JadedButCute

Taryn fights monsters. Lucien is one.

Season 1:
Forced to team up by the very council she’s made to serve, Taryn finds herself trapped with Lucien—a vampire with too many secrets and a smile that makes her blood run hot. In the midst of growing dangers, the two of them must work together to survive. But the closer they get, the harder it becomes to tell where the real threat lies—outside their walls, or between them.

Lucien knows better than to care. He’s spent years perfecting the art of detachment, but something about Taryn makes it impossible to stay indifferent. The fire she carries is fierce, dangerous—and every moment with her only stokes the flames higher.

Bound by circumstance and haunted by shadows neither of them can outrun, Taryn and Lucien are playing a game they can’t afford to lose. The fire between them grows hotter with every step, but giving in might cost them everything.

Some fires are meant to burn. Others consume. This one could destroy them both.

Season 2:
Framed for assassinations they didn’t commit, Taryn and Lucien are thrust into a deadly game where trust is scarce and betrayal lurks in every shadow. As the fragile peace between powerful factions begins to unravel, they must navigate a labyrinth of secrets and lies, uncovering dangerous truths about those who seek to control them.

As tensions rise, their bond is tested in ways neither anticipated, and their personal struggles threaten to fracture their fragile partnership. Against the backdrop of a brewing war, new allies and enemies emerge, challenging their notions of trust and loyalty. As the season hurtles toward its climactic revelations, Taryn and Lucien must decide what they are willing to sacrifice—and who they can rely on—in a world that seeks to tear them apart.

Season 2 is a story of survival, betrayal, and the unyielding strength found in the most unexpected places.

Season 3:
When safety is a fleeting memory and enemies circle ever closer, Taryn, Lucien, and Kah’el find themselves bound by necessity in a secluded forest haven. As mysterious threats prowl the shadows and signs of encroaching danger multiply, the trio works to fortify their defenses while grappling with unspoken tensions and buried truths.

Strange tracks near their clearing suggest a threat greater than any of them anticipated, forcing them into a delicate balance of survival and trust. For Taryn, every decision risks fracturing the fragile alliance that’s formed between them, as the boundaries of loyalty blur and their individual pasts clash with their shared present.

Season 3 is a tense, character-driven exploration of resilience and vulnerability, weaving quiet moments of connection with the ever-looming threat of a deadly unknown. In the end, it’s not only the beasts in the woods that must be faced, but the fears—and desires—they’ve long kept hidden.

The Fire We Feed

The cabin came back into view as Taryn returned from the stream, the weight of her earlier conversation with Lucien still lingering in her mind. She didn't head inside. Instead, she veered toward the clearing, taking her throwing knives from her belt. A set of targets made from crudely assembled wood and bark stood at the far end of the open space, the remnants of yesterday's practice still visible in the chipped and splintered surfaces.

Taryn squared her shoulders and took up position. The rhythm of throwing and retrieving her blades usually helped clear her head, but today her focus wavered. Her first throw sank into the outer edge of the target, far from its center. She clenched her jaw, retrieving the blade with a frustrated jerk.

She reset, her stance firm, and threw again. This time, the blade struck closer to the center, but not close enough to satisfy her. Her fingers tightened around the hilt of her remaining dagger as she prepared for another throw.

Chapter 70 - Pinned and Provoked