted, slowly and deliberately, brushin

The ship shook violently, not from the engines but from the world itself breaking open. Mae’s skin lit with violet chains beneath the surface, sparking and pulsing against her will. Her breath caught. The vision that had haunted her, the one where she stood on a battlefield of fire and glass, tearing the world apart, felt like it was crawling out of her head and into reality.Outside, the horizon split. The earth bled light, jagged wounds opening as towering shadows clawed their way free. The Forgotten were waking.“Shields up, now!” Sethis shouted, his voice shaking in a way Mae had never heard. Lucien’s chains burned white-hot along his arms as he stared out the viewport. Ashar’s knuckles whitened around his blade. Even Riven, usually unshakable, had his wings half-flared, feathers twitching with unease.Then the ship lurched, hard, as something slammed into the ramp. A body rolled inside, limp and bleeding, leaving a smear of red across the metal. Mae’s heart stopped. “Kaine!” she

Mae stepped forward, her chains alive, sparking violet light that spilled across the ramp like liquid fire. The champion met her advance with a shriek, the hollow void in its chest pulsing like a second sun, a darkness so deep it threatened to swallow the ship whole. Lucien stayed at her side, his white chains entwining with hers in defiance, but she felt the strain of it burning through him, threatening to pull him apart from the inside. The Forgotten swarmed around them, endless, ravenous, their clawed hands tearing through steel as though it were nothing. The ship screamed with the weight of the attack, bulkheads groaning, alarms wailing in time with Mae’s racing heart. Ashar fought at the front, his blade aflame, every swing a bright arc that seared through the horde. Flames clung to his body, his armor glowing molten in the heat of battle, but the creatures kept pressing, throwing themselves into the fire willingly just to smother it with their numbers. Riven soared overhead,

The battlefield was quiet now, but the silence was worse than any roar. Smoke curled across shattered ground, ashes drifting in violet light that still lingered in Mae's veins. Her chest heaved, lungs burning, chains coiling and writhing as if they had a life of their own. The champion had not moved, but its presence pressed down on her, massive, patient, waiting for the fracture to falter.Mae's knees buckled, and she sank to the scorched earth. Her fingers clutched at the chains, trying to steady them. Kaine's golden light had vanished. The echo of his command lingered. Run. His sacrifice still radiated warmth in her memory, but it was gone. She was alone.Behind her, faint movements caught her eye. Ashar's flames smoldered, Riven's wings trembled, and Sethis' shadows curled like serpents across the cracked ground. Lucien did not rise. Fear twisted in her stomach, tighter than the chains around her arms.The champion shifted, slow as a mountain, eyes locked on her. The ground trembl