The night after Lucian's warning felt longer than any before.
Asher sat by the faintly flickering candlelight, his thoughts spiraling. The crescent mark still faintly shimmered beneath his skin — sometimes burning, sometimes pulsing in rhythm with his heartbeat. Every so often, he caught a glimpse of crimson in his dreams — Lucian's eyes, watching, guarding.
Downstairs, Grandma *Elara* moved about quietly, humming the same old tune she always did when nervous. *Eli*, still half-asleep, mumbled from his room. The house felt almost safe.
Almost.
Then, the window rattled.
Once.
Twice.
Then a slow, deliberate knock.
Asher froze.
He could feel it — the same cold that had swept through the forest.
But this wasn't Lucian's presence. This was something darker.
"Asher?" his grandmother's voice quivered from the hall.
"Stay inside!" he whispered, rushing to the door.
The knock came again — louder this time, and the candle flickered out.
In the dark reflection of the windowpane, he saw it — "a figure cloaked in black", with eyes not crimson, but "hollow white".
Lucian appeared before the door even opened. The air split around him, his coat whipping as he materialized between Asher and the shadow outside. His eyes — deep **crimson** — glowed like embers.
"Stay back," he commanded.
The shadow hissed, its voice stretched thin, distorted.
"Her blood calls… we answer…"
Lucian's jaw clenched. "You shouldn't exist. Not outside her seal."
The creature lunged — and the air cracked like glass. Lucian moved faster than Asher's eyes could follow, intercepting the blow. His hand met the creature's throat, the clash sending a shock through the room.
The walls groaned under the weight of unseen power.
Asher stumbled back, watching as Lucian's fangs bared, his voice low and dangerous.
"Tell Amara her reach ends here."
The creature shrieked — and then dissolved into mist.
For a long moment, the only sound was Asher's ragged breathing.
Lucian turned to him, eyes dimming back to calm, though his voice was sharp with concern.
"She's growing stronger. That was only a fragment."
Asher swallowed hard. "A fragment?"
Lucian's gaze softened — just slightly. "Her servants are bound to her will. If one found you, others will follow."
Asher's heart pounded. "Then… what do we do?"
Lucian looked at the mark on his chest again, then at the trembling candlelight.
"We prepare," he said quietly. "And pray that when the blood calls again… you'll be ready to answer."
To be continued....