CHAPTER 11: THE SHADOW THAT WHISPERS

Evelynn's breath came in ragged gasps as she clutched the thick velvet of her cloak, her knuckles turning white against the rich fabric. The corridors of the Dragon Lord's castle stretched before her, their twisting paths feeling more like a labyrinth than a place of residence. The torches lining the stone walls flickered erratically, casting grotesque shadows that seemed to whisper her name.

Darius's words from the previous night still echoed in her mind. When the curse awakens, it will consume everything.

The weight of his voice had pressed against her like an unseen force, and she could feel its lingering effects even now. She had spent the night tossing and turning, the burden of her fate pressing down on her with each passing second. The prophecy hung over her like an unrelenting storm cloud, threatening to break open at any moment.

A sudden wind howled through the open hallway, sending a shiver down her spine. But the castle was enclosed—there was no source for the wind. It was unnatural.

You will be the one to save me… or the one to end me.

She swallowed hard, pressing forward despite the unease gnawing at her gut. Every step felt like walking deeper into the unknown, into something that had been waiting for her far longer than she had been aware of its existence.

Then she heard it—a whisper. Faint, yet clear.

"Evelynn..."

She froze, her heart slamming against her ribs. The voice slithered through the air like silk, curling around her ears in a way that made her blood turn to ice. It was not Darius. It was something else.

She turned slowly, her fingers tightening around the dagger hidden beneath the folds of her cloak. The hallway was empty, save for the flickering torches and the heavy silence that followed.

"Who's there?" Her voice barely broke above a whisper.

A chilling laugh answered her.

The shadows at the edge of the corridor trembled, twisting unnaturally. The darkness seemed to ripple and shift, as if something lurked within, watching, waiting.

Then, from the abyss of shadows, a figure emerged.

Tall, cloaked in a darkness that swallowed even the dim torchlight, the figure stood just beyond the reach of her sight. Its presence sent an immediate pulse of warning through her veins. It wasn't human. It wasn't entirely there.

"You seek to break the curse… But do you truly understand what that means?" The voice slithered again, deep and unsettling. "Do you understand the cost?"

Evelynn's grip on her dagger tightened. "Who are you?"

The figure took a step forward, and for a brief moment, the firelight caught the edge of a wicked, knowing smile.

"A messenger," it said. "One who has seen the fate that awaits you. One who has watched kings fall and kingdoms burn." The whisper turned colder, more intimate. "One who knows your greatest fear."

Evelynn's breath hitched. She would not let this thing, whatever it was, intimidate her. "I do not fear you."

The shadowed figure chuckled. "Oh, little queen, you should, for you stand on the edge of something far greater than you can comprehend. The curse is stirring, and soon, the Dragon King will have no choice but to surrender to it. And when he does…"

The torches flickered violently, the flames nearly extinguishing.

"You will either be his salvation… or his undoing."

A cold wind slammed into her, and in the next instant, the figure vanished, swallowed by the darkness as if it had never been there at all.

Evelynn staggered back, her pulse thundering in her ears. The shadows returned to their usual stillness, the castle as quiet as before. But the air still felt heavy, like unseen eyes remained watching her every move.

A choice.

She had known this from the moment she had been bound to Darius, but now, the weight of that knowledge pressed against her more than ever. Whatever had just spoken to her was no ordinary being. It knew things—things she herself was only beginning to grasp. And if what it said was true…

She turned and ran.

She needed answers.

She needed to find Darius.

The halls twisted before her as she raced toward his chamber, her feet barely making a sound against the stone floor. Her mind raced just as fast. Could she believe what she had just seen? Had it truly been real, or had the weight of the curse begun to twist her mind? She had read of spirits, of old magic lingering in the world, but never had she expected to encounter something so intimately tied to her fate.

Her hand slammed against the heavy wooden door to Darius's chambers, pushing it open without hesitation.

Darius stood by the window, his silver eyes reflecting the moonlight. He turned sharply at her entrance, concern immediately flashing across his face. "Evelynn? What's wrong?"

She struggled to catch her breath, her fingers trembling. "There was… someone. A shadow. It spoke to me."

His expression darkened instantly. He stepped toward her, his presence grounding yet tense. "What did it say?"

"It spoke of the curse," she whispered, her voice barely steady. "It said you will have no choice but to surrender to it. That I—" She swallowed hard. "That I will either be your salvation or your undoing."

Darius stiffened, his jaw tightening. He looked away for a moment as if fighting against something unspoken. "Then it has begun."

A chill ran down Evelynn's spine. "What has?"

He turned back to her, his gaze unreadable yet filled with something raw. "The curse is stirring, Evelynn. And now, it knows you are trying to fight it."

The weight of his words settled heavily between them. For the first time, she realized that whatever had spoken to her was not merely an observer—it was a warning. And the battle they had been bracing for was no longer in the distant future.

It had already begun.