The Hall of Echoes was carved from forgotten time.
Each step Aelira took echoed with her past — not in memory, but in sound. Her voice, distorted and cruel, filled the chamber from invisible corners.
"Bow before me.""Let the light burn.""He chose death. I gave him immortality instead."
She clenched her fists. "That's not me anymore."
Zeyr walked beside her like a shadow wearing a smile. He didn't need to shackle her. The thorns bound her will, and the magic of the hall peeled at her mind like wet parchment.
"You think you escaped your nature," he said, voice silk. "But the stars don't forget."
They reached a massive archway.
Aelira froze.
Beyond it lay a throne room she knew.Black glass. Broken windows. Moonlight pouring through ash.This was the night it all fell.
Zeyr stepped inside. "One truth remains, Seraiya. You loved me once. You trusted me more than any of them."
She followed, steps slow.
"You were my blade," she said softly. "And I shattered you."
Zeyr turned, eyes glowing. "Then let me be whole again. Let me serve you — not as I was, but as we were meant to be."
And from the shadows behind the throne, he emerged.
Not Zeyr.
Someone else.
The Fifth Husband.
The one Aelira buried so deep, even she forgot.
—
Meanwhile...
Ashar was burning.
Literally.
The cursed battlefield between worlds was soaked in etherfire — a sentient flame that consumed guilt and spat out hallucinations.
Theron and Kaelen fought phantoms of the Thorn Order, slicing through smoke and memories.
But Riven—
He stood frozen.
Because before him stood Aelira.
Not the one he knew. Not Seraiya either.
But a younger version, cloaked in twilight, her eyes still full of wonder and pain. She stepped closer, her voice trembling:
"Do you regret it? Loving me?"
Riven's heart clenched.
She wasn't real.
But gods, she looked like her.
"You said you'd follow me anywhere, Riven. Even into ruin."
"I did," he said hoarsely. "And I will again."
Then she smiled.
And vanished.
The real Aelira screamed — far off. Faint.But real.
They all heard it.
Kaelen raised his sword. "We're close."
Ashar looked toward the sound, flame rising again in his palms. "Then let's tear down whatever's holding her."
Riven didn't say anything.
But he moved first.
And this time, the shadows parted for him.
—
Back in the throne room, Aelira stared at the man who had once been hers.
Dark-haired. Eyes like cut obsidian.No warmth. No mercy.
Zeyr said, "You buried him alive. Sealed him in the Mirror Vault with a kiss."
The man stepped forward.
"Aelira," he said. "My Queen."
Her throat tightened. "You shouldn't exist."
He smiled. "Neither should you."
And the room shattered into silver.