KAIDA POV
Golden light filled the room like a miniature sun.
I threw myself sideways as the blast hit where I'd been standing. The floor exploded, sending wood splinters flying. Finn yanked me behind an overturned table while Lyric's sonic scream shattered the windows.
"STOP!" Azrael's voice boomed with power that rattled my bones. He stepped between us and his brother, shadows gathering around him like armor. "Samael, don't."
The golden god—Samael, God of Beginnings—laughed. It sounded like bells and breaking glass. "Don't? You bond yourself to a mortal using forbidden magic, and you expect me to just leave?" He tilted his head, studying me like I was an interesting bug. "She's burning up from the inside. I can see it. The bond is killing her slowly."
"That's none of your concern," Azrael said coldly.
"Everything you do is my concern. We're twins, remember?" Samael's golden eyes narrowed. "Or have you forgotten? Five hundred years hiding in this dying world, and you couldn't even send a message to say you were still alive."
Through the bond, I felt Azrael's emotions—guilt, anger, and something that felt like old grief. These two had history. Bad history.
"I stayed to do my duty," Azrael said quietly. "Someone had to guide the souls."
"And look where duty got you." Samael gestured at me. "So desperate to escape that you're willing to trap an innocent girl in your place. Very noble, brother."
"Innocent?" I stood up despite Finn trying to hold me back. "I broke into his temple and stole his crown. I knew the risks."
Samael's laugh was sharp. "Did you? Did you know that crown would fuse with your skull? That you'd feel every death in the Realms? That in twenty-eight days—" He checked an invisible watch. "—twenty-seven days, nineteen hours now—you'll lose everything that makes you human?"
Each word hit like a hammer. But I refused to show weakness in front of this god.
"I know now," I said firmly. "And I'm going to break the curse."
"How adorable." Samael's smile was cruel. "She thinks she can steal from Seraphine, the Nightmare Queen, and the Architect. Three of the most dangerous beings alive." He looked at Azrael. "You didn't tell her, did you?"
"Tell me what?" Ice filled my stomach.
Azrael wouldn't meet my eyes. Through the bond, I felt his shame.
"The curse can't be broken," Samael said gleefully. "Not really. Oh, you can steal the name-pieces and perform the ritual. But there's a cost, little thief. Speaking a god's true name while bonded to them doesn't just break the connection—it kills you both. You'll die as the divine power rips out of you. He'll die because he's too far gone to survive without it."
The room spun. "You lied to me."
"I didn't lie," Azrael said quietly. "I just didn't mention all the details."
"All the details?" I wanted to hit him. "You mean the detail where HELPING YOU KILLS ME?"
"It's better than the alternative!" Azrael finally looked at me, and his star-filled eyes were desperate. "If the bond completes, you become me. Forever. Do you understand? Forever means watching everyone you love die. Finn in three years. Lyric in forty-seven. Your sister Mira eventually. Everyone. And you'll be there to guide their souls, feeling their last moments, carrying their memories. For eternity."
His words hung in the air like poison.
"So my choices are die now or die slowly over forever?" My voice cracked. "Those are terrible choices!"
"They're the only choices." Azrael's voice was raw. "I'm sorry. I truly am. But I've lived this existence for five hundred years, and I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy."
"Apparently you'd wish it on a thief you just met," I shot back.
Through the bond, his pain hit me like a wave. He wasn't lying about the suffering. Five hundred years of being alone, watching everyone he'd ever cared about turn to dust while he remained unchanged. The weight of it would crush anyone.
But that didn't make this right.
"There has to be another way," Finn said desperately. "Some other solution."
"There isn't." Samael's voice was almost kind now. "Trust me, I've looked. When gods make curses, they make them permanent. The only way out is through."
"Why are you here?" Rook asked suddenly. He'd been quiet this whole time, watching with those ageless eyes. "You came here for a reason beyond lecturing your brother."
Samael's smile returned. "Smart shapeshifter. Yes, I came for a reason." He looked at Azrael. "I came to offer you another choice, brother. Come with me to the divine planes. Abandon this mortal, let the crown consume her, and return home. Our siblings miss you. I miss you."
"You want me to let her die," Azrael said flatly.
"She's going to die anyway. At least this way, you survive." Samael's golden eyes softened. "Please, Az. Five hundred years is long enough. Come home."
The room held its breath.
I felt Azrael's emotions through the bond—temptation, guilt, exhaustion, and underneath it all, that desperate desire to just rest. To stop carrying the weight of death.
He could do it. He could abandon me right now, and I'd become Death in twenty-seven days, and he'd be free.
"No," Azrael said quietly.
Samael's face hardened. "What?"
"I said no. I won't abandon her." Azrael moved closer to me, and through the bond, I felt his resolve strengthen. "She stole from me, yes. But she did it to save her sister. She risked everything for family. That's more courage than I've shown in centuries."
"You're choosing a mortal over your own brother?"
"I'm choosing to finish what I started." Azrael's voice was firm now. "We'll break the curse. We'll find a way to survive the ritual. And if we can't—" He looked at me, and something passed between us through the bond. "—then at least we tried."
Samael's expression twisted with hurt and rage. "You'll regret this."
"I've regretted many things in five hundred years," Azrael said quietly. "This won't be one of them."
Golden light exploded again, but this time it was Samael disappearing, not attacking. His final words echoed through the room: "When you're both dying from that ritual, remember I offered you a way out."
Then he was gone.
The silence that followed felt heavy enough to crush.
"Well," Lyric said shakily. "That was terrifying."
I turned to Azrael. Through the bond, I felt everything—his guilt, his determination, his fear that he'd just made the worst decision of his long existence.
"You should have taken his offer," I said quietly.
"Probably."
"Why didn't you?"
Azrael was quiet for a long moment. "Because five hundred years ago, I chose duty over love. I chose responsibility over happiness. I chose to stay and guide souls while my entire family left for the divine planes." His star-eyes met mine. "Every choice I made was about doing the right thing at the cost of my own needs. And you know what? It destroyed me. Slowly. Completely."
He stepped closer, and I could feel his exhaustion like a physical weight.
"So maybe this is a selfish choice," he continued. "Maybe helping you is just another way of helping myself escape. But at least this time, I'm not choosing duty. I'm choosing..." He trailed off.
"Choosing what?" I whispered.
"Hope." The word sounded foreign in his mouth, like he'd forgotten how to say it. "Hope that maybe, just maybe, there's a third option we haven't found yet. Hope that we're both clever enough to cheat death—even if one of us IS Death."
Something warm bloomed in my chest. Not my emotion—his. Through the bond, I felt what he wouldn't say out loud: he cared what happened to me. After five hundred years of isolation, this strange, forced connection had reminded him what it felt like to care about someone.
"Okay," I said. "Then we find the third option. We steal your name-pieces, we break the curse, and we both survive."
"That's impossible," Finn pointed out.
"Good thing I specialize in impossible heists." I managed a shaky smile. "Though breaking a divine curse might be my hardest job yet."
Rook cleared his throat. "There's something else we need to discuss. If Samael found you this quickly, others will too. Gods, divine beings, anyone who can sense the bond."
"He's right," Azrael said grimly. "The bond is like a beacon. Every being with divine power can feel it now—Death sharing his essence with a mortal. We've broken cosmic law."
"How much trouble are we in?" Lyric asked nervously.
"Enough that we need to move fast. Start the heists immediately." Azrael looked at each of them. "I won't force you to help. This is dangerous beyond anything you've faced before. If you want to walk away—"
"We're not walking away," Finn interrupted. "Kaida's family. We don't abandon family."
Lyric nodded. "Besides, someone needs to keep you two from killing each other before the curse does it for you."
Even Rook smiled slightly. "I haven't seen a heist this impossible in decades. It'll be educational."
Their loyalty made my throat tight. These people—my crew, my family—were risking everything for me.
Through the bond, I felt Azrael's surprise. He'd forgotten what loyalty looked like. What friendship felt like. Five hundred years alone, and he'd convinced himself he didn't deserve either.
"Thank you," he said quietly, and I felt how much those words cost him.
A sudden pain stabbed through my chest. Another death—a woman in a fire, screaming. I gasped, doubling over.
Azrael caught me, his cold hands steadying. "Breathe. Let it pass through you, don't hold onto it."
The pain faded, leaving me hollow.
"Twenty-seventh death today," I whispered.
"I know. I feel them too." His voice was soft. "But you're handling it better than I did my first week. I didn't leave my temple for three months."
"Lucky me," I said bitterly.
My communication stone suddenly blazed hot in my pocket. I pulled it out—the one connected to Mira. It was glowing blood-red, which meant emergency.
"Mira!" I activated it immediately. "Mira, what's wrong?"
Static crackled. Then my sister's voice came through, terrified: "Kai—the debt—it's not real—I found proof—"
"What? Mira, slow down—"
"The Cartel lied! The debt's been paid for two years! They're keeping me prisoner for something else, something about Mom and Dad's research—"
A man's voice cut in, smooth and cruel: "That's enough, little bird."
"Vex!" I shouted. "Vex, if you hurt her—"
"You'll what, little thief?" The Cartel leader laughed. "I heard interesting rumors. Something about you stealing a crown? Bonding with Death himself?" His voice dropped to a purr. "Bring me that divine power, Kaida. Bring me Death's crown, or I'll make your sister's death last for days."
The stone went dead.
I stared at it, rage and terror warring inside me.
"He knows," I whispered. "Vex knows about the bond. And he wants it for himself."
Azrael's face went pale. "If a blood mage gains access to Death's power—"
"He becomes immortal," Rook finished grimly. "He can decide who lives and dies. He becomes unstoppable."
"We have to save Mira," I said desperately. "We have to—"
"We can't," Azrael interrupted. "Not yet. We're not strong enough. If we face Vex now, we'll lose, and he'll take the crown's power anyway."
"So what do we do?"
Azrael's jaw tightened. "We start the heists. We steal my name-pieces and break the bond before Vex figures out how to steal the power himself." His star-eyes met mine. "And then we rescue your sister and destroy the Crimson Cartel once and for all."
Through the bond, I felt his determination—and his fear. Not for himself. For me. For Mira. For what would happen if we failed.
"How long do we have?" Finn asked.
"Vex is a blood mage. He'll need time to research how to steal divine power." Rook calculated quickly. "Maybe two weeks. Three if we're lucky."
I looked at my countdown: 27 DAYS, 18 HOURS, 44 MINUTES.
We had to pull off three impossible heists, break a divine curse, save my sister, and stop a blood mage from becoming a god—all in less than a month.
"Well," I said with a laugh that sounded slightly insane. "At least it won't be boring."
Azrael almost smiled. "Welcome to my life, little thief. Where everything's impossible and nothing ever ends."
Outside, thunder rumbled despite the clear sky. Through the bond, I felt other presences awakening—gods, monsters, things that had noticed the divine beacon we'd become.
They were coming for us.
All of them.