The Dreamer and the Queen

The gates of Lilith's sanctuary opened before him not with invitation—but with acknowledgment.

They groaned under the weight of shadow and flame as Vael stormed through the obsidian archway. The very walls pulsed with the dark heartbeat of the Abyss, as if sensing the war now brewing in his soul.

Lilith was waiting.

Not at her throne.

But standing barefoot in the black garden behind it, her midnight hair falling in loose waves, her golden eyes alight with quiet triumph.

She didn't flinch when Vael approached.

"You saved him," Vael snarled, his voice low, thick with rage. "You killed Asmodan."

Lilith raised her hand, palm open and unthreatening.

"I did," she answered. Calm. Impossibly calm.

Vael's aura exploded, wings of black runes flaring around him like blades of darkness. "Why?"

Lilith smiled softly, stepping around the altar at the center of the garden.

"Because he is not meant to die," she said. "Not yet."

"Why?" His voice was sharp. "Why kill Asmodan yourself?"

She tilted her head slightly, voice softer than expected. "Because he was going to hurt something… precious to you.

Vael's breath caught.

"He wasn't just yours to fight, Vael," Lilith went on, slowly standing. Her long hair shimmered like liquid shadow, her bare feet brushing the stone like silk. "He was a disease. One I let fester too long in this realm. And when he reached for the angel, when he tried to consume what did not belong to him—" her voice sharpened, eyes flashing, "—he forfeited his right to life."

Vael's runes pulsed again.

"Where is he?" he asked.

Lilith stepped aside, gesturing gently toward the right corridor—one lined with dark flame and carved roses along the walls. "Safe. Asleep. The magic Asmodan used on him was… invasive. Even in death, it left its mark."

Vael clenched his jaw.

"He hasn't woken?" he asked.

Lilith shook her head. "No. But he is healing. Slowly. You can go to him, if you want."

He hesitated.

"He'll sleep for hours," she added. "But he's whole. He's yours."

Vael didn't respond. He turned without another word and walked into the corridor she indicated, the darkness swallowing his silhouette until only the echo of his steps remained.

Lilith waited until the silence returned fully.

Then, behind the nearest pillar, the shadows shifted.

And Varasha emerged.

Silent. Beautiful. Watchful.

Her eyes flickered with something sharp.

"You called me, Mother?

Lilith nodded slowly.

Varasha crossed her arms. "It's done. As you asked. I watched him. I made sure he was never truly alone. I guided Vael when he lost control. I stayed close, even when it hurt." Her jaw tightened. "But you never told me why."

Lilith smiled, walking back to her throne and placing one hand lightly on the stone armrest.

"You killed one of our own," Varasha continued, voice rising. "You murdered Asmodan with your own hands. And not for the sake of Kur'thaal, not even for your children. But for him." Her golden eyes narrowed. "For the angel."

Lilith did not respond immediately.

Instead, she looked to the ceiling, the endless, blackened dome above them lit by floating lanterns of soul flame.

Then—quietly—

"I didn't save him for the angel."

Varasha's brows furrowed.

Lilith smiled faintly. "I saved him for Vael."

Varasha blinked.

"I've never seen Vael bleed for anything," Lilith continued. "Not like this. Not in all the years since I pulled him from the edge of madness. But he bleeds for Lioren." She turned her gaze to the dark corridor where Vael had vanished. "And that is something I can use."

Varasha stepped forward, her voice cautious. "Use… for what?"

Lilith's golden eyes gleamed. "The angel is not just a light. He is a conduit. A fallen star with his power still intact, with the purity of Heaven and the weight of mortal desire etched into him. He is becoming something… impossible."

"And that's why you kept him alive?" Varasha asked.

"No," Lilith said softly. "That's why I'm going to use him."

Varasha's breath stilled.

Lilith stepped down from her throne and approached her, her voice like a velvet knife.

"The realms were never meant to stay divided. We've been living in exile for millennia. Scraping the walls of the Abyss while they shine above us like kings."

She leaned in.

"But with Lioren, I can open the gate. Not just a portal. Not just a tear. A union."

Her smile deepened.

"He can amplify power itself. If he loves Vael—if that love anchors him here—I can use it to bridge the realms. Permanently."

Varasha's voice dropped. "You want to merge Asphodel and Kur'thaal."

"I want to end the war," Lilith whispered. "On our terms."

"And what if he says no?" Varasha asked.

Lilith turned back toward the throne, her smile never fading.

"Then I wait," she said. "Because he will say yes."

"How can you be sure?"

"Because," Lilith said, pausing as she looked down the corridor toward the chamber where the angel slept, "I'm not asking Azarel to break the realms."

Her golden eyes glittered.

"I'm asking Lioren."