The Outlands were nothing like Nocturne.
Where the city rose in steel and shadows, the Outlands stretched wide and barren — endless plains of cracked earth and abandoned ruins, dotted with rusted train cars half-buried in the sand. The wind howled across the wasteland like a grieving spirit.
Lira pulled Kael's coat tighter around herself.
The cold didn't bite like magic — it bit like loneliness.
"How far?" she asked quietly.
"Another mile," Kael said, scanning the horizon. "The rebels hide in the husks of the old solar farms."
Lira followed his gaze. Tall, fractured solar panels rose in the distance like broken mirrors reflecting a dead sky.
"You sure they'll help us?" she murmured.
"No," Kael said honestly.
"But we don't have a choice."
---
The Hidden Camp
As they neared the shards of old machinery, Kael slowed. Shadows twitched around him, reacting to unseen magic.
"Stay behind me," he whispered.
Lira obeyed — but stayed close enough that her shoulder brushed his. Electricity shot through the bond at the contact. Kael stiffened but didn't move away.
A metallic click echoed.
Lira froze.
Kael lifted his hand.
And three figures emerged from behind a fallen turbine with weapons drawn — two carrying ion rifles, one holding a staff crackling with blue runes.
The woman in front — tall, sharp-eyed, hair braided with copper threads — studied them with cold suspicion.
"State your names," she ordered. "And your allegiance."
Kael stepped forward. "Kael Varyn."
All three flinched.
One muttered, "The Heir…"
The leader raised her staff sharply.
"You're supposed to be dead."
"Unfortunately not," Kael said dryly.
Her gaze flicked to Lira.
"And her?"
Lira straightened. "Lira Ashen."
Something unreadable passed over the woman's face.
Then her eyes narrowed. "Discard your weapons."
Kael lifted his empty hands. "Don't carry any."
"Liar."
A bolt of blue magic shot toward him—
Lira reacted instinctively.
She stepped in front of Kael, raising her hand — a blast of blue flame intercepted the spell, disintegrating it mid-air.
The rebels stumbled back, staring at her.
Kael caught her wrist.
"Lira—"
She shook her head fiercely. "I'm not letting them hurt you."
The leader stared between them, eyes widening.
"…It's true. The bond."
Lira stiffened.
Kael narrowed his eyes. "You know about it?"
The woman lowered her staff.
"My name is Seris. Commander of the Outlands Rebellion."
Her expression softened—
but only when she looked at Lira.
"You've brought the Vessel."
Lira flinched visibly.
Kael stepped forward, warning in his voice.
"Call her that again, and we're done here."
Seris blinked slowly.
"…Interesting."
She turned and gestured for them to follow.
And though she didn't say it out loud, Lira felt it through the air:
They weren't safe here.
Not yet.
---
Inside the Rebellion
The camp was larger than it looked — hidden inside the collapsed solar facility. Makeshift tents dotted the shadows, people huddled around generators, weapons piled in the corners. The rebels watched Kael and Lira with equal parts awe and suspicion.
Seris led them to a long metal table lit by a single flickering lamp.
"We've been waiting for you," she said.
Kael scoffed. "I'm not here for prophecy."
Seris smirked. "No. You're here because your father is raising an army."
Lira inhaled sharply. "You've heard?"
"Heard?" Seris leaned forward. "Child, the Council's preparing something we've feared for decades. Aric Varyn is planning a cleansing."
Kael stiffened. "What kind?"
Seris met his eyes.
"The kind your mother once led."
Silence.
Lira's fingers curled into Kael's sleeve. She felt him tense — rage, fear, something darker.
Seris studied Lira.
"Your magic is unstable. You're on the edge of awakening fully."
Lira swallowed. "I'm trying—"
"It's not a question of trying. It's a question of whether you survive it."
Kael slammed his hand on the table. Shadows flared.
"Enough," he snapped. "She isn't a weapon. She isn't your prophecy. She's not—"
Seris interrupted quietly.
"I didn't say she was a weapon, Heir. I said she's dying."
Lira froze.
Kael went still.
Seris continued, voice steady:
"The bond is the only thing keeping her soul anchored. But as long as your father summons the Queen's echo through the leyline ritual, Lira's stability will deteriorate."
Lira's voice trembled.
"So I'm… fading?"
Seris nodded.
"Slowly. Painfully. Unless we sever the Queen's connection to you."
Kael's shadow exploded behind him.
"No," he growled. "No one touches her bond."
Seris didn't flinch.
"She'll die if we don't, boy."
The word boy hit Kael like a slap, but before he could speak, Lira touched his arm.
Her voice was a whisper.
"I want to hear her."
Kael turned toward her sharply. "Lira—"
She squeezed his wrist.
Her eyes were soft but determined.
"For once… let me choose about myself."
Kael's breath caught.
He stepped back, fists shaking.
Seris continued.
"There is a way to stabilize you."
Lira stood straighter.
"How?"
Seris pointed at Kael.
"With him."
Kael blinked. "What?"
Seris leaned in.
"The bond was forged incomplete. Only half the ritual was done in the sanctum. That's why it hurts you both."
She looked at Lira.
"And why you feel everything he does."
Kael's throat tightened. "What are you saying?"
Seris' eyes flicked between them — serious, grave, unflinching.
"You must complete the bond."
Silence dropped like a blade.
Lira's cheeks flushed—
Kael's jaw clenched—
even the shadows stilled.
"…Complete it how?" Lira whispered.
Seris folded her hands.
"Blood. Magic. Choice."
Her voice dropped.
"And intimacy."
Lira's heart stuttered.
Kael's breath hitched.
Seris continued, tone clinical:
"The Blood Oath becomes stable when both souls fully open to each other. Mind. Heart. Magic. It requires absolute trust and full emotional merging. And yes — physical closeness deepens the binding."
Lira went pale.
Kael's hands curled into fists.
Seris' gaze softened — just barely.
"I'm not talking about pleasure. I'm talking about connection. Vulnerability. A joining of souls strong enough to drown out the Queen's echo."
Kael exhaled shakily.
"That bond… is dangerous."
"More dangerous if incomplete," Seris countered.
Lira whispered, "And if we don't?"
Seris held her eyes.
"You'll lose yourself. He'll lose control. And the Queen… takes the soul left standing."
Lira swayed.
Kael caught her instantly.
Seris rose, voice cold again.
"You have one night to decide. The moon bleeds again tomorrow."
She turned and left them alone in the tent.
---
Silence
Lira sat down on the edge of the cot, staring at her hands.
They trembled.
Kael knelt in front of her, hands resting gently on her knees.
"Lira," he whispered, "look at me."
She lifted her gaze slowly — afraid of what she'd see.
Kael's expression shattered her.
He looked terrified. Protective. Torn apart.
"This isn't about… intimacy," he said softly.
"This is about your life."
Her voice shook.
"And your soul."
Kael nodded once.
"Then we do it. Whatever it takes."
Lira's chest tightened.
Kael's willingness—his devotion—hit her harder than any prophecy.
But she whispered, fragile:
"What if I hurt you?"
Kael leaned closer.
"We hurt together. That's the bond."
The air between them heated—
slow
tender
dangerous.
Kael brushed a strand of hair from her face, fingertips trembling.
"We don't have to decide right now," he said, voice rough. "Not until you're ready."
Her breath hitched.
She stared at him—
his storm-dark eyes
his bruised face
his trembling restraint.
And she realized… she already trusted him more than anyone alive.
The bond pulsed warm.
She leaned in—
lips inches from his—
and whispered:
"I'm already ready."
Kael closed his eyes—
a shudder raking his spine—
as if her words broke him open.
He touched her cheek.
"Lira…"
Their foreheads touched.
Their breaths mingled.
But before the moment could complete—
before they could fall into each other—
A frantic shout echoed outside:
"Commander Seris! Scouts returning—
THE COUNCIL FOUND US!"
Kael rose instantly, shadows swirling like a storm.
Lira grabbed his hand, sparks flaring beneath her skin.
The choice wasn't gone.
The moment wasn't over.
But now—
war had come to the Outlands.
And their bond would decide whether they lived through the night.