Pain tore through Zayden like fire poured into his veins.
Not heat.
Something colder.
Sharper.
A darkness that didn't burn his skin, but his mind.
He dropped to one knee.
The cracked marble floor shuddered beneath him.
The mark on his hand glowed crimson-black, pulsing faster than a heartbeat.
Aria's hand tightened around his wrist.
"Zayden."
Her voice was steady.
Too steady.
The kind of calm people wear when panic would only make things worse.
Across the cathedral, Evelyn held the crystal higher.
Silver light spilled from it like moonlit poison.
Lucien's expression had gone still.
Dangerously still.
"Put it down," he repeated.
This time, it wasn't a suggestion.
Evelyn smiled faintly.
"No."
The crystal flared brighter.
The pain in Zayden's body doubled.
His breath hitched.
His vision blurred into fractured silver and red.
Inside the darkness, something moved.
A voice.
Low.
Ancient.
Hungry.
At last.
His breath froze.
That voice wasn't in the room.
It was inside him.
The darkness around his hand spread upward, winding along his arm like living smoke.
Aria's eyes widened.
"No."
She stepped in front of him, placing herself between Zayden and Evelyn.
"You trigger the third phase, and you lose the entire city."
Evelyn's expression didn't change.
"That is an acceptable loss."
Silence.
Even Lucien looked disturbed by that.
Aria's voice dropped lower.
Sharp enough to cut.
"You've gone insane."
Evelyn's pale eyes gleamed.
"No."
A pause.
"I've become practical."
The crystal pulsed again.
Zayden's body jerked violently.
A wave of darkness burst from him, shattering the nearest pews into splinters.
The cathedral windows cracked.
Rain and wind rushed in.
Aria turned instantly, both hands gripping his shoulders.
"Look at me."
His eyes lifted.
They weren't fully his anymore.
The darkness had spilled into them, swallowing the whites, leaving only a faint silver-red glow.
"Zayden."
Her voice softened.
"Stay with me."
For a second, something flickered.
Recognition.
Then the voice inside him laughed.
She thinks she can still reach you.
Zayden's breath turned ragged.
He could feel it now.
The contract wasn't just power.
It was a presence.
Something alive.
Something ancient enough to remember being worshipped.
Aria felt the shift.
Her gaze darkened.
The third phase wasn't supposed to come this early.
Evelyn took another step forward.
"Excellent."
Lucien moved.
Fast.
One moment at the altar.
The next, directly beside Evelyn.
His hand closed around her wrist.
The crystal cracked.
A sharp silver line split across its surface.
Evelyn's eyes narrowed.
"You dare?"
Lucien smiled.
Cold.
"You're making this messy."
The crack in the crystal spread.
Silver sparks burst from it.
The effect on Zayden was immediate.
The pain faltered.
The darkness hesitated.
Just enough.
Aria seized the moment.
Her fingers pressed against the mark on Zayden's hand.
Silver moonlight burst from her palm.
The cathedral floor lit up beneath them.
Runes.
Ancient.
Older than the building itself.
The darkness screamed.
A sound no one else could hear.
Only Aria.
Only Zayden.
The voice inside him hissed.
Zero.
Aria's eyes went still.
It recognized her.
Of course it did.
She leaned closer.
Her voice dropped to a whisper.
"Not him."
The darkness pulsed.
Angry.
Hungry.
Aria pressed harder against the mark.
"Take me instead."
Silence.
Lucien's head snapped toward her.
"Aria, don't."
Evelyn's expression sharpened.
Interest.
Calculation.
Zayden's eyes flickered.
A fragment of himself surfaced.
"What… are you doing?"
Aria didn't look at him.
"Buying time."
The darkness recoiled.
Then surged again.
Stronger.
The cathedral shook violently.
Cracks spread across the ceiling.
Stone dust rained down.
Evelyn stepped back, eyes fixed on Zayden.
"It's evolving too fast."
Lucien let out a low laugh.
"Well."
A pause.
"That sounds like your problem."
Another wave of darkness burst outward.
This time it hit everyone.
Evelyn was thrown back against a pillar.
Lucien staggered.
Aria remained where she was.
Barely.
Her hand still pressed to the mark.
Her face had gone pale.
Too pale.
Zayden noticed.
Even through the chaos.
The darkness was draining her.
Feeding on the connection.
"No."
His voice came out rough.
Aria finally looked at him.
Her expression softened.
Just a fraction.
"It's fine."
It wasn't.
He could see it.
The way her fingers trembled.
The way silver light around her was flickering.
Evelyn rose slowly, blood at the corner of her lip.
Her pale eyes narrowed.
"This changes nothing."
She raised her free hand.
The remaining hunters moved as one.
Weapons drawn.
Silver blades glinting in the stormlight.
Lucien clicked his tongue.
"Oh, for heaven's sake."
Aria's gaze hardened.
She stepped back from Zayden.
The darkness around him settled.
Not gone.
Only sleeping.
For now.
Her eyes met his.
"Can you stand?"
Zayden pushed himself upright.
Slowly.
His breathing was uneven, but his gaze had sharpened again.
"Yes."
Good.
Aria turned toward the hunters.
Moonlight spilled across the floor, gathering at her feet.
Her voice was calm.
Terrifyingly calm.
"Then stay close."
Evelyn smiled faintly.
"Kill him."
The hunters lunged.