The ancient stone hummed with magic.
Aelira stood at its center, the night sky open above her like a cathedral of stars. The temple ruins surrounding them pulsed faintly, reacting to her heartbeat.
Kaelen stood opposite her, silent, his hands open.
The air crackled.
"This is a soul-binding ritual," he said quietly. "Are you sure?"
"No," she whispered. "But I trust you."
The Tether Rite was older than the kingdoms. Once used to bind battle-souls and empresses to their chosen protectors. It exposed everything — memories, thoughts, true names.
If they failed, their minds would fracture.
If they succeeded… their souls would be forever linked.
The wind stopped.
Aelira stepped forward and placed her hand in his.
The magic surged.
Flash.
A child — Seraiya — crying as flames devoured a golden tower.Kaelen, younger, kneeling as she crowned him her Sword.A kiss in the rain.A betrayal in the snow.
Aelira gasped, stumbling.
Kaelen held her steady, his voice calm.
"Don't run from it. I'm still here."
Flash.
Her laughter, dark and terrible, as she unleashed the Starfire on a city that defied her rule.Kaelen standing by, silent, ashamed — but never leaving.
Tears streamed down her cheeks. "Why didn't you stop me?"
His voice was soft. "Because I loved you too much to be the one who broke you."
The Rite shimmered.
Their bodies didn't move, but their spirits entwined — tethering light to shadow, pain to healing. Aelira's heart cracked open, raw and real.
And she felt Kaelen's truth.
His loyalty wasn't born of duty.It came from watching her fall — and wanting to be the hand that helped her rise again.
The stone beneath them blazed white.
Their bond snapped into place like a thread pulled tight across lifetimes.
When the light faded, Aelira fell to her knees, breathless.
Kaelen knelt with her, forehead to forehead.
"I saw you," she whispered. "All of you."
He closed his eyes. "And you still let me stay."
From the shadows, Riven turned away.
And in the frozen north, the man with golden eyes laughed.
"The tether has begun. She's opening the gate without even knowing."
He placed the black crown atop his head.
"Let the Starfall begin."