The breach widened with a scream of tearing magic, spilling black mist through the throne chamber. The air thickened, heavy with the scent of ancient spells.
Kael raised his lightning-charged hands.
Mira began to chant.
Selene grabbed Damon's arm, trembling.
But Damon… he went still.
As if he recognized the energy pouring from the breach.
A cold female voice drifted through the darkness.
"Did you miss me… my creation?"
The mist twisted, taking shape.
And then she stepped out.
A tall, breathtakingly terrifying woman with silver hair that moved like living moonlight. Her skin shimmered with runes carved by spells that predated kingdoms. Her eyes glowed with galaxies, ancient and cruel.
She looked like a goddess.
She looked like a nightmare.
She looked like the past Damon never speaks of.
Mira gasped and dropped to her knees.
Kael froze, lightning flickering out.
Even the shadows bowed.
Selene whispered, "She's… she's a witch?"
Damon's voice broke like a storm.
"No. She is the witch."
Aethriona smiled.
The same smile she wore thousands of years ago when she performed the forbidden ritual that created him.
"The first witch.
The Elder Witch.
Your maker."
Aethriona Reveals Herself
She spread her arms as if greeting an old friend.
"Damon… my Firstborn. The masterpiece I carved from shadow and blood."
Damon's jaw clenched.
"You died."
Aethriona laughed — soft, chilling.
"No, my creation. Elders do not die. We sleep. We watch. And when the world dares to forget us… we return."
Aethriona stepped forward, and every rune on her body ignited.
"You were supposed to be my weapon," she continued, voice dripping with pride and anger.
"My perfect creation. My immortal proof of power."
Damon spat the words back at her.
"I was supposed to be your slave."
Aethriona tilted her head.
"Semantics."
Jarek stepped out from the shadows, bowing deeply.
"I did as you commanded, Elder. I brought him here."
Aethriona didn't even glance at him.
"You did," she said softly.
Then she flicked her fingers.
Jarek was slammed into the wall with bone-breaking force, screaming as blood spilled down the stones.
Selene let out a cry of horror.
Aethriona sighed, bored.
"Unfortunately, service does not equal usefulness."
Damon's True Power Awakens
Damon stepped forward, shadows rising like a storm around him.
"If you touch her—"
Aethriona smirked.
"Ah yes… the human girl. The reason your power fractures. The reason your heart beats."
Damon's shadows flared.
Aethriona watched him like a proud, vicious mother.
"I didn't give you the ability to love. Fascinating that you developed it on your own."
Then her eyes sharpened.
"But love makes you weak."
Lightning tore through the chamber as Kael attacked from the side, screaming, "Get away from them!"
Aethriona didn't turn.
She simply lifted a finger.
Kael's lightning dissolved into silver dust.
His body followed a second later—
Not destroyed…
But frozen in midair like a statue.
Mira tried to cast a protective charm, but Aethriona's gaze snapped toward her.
"Little witch," she said, almost affectionately,
"You play with sparks. I command fire."
A wave of ancient magic blasted Mira across the room.
Damon roared.
Shadows wrapped around him, forming wings, claws, a crown of midnight.
His true form — the Original — manifested.
Aethriona smiled wider.
"Yes," she whispered.
"That's the power I forged."
The Heart-Stopping Moment
Damon struck first — a blur of darkness.
Aethriona dissolved into smoke.
Reformed behind him.
And drove her hand straight through Damon's chest.
Selene screamed.
Aethriona withdrew her hand — not with blood…
…but holding a pulsing shard of pure, living darkness.
Damon collapsed to one knee.
Aethriona lifted the shard.
"Behold, child," she whispered to Selene,
"the Void Core — the heart I created. The heart that gives him immortality."
Selene's breath hitched.
"You… you made his heart?"
Aethriona smiled.
"I made everything he is."
The breach roared behind her, widening.
Aethriona watched it with pride.
"And now, my creation returns to me.
As he always should have."