The Sin in Shadows

The atmosphere was charged with the scent of burning embers and forbidden temptation as I gasped. Kaizer's mouth crashed against mine, raw with hunger. His grip was unrelenting, his body a furnace pressing against me. My skin burned beneath his touch, yet I couldn't pull away. 

I didn't want to. 

"Say it," he growled against my lips. "Say you belong to me." 

His voice was deep, commanding. The king who had stolen me, claimed me, was now demanding something far more intimate than my submission. My soul. 

I didn't answer, and his patience snapped. He spun me around, my back slamming against the cold obsidian wall of his chamber. His clawed fingers curled around my neck, holding me there... not choking, just claiming. 

His lips found the hollow of my neck, and I trembled. A fire unlike anything I'd ever known burned through my veins, pooling deep in my core. 

"You fight me," Kaizer murmured, his tongue tracing the pulse hammering beneath his grip. "But your body speaks differently, Princess." 

A shudder wracked through me. He was right. My body was betraying me—aching for him, melting into his dark, dangerous world. A warm resistance.

I hated him for it. I hated myself more. 

His hand traveled lower, over the silk of my 'barely-there' nightgown. He pressed against my stomach, fingers splayed as if searching for something hidden within me. 

The prophecy. 

Kaizer had been different since the blind oracle's visit. Arachne's words had shaken him. He wasn't just claiming me for desire anymore. Something deeper was unraveling between us. And I wasn't sure I could survive it. 

"Mine," he breathed against my lips, pushing the fabric of my gown aside. "You were always meant to be mine." 

A sharp knock shattered the moment. 

"Your Majesty!" a voice rang through the heavy doors. "It's urgent!" 

Kaizer cursed, his hold on me tightening before he reluctantly stepped back. The loss of his heat sent a pang of something unexplainable through me; something like a mixture of embrace and freedom. 

The moment was over. But I wasn't sure I wanted it to be. 

--- 

The great hall was filled with tension. Flames flickered wildly in the iron sconces, casting erratic shadows along the stone walls. The members of the Shadow Veil Court stood gathered, whispering and waiting. 

Kaizer's throne loomed at the far end, and beside him, I stood, marked as his. 

The mark had appeared after our last encounter—an intricate pattern burned into my skin at the base of my spine. A symbol of possession. Of an unbreakable bond. 

And yet, I wasn't the only one in danger. 

"Speak." Kaizer's voice cut through the murmurs. 

A soldier stepped forward. "The rebel faction has infiltrated Velmoria. Your spies were compromised." 

I felt a strong sense of fear and anxiety in my stomach. Velmoria. My home. My father's kingdom. 

Then, I felt the weight of Kaizer's gaze on me, searching, assessing. Did he think I had something to do with this? 

Another figure stepped forward. A man I recognized—Darian. 

My once-betrothed. 

My breath caught. No. 

Darian's silver eyes locked onto mine. Something unfathomable shone there—anger? Regret? Betrayal? 

"I came to save you," he said, voice measured. "From him." His gaze snapped to Kaizer. "From this monster." 

Kaizer smirked, but there was no amusement in it, only violent fury. 

"You came to die, then." His fingers flexed, magic humming in the air. 

I stepped forward before I could stop myself. "Darian, don't—" 

"You don't belong here, Redgold." Darian's voice softened. "He's using you." 

I swallowed hard. I know. But…was that the full truth? 

Kaizer's lips curled. "And what? You think you do?" 

Darian tensed, but his expression remained firm. "I loved her before you even knew her name." 

Kaizer laughed; a sharp, wicked laughter. "And yet, she is in my bed. Wearing my mark." 

Heat bloomed across my skin. Darian's jaw clenched. 

He turned back to me. "Come with me." 

I hesitated. 

I should go. This was my chance. I could escape, and return to Velmoria. But… 

The memory of Kaizer's touch burned in my mind. His lips. His fire. 

No. It wasn't real. Was it? 

I opened my mouth—but before I could answer, the world exploded. 

A shadow erupted from behind Darian, too fast to react. Steel flashed. Blood sprayed. 

Darian's eyes widened in shock as a blade punched through his chest. 

I screamed. 

Kaizer didn't move. He had seen it coming. He had let it happen. 

Darian collapsed. His blood pooled at my feet. 

My world spun. 

A dark, cloaked figure stepped forward, pulling the blade free. Their hood fell back revealing a familiar face. 

Trix. 

My breath caught. 

One of the mischievous elves. My friend. 

Betrayal.

She smiled, eyes gleaming. "The enemy moves closer." Her voice was eerily calm. "You have a choice to make, Princess." 

My hands trembled. Kaizer watched me, his expression unreadable. 

Darian lay dying. 

And I stood on the precipice of something I could never undo. 

A choice that could change everything.