The Price of Secret

Riven stared at the woman before him, his pulse thundering in his ears.

She looked exactly as he remembered—wild golden eyes, a sharp smile that promised both pleasure and destruction, and the scent of blood lingering on her skin.

His voice was hoarse when he finally spoke. “You’re dead.”

The woman—Elaris, his first love and his greatest betrayal—laughed.

“Did you really think death would be enough to keep me away?” she whispered, stepping closer. The dim glow of the underground chamber flickered across her features, making her look even more like a specter.

Riven’s hands curled into fists. He wanted to reach out. To touch her. But he knew better.

“You’re an illusion,” he said, gritting his teeth. “A trick.”

She tilted her head, smirking. “Does it matter?”

Pain lanced through him as memories surfaced—

The nights they had spent tangled in stolen moments.

The way she had whispered his name like a prayer.

The moment he had been forced to let her die.

Riven swallowed, his throat tight. “Why are you here?”

Elaris circled him, her fingers brushing his jaw. Her touch was cold, too cold for someone alive.

“To offer you a choice,” she murmured. “You think you have all the answers, don’t you? That you’re fighting for the right cause?”

Riven narrowed his eyes. “And what cause is that?”

She grinned. “Oh, love, you don’t even know, do you?”

Before he could react, she pressed a hand to his forehead.

A searing pain tore through him as his mind was ripped open.

Memories that were not his own flooded in.

A dark throne. A burning city. A woman standing at the center of it all, Elara—but not.

She wore a crown of shadows, and at her feet lay two bodies.

One was Kaelen. The other—

Riven’s own corpse.

Secrets Beneath the Palace

Elara’s fingers traced the ancient carvings on the stone walls as she and Kaelen descended deeper beneath the palace.

The Truthkeeper had led them here, but he refused to explain what they were about to find.

“Some things must be seen to be understood,” he had said cryptically before vanishing into the darkness.

Kaelen walked beside her, tension in his shoulders. “I don’t like this,” he muttered.

Elara glanced at him. “That makes two of us.”

They stepped into a vast underground catacomb, its walls lined with ancient murals. Scenes of war, of magic, of kings and queens lost to history.

At the center of the chamber stood a pedestal, a book resting atop it.

Elara’s heart skipped a beat.

The book pulsed with magic—dark and ancient.

Kaelen reached out first, but before his fingers could touch the cover, a surge of power exploded from it, knocking them both back.

Elara hit the ground hard, gasping.

A deep, resonant voice filled the chamber.

“The one who seeks the truth must first pay its price.”

The shadows twisted—and from them, figures emerged.

Elara froze as she recognized them.

Her father.

Her mother.

And a version of herself she had never seen before—one with eyes that burned like silver fire.

Kaelen pulled her back, his voice sharp. “Elara—those aren’t real.”

But the illusions spoke.

“Choose,” they whispered in unison.

The ground beneath them shook, and the chamber plunged into darkness.

Riven’s world shattered as the vision burned into his mind.

The throne.

The destruction.

Elara standing above his lifeless body, crowned in darkness.

The image seared into his soul, leaving him breathless and trembling.

Then, as suddenly as it had come, the vision vanished.

Riven gasped, stumbling back, his head pounding like a war drum. The chamber around him came into focus once more—Elaris watching him with an unreadable expression.

“Do you see now?” she murmured. “Do you understand what’s at stake?”

Riven fought for control, his breath ragged. His instincts screamed that this was another trick—an illusion meant to break him.

And yet… the vision had felt too real. Too vivid.

“Elara will bring ruin.”

“You will die at her feet.”

He clenched his fists, trying to steady himself. “Why are you showing me this?”

Elaris stepped closer, her golden eyes gleaming. “Because you need to make a choice.”

“A choice?” His voice was sharper than he intended. “Between what?”

She smiled—a slow, knowing smile that sent a chill down his spine.

“Between saving her… and stopping her.”

Riven’s chest tightened. “Elara isn’t—”

“Isn’t what?” Elaris cut in. “Isn’t capable of this? Isn’t the girl in the vision? Do you really believe that?”

Riven opened his mouth to argue, but the words wouldn’t come.

Because a part of him—the part that had seen her power firsthand, had witnessed the storm brewing within her—knew the truth.

Elara was changing.

And if the vision was right…

“She will be the death of us all.”

The Weight of a Choice

Elara’s body tensed as the chamber around her shook.

Kaelen’s grip on her arm tightened. “Stay close,” he muttered.

The shadows around them writhed, shifting like living things. The three figures—her parents and the silver-eyed version of herself—stood unmoving, their expressions unreadable.

“Choose.”

The voice echoed through the chamber once more, sending a chill down her spine.

Elara’s gaze flickered to Kaelen, searching for an answer, but his expression was unreadable.

The book on the pedestal pulsed with magic, its power pressing against her mind, demanding attention.

“What does it want from me?”

Her fingers twitched at her sides. Instinct screamed at her to turn back, to leave this place before it swallowed them whole.

But she couldn’t.

This book—this trial—was tied to the prophecy. She could feel it.

Taking a slow breath, she stepped forward.

Kaelen’s fingers brushed against hers—a silent warning, a plea to be careful.

She gave the smallest nod before reaching out and touching the book.

A blinding force ripped through her.

Suddenly, she was somewhere else.

A Glimpse of the Future

The world around her was bathed in fire.

She stood at the top of a ruined castle, her hands stained with blood.

Below, the battlefield stretched into the distance—bodies littered the ground.

A voice called her name.

She turned, heart pounding—and saw Kaelen.

He was kneeling before her, his sword at his side, his breathing ragged.

“Elara,” he whispered, his voice raw. “Please.”

Something inside her ached, but she didn’t move.

Then she saw him—Riven, lying motionless in the rubble.

Her heart lurched.

A shadow moved beside her, and she glanced up.

A man stood at her side, his face obscured by darkness. His hand rested on her shoulder, possessive and unyielding.

“You were never meant to love them,” he murmured.

“You were meant to rule.”

A sharp pain tore through her chest—and in an instant, the vision shattered.

Elara gasped, staggering back into reality.

Her pulse raced. Her hands trembled.

Kaelen caught her before she collapsed, his voice sharp. “Elara, what happened?”

She struggled for breath, her mind still reeling.

“What did I just see?”

But deep down, she already knew.

It wasn’t just a vision.

It was a warning.

And if it was true…

She was destined to become a monster.