A story about a place that neither exists in maps or history books, this place was called Athame.

•••

"The root of every fear is the unknown, yet how can one fear what they cannot grasp? Tch... how misleading." His voice, deep and rough, sent an involuntary shiver through her as he closed the distance between them with deliberate steps, his presence suffocating in its intensity.

With a slow, predatory grace, his fingers brushed along her jaw, settling on a strand of her scarlet hair, his touch deceptively tender. "Knowing me will matter little," he whispered darkly, his breath warm against her skin. "For even in the shadows of uncertainty, you will come to fear... and desire me all the same."

•••

Aricia, born with extraordinary abilities in a world that fears anything out of the ordinary, was destined for a marriage alliance to secure peace between kingdoms. 

But on the day of her engagement, her entire family is slaughtered—by the very family she was meant to marry into. 

Grief-stricken and consumed by vengeance, Aricia swore to destroy those who betrayed her. She would wield the very power they had feared against them, seeking justice with no mercy. After years on the run, she found shelter within an elemental clan, hiding her abilities and keeping to the shadows.

But her carefully constructed peace shattered in a single moment. A burning touch, a chance encounter with his haunting gray eyes—an unknown force within her stirred, threatening to unravel her carefully guarded secrets and the fragile balance of magic, madness, and vengeance she had built....

Vengeance Through Passion

"I’m stuck in this place, and I’m powerless," Aricia announced, her voice carrying a mix of frustration and determination as she paced the room. Her scarlet hair shimmered in the faint light streaming through the narrow window, the shadows of the iron bars slashing across her pale face. 


Her mind, however, was elsewhere. ‘I almost got distracted, but he needs not worry. First, I must find my mother and her sword. Maybe, just maybe, the so-called generational power will awaken once I unsheathe her blade.’ 


Aricia let out a heavy sigh. Unlike other clans, the sorcerers of her bloodline had to endure phases—arduous trials—before their powers could fully manifest. The process was frustratingly slow and far from guaranteed. Gwen’s cryptic words came back to her now, words she had once dismissed with a scoff. 


Chapter 54| My Mother