Constant stood there, hands shaking, staring at the space where she'd been.
Benjamin walked up behind him.
"Give her time," he said gently.
Constant exhaled shakily.
"I know… I know."
But his eyes shifted — troubled.
"We have a bigger problem."
Benjamin frowned.
"What?"
Constant's voice lowered into a dark tone.
"I followed the Moon Queens. I watched them. I hid in their cities. I listened."
Benjamin stiffened.
Constant swallowed.
"There aren't just a few… or even hundreds…"
He looked Benjamin dead in the eyes.
"There are thousands of Moon Queens.
Each one stronger than Blood Reaper."
Benjamin went pale.
Constant continued:
"What if she can't save this planet?
What if we're following someone who can't survive the war coming?"
Benjamin, despite the fear clawing his chest, answered without hesitation.
"Blood Reaper is stronger than she even knows," he said.
"And I believe in her. No matter what's coming."
Constant nodded slowly.
"Then… there's more."
Benjamin swallowed.
"What?"
Constant's voice cracked.
"I found out something else…
Eylon is missing."
Benjamin froze.
"Missing… AGAIN?"
Constant nodded grimly.
"Gone. No trace.
Something took him."
The night around them went silent.
The moon flickered unnaturally.
And far, far away—
Blood Reaper stared into the sky, black-eyed, seeing something coming that terrified even her.
Blood Reaper walked.
Far from the orb.
Far from the house.
Far from everyone.
She didn't teleport — she walked, slowly, silently, letting the wind carry the weight she didn't want to feel.
Hours faded into days.
She entered an empty farm field, tall grass whispering around her ankles.
A silent farmhouse stood alone on a hill, lights long dead.
She opened the door and stepped inside.
Two dead bodies sat on the couch — a couple who never escaped the demon attack.
Their hands still held each other.
Blood Reaper didn't move them.
She just sat in the corner of the living room, staring at the wooden floorboards.
For days.
Not eating.
Not sleeping.
Not thinking clearly.
Just feeling something she hated feeling.
Weakness.
Fear.
…Longing?
It made her sick.
A knock rattled the door.
Blood Reaper didn't answer.
Another knock, louder.
"You can come in," she said coldly.
Instead, she appeared outside behind Dyren the second he opened the door.
He jumped slightly, then smirked, leaning lazily on the doorframe.
"What?" she snapped.
Dyren folded his arms, wings fluttering behind him — the black-scorched demon feathers rumbling with heat.
"I've been watching you," he said casually.
Blood Reaper rolled her eyes.
"Of course you have."
"You think Constant is destined for you," Dyren said, stepping closer.
"He's not."
Her eyes narrowed.
Dyren grinned.
"He'll keep messing up. He's emotionally stupid. He's easy prey."
Blood Reaper said nothing.
Dyren circled her slowly, voice low and smooth.
"And you know the truth.
In the Underworld… everyone falls for Candy."
Blood Reaper raised a brow.
"I don't."
Dyren snorted.
"Oh, not you. Obviously."
He stepped in front of her, expression sharpening.
"But I'm not talking about you.
I'm talking about him."
Blood Reaper frowned.
Dyren's smirk softened slightly.
"Candy can make anyone fall for her… unless they already belong to someone else."
Blood Reaper stiffened.
"And I," Dyren whispered, "cannot be taken by her."
He tapped his chest lightly.
"Because I am already in love."
Blood Reaper blinked — surprised for the first time.
Dyren stepped closer again, wings fluttering as if to impress her.
"Reasons I know Constant doesn't love you," Dyren said gently.
"He can't love you if he doesn't even know himself.
But me?"
Dyren placed a warm clawed hand over his heart.
"I know who I am.
What I am.
And who I want."
He spread his wings fully — enormous, black, powerful.
"A demon with a demon," he said simply.
"That's destiny."
Blood Reaper scoffed softly.
"Angels are overrated," Dyren continued, shaking his head.
"They pretend to care — but angels only serve themselves.
Demons?
We feel.
Deeply."
Blood Reaper glanced around suspiciously.
"…Is this a trap?"
Dyren chuckled.
"No trap," he said, voice suddenly soft.
Then—
He knelt.
Right there in the dirt.
Took her hand gently.
His eyes glowed a deep, molten gold.
"My loyalty is with you," he said, without hesitation.
"Always.
Your war is my war.
Your life is my purpose.
Your fire is my home."
A warmth spread up her arm.
Not magic.
Not manipulation.
Something terrifying:
Emotion.
Connection.
Something she had never let herself feel.
Her heart burned again — just like it had with Constant's kiss.
Blood Reaper jerked her hand back slightly.
But didn't step away.
Dyren's voice dropped to a whisper.
"You don't have to choose anyone yet.
I'm not asking for that."
He looked up at her, eyes fierce and sincere.
"But I want you to know…
You are not walking into this war alone."
Blood Reaper stood still.
Silent.
Confused.
Warm.
And for the first time in her existence—
she didn't know whether to kill him…
…or let him stay.
Blood Reaper stood in the ruined farmhouse, Dyren still kneeling in front of her, his hand warm from where he had touched her.
Inside her chest—
Something was wrong.
Something was breaking.
Something was new.
What is this?
Why do I feel… pulled?
Toward Constant…
Toward Dyren…
Toward something I don't even understand?
Her mind felt like a battlefield.
Broken.
Lost.
Unfamiliar.
She hated it.
She hated feeling anything.
Dyren rose from the floor slowly, watching her with that molten, unwavering gaze.
"Reaper," he whispered.
"You don't have to be afraid of this."
Something in her snapped.
She gripped his shirt—
slammed him back onto the old kitchen table.
The wood cracked beneath the force.
She climbed up after him, pinning him down, hands on either side of his shoulders.
Her eyes blazed white-gold, fire curling around her fingertips.
Dyren didn't fight it.
He embraced her presence, pulling her close, their foreheads nearly touching.
The air shook with heat between them — not sensual, but raw power, two disasters colliding.
Dyren growled softly, gripping her waist to steady them both.
"See?" he whispered.
"This—this is demon fire. This is belonging."
Blood Reaper's breath caught—
—and in a surge of instinct, Dyren flipped her.
The table shattered completely as he pressed her down, his hair falling around her, kissing the side of her neck with a heat that felt like pure flame.
Her body shivered—not from romance, but from energy, ancient and terrifying.
For a moment she let it happen.
For a moment she closed her eyes.
For a moment she wondered:
Is this love?
Is this what they want from me?
Am I even interested…?
Am I capable of this?
Dyren whispered against her skin:
"I am yours. Always."
And that—
was what broke everything.
Her heart surged with something she had never felt before.
Something too strong.
Too dangerous.
Too overwhelming.
She panicked.
Her aura flared—
—and she vanished.
Dyren's lips hit the empty floor.
He froze.
His eyes went wide.
Then—
He lay there, sprawled out, humiliated, heart pounding like molten stone.
He covered his face with one hand.
"…I'm so in love," he groaned into the floorboards.
Blood Reaper reappeared back at the house.
But not just anywhere.
The attic.
Where Constant slept on a pile of blankets, shirt half off, wings tucked tight, hair messy, breathing softly.
She didn't know why she came here.
Why her feet brought her to him.
Why her chest still throbbed with fire.
She stepped toward him silently.
Constant's eyes were closed, peaceful.
She stood over him for a long moment, staring — frustrated, confused, angry at herself.
The attic was warm.
Quiet.
Safe.
Very slowly—
Blood Reaper knelt beside him.
Then lower.
She lay her head gently on his chest, her hair spilling across him like smoke.
Constant's breathing hitched.
His eyes opened.
He looked down—
And smiled.
Soft.
Warm.
Certain.
He didn't speak.
He didn't question.
He just rested one hand gently on her back, protective and calm.
"You can stay," he whispered.
"For as long as you like."
Blood Reaper closed her eyes.
For the first time in her existence—
She allowed herself to rest.
With him.
For the first time in her entire existence—
Blood Reaper actually slept.
Not meditation.
Not drifting.
Not unconsciousness.
Sleep.
And her mind punished her for it.
She saw the family who once lived here.
The mother screaming.
The father firing bullets until the gun melted.
The sisters running through the halls.
The demons tearing through the walls.
Their shadows clung to her dreams.
Something whispered—
something wrong, hungry, unfinished—
Then a figure jumped at her in the dream—
She woke up with a violent gasp.
Her entire body erupted in black fire.
The attic filled with heat and shadow.
Constant didn't wake—
the heat didn't bother him.
He just snored softly, arm around her waist.
But—
Another arm was around her too.
She froze.
Constant blinked awake.
"What?" he asked groggily, sensing her panic.
Blood Reaper slowly looked to her left.
Keuirseu lay beside her—
smiling, half-asleep, his arm wrapped around her stomach.
Eyes barely open.
"What?" he echoed, copying Constant's tone.
Then he added:
"If you two were cuddling for heat, I wanted to join."
Constant stared at him.
A completely dead, "I'm gonna murder you slowly" stare.
Blood Reaper vanished instantly.
She reappeared in the basement.
The air was heavy with rot.
The mother and child she'd seen earlier…
still lay in each other's arms.
Blood Reaper knelt beside them.
Her eyes shifted into their celestial-demomic sight, reading the echoes of their final moments.
Pain.
Fear.
Love.
She touched them both gently.
Black-and-gold light flowed from her palms.
In seconds—
They vanished from the basement.
Reappeared beneath the earth, safe, buried under a tree.
Blood Reaper rose, jaw tight, chest heavy.
She walked upstairs as the house began to wake.
Blood Reaper headed to Billy's room.
Empty.
Her eyes narrowed.
She stepped outside the orb's edge—
Billy spun around instantly, holding the human baby.
Knife pressed to its tiny neck.
The baby cried in terror.
Billy's smile was wrong.
Delighted.
Unhinged.
"The demons didn't kill my family," Billy said.
"I did.
And now this—this is the perfect opportunity."
Blood Reaper's eyes turned black.
"Put the child down."
Billy tightened the blade.
"Come closer and I'll slice him open."
Billy didn't notice—
The tiny silver spider was already on the baby's blanket.
It climbed her arm.
Billy froze.
"What—Wha—?"
It hissed.
Billy screamed—
Dropped the baby—
Dyren caught the child mid-fall, holding him protectively to his chest.
The spider bit Billy's neck.
Venom spread black under her skin instantly.
She slapped the spider away and ran into the woods, shrieking.
Blood Reaper didn't bother chasing.
She had bigger problems.