CHAPTER 20 Blood and Starlight

The air in the grand hall thickened, the tension suffocating as Lyra stared into the cold, golden eyes of her mother—Queen Evelyne. The woman who had disappeared from history, the queen everyone thought dead, now stood before her, draped in flowing black and silver robes, her presence crackling with dark celestial energy.

Alden shifted beside Lyra, his sword raised, his knuckles white from the tight grip on his weapon. "This isn't real," he muttered, almost to himself. "This can't be real."

Lyra's pulse pounded in her ears. It was real. Every part of it.

Her mother's lips curled into an unreadable smile as she stepped forward, her cloak swirling like living shadow. "You've grown strong, my daughter," she murmured, her voice a haunting echo of the lullabies Lyra barely remembered. "I have waited for this day."

Lyra's throat felt dry, her words catching before they could form. "How… how are you here?"

Queen Evelyne tilted her head, her gaze like molten gold. "Did you really believe the Forsake n's power would not touch our bloodline?"

The words sent a cold shiver down Lyra's spine. The Forsaken. The very force that had cursed Eldoris. The same darkness that had tainted her celestial mark.

A shadow flickered beside her. Eryx.

His silver eyes sharpened. "This isn't just power," he said slowly, his voice laced with something dangerously close to understanding. "You've been bound to it."

The queen's gaze flicked toward him. "And you, Eryx, son of the Forgotten Court. Did you think I wouldn't recognize you?"

Eryx stiffened. The usually unshakable rogue warrior looked… unsettled.

Lyra snapped her gaze to him. "What is she talking about?"

Eryx hesitated, his jaw clenching. "Not now," he muttered.

Alden's patience finally snapped. "She's not here to talk."

A flick of the queen's wrist sent a pulse of celestial energy hurtling toward them. A tidal wave of raw power.

Lyra barely had time to react. Her mark burned hot against her skin as she raised her hands. A golden barrier shimmered into existence at the last second, but the impact sent her stumbling back. Alden caught her before she could fall, his grip steady despite the sheer force of magic around them.

The Forsaken warriors advanced, their golden eyes glowing in eerie synchronization, their movements unnatural, almost puppet-like.

Alden took a defensive stance. "We fight," he growled.

"No," Lyra breathed, shaking her head. "Not yet."

The queen watched, as if waiting. Amused.

Lyra turned to her, her heart a wild drumbeat. "You were supposed to be dead."

"I was reborn," Evelyne whispered. "As you will be."

 The Forsaking's Trap

The battle erupted without warning.

A Forsaken soldier lunged at Alden. His blade met the attack mid-air, sparks flying as steel clashed against corrupted magic. Another warrior came for Kael, but he raised his staff, unleashing a pulse of energy that sent them sprawling.

Selene disappeared into the shadows, reappearing behind two Forsaken, her twin daggers flashing as she cut them down.

Lyra barely had time to react before one of the warriors came straight for her, a curved blade aimed at her throat. She ducked, twisting away as instinct took over. She felt her celestial power rising, the burning warmth of it coiling inside her like a waking beast.

Use it.

The voice whispered in her mind.

A golden light surged from her mark, exploding outward. The warrior was thrown back, colliding against the stone wall with bone-cracking force.

Lyra gasped, staring at her own hands. The power she had just released—it felt different. Wilder. More dangerous.

Across the hall, Queen Evelyne smiled.

"You're awakening," she said softly. "Just as the prophecy foretold."

Lyra's hands trembled. "What prophecy?"

Evelyne took another step forward. "The celestial mark is not just a key to the kingdom's fate, Lyra. It is a gateway. You were never meant to wield it alone."

A terrible realization sank into Lyra's chest. "You want me to join you."

The queen nodded.

Alden snarled. "Over my dead body."

The queen's golden eyes darkened. "That can be arranged."

She raised her hand—

A flash of silver interrupted her.

Eryx moved faster than Lyra had ever seen him move. One second, he was beside her, and the next, he was lunging straight at the queen, daggers drawn, his silver eyes burning with something dangerous.

Lyra barely had time to register the movement before the shadows themselves rose to meet him.

Eryx's blades sliced through the darkness, but the queen didn't flinch. Instead, she caught him mid-motion, her grip inhumanly strong.

"I warned you, child of the Forgotten Court," she whispered. "You cannot change what is written."

Eryx screamed.

A surge of golden fire burst from the queen's palm, consuming him whole.

Lyra's heart stopped. "Eryx!"

The force of the attack sent him flying across the room, his body crashing against the marble floor with a sickening crack.

He didn't move.

For a moment, there was silence.

Then Lyra lost control.

 The Power Unleashed

The celestial mark burned white-hot.

A whirlwind of golden energy erupted from Lyra, shaking the very foundations of the hall.

The Forsaken soldiers screamed as the magic ripped through them, their forms flickering, disintegrating into nothingness.

The queen staggered, her eyes widening.

Lyra barely saw her. Everything was golden light and burning power.

She was floating.

Her body moved without command, magic coursing through her veins like a storm.

She could hear them—the voices of the celestial warriors. The ones she had seen in her visions.

Daughter of the stars.You have awakened.Now, choose.

Her mark pulsed.

Before her, her mother—the queen—watched in stunned silence.

The power in Lyra's hands crackled like fire. One strike, and she could end it.

She could destroy her.

She could end this war.

She raised her hands.

And then—

Alden grabbed her wrist.

"Lyra." His voice was raw. Desperate. "If you do this, you become just like them."

The words cut through her rage.

The power trembled in her grasp. The voices screamed in protest.

She hesitated.

And in that moment of hesitation—

Her mother vanished.

The queen's presence dissolved into shadows, slipping through reality like mist before Lyra could stop her.

The power inside her collapsed.

Lyra fell to her knees, gasping, trembling.

Alden knelt beside her, gripping her shoulders. "It's over," he whispered.

But Lyra knew the truth.

It was just beginning.