Azrael’s POV

*****

Pisgah Forest, 12:32 AM

It’s been hours.

Hours since he found out that Nyx was subtly cutting him off from the rest of his brethren. His... family. And then after Amunira dropped off that news, he got a text from Celeste about three hours ago:

"We need to talk."

Even now as his boots crunched on the dry leaves littering the forest floors, he had his phone out, staring at her message. He didn’t feel like going. Not yet, at least.

For some reason, he felt like her sending that message didn’t exactly mean she needed to see him. She still needed time to process all he revealed.

And he still needed time to make sure once and for all that he truly was no longer connected to the High One.

Mentally reaching out to her was impossible. He tried it and got nothing but silence. Which was why he was here. In this forest that wasn’t only so close to Bloodoak Academy... but was also the first place he defied the High One’s rules.

By saving the young woman who would later become his mate.

"I can sense you all watching," he muttered, eyes flicking from one shadow to the other. "What? You don’t feel like hunting me?"

He couldn’t see them yet but he knew Vein beasts were lurking around here. They might be skilled in hiding in the darkness. But the darkness was his home.

"Come on," he raised both hands, the red sigil on his ring glinting under the moonlight. "I’m nothing but a witch..."

Sure enough, his talking attracted a few growls. He didn’t stop walking, a small smirk playing on his lips.

That’s right.

Come out.

Suddenly, the air shifted behind him, his instincts hitting him hard. Without looking back, he lifted his chin, taking off his sunglasses.

If the beast tried escaping it was far too late.

The sound of something slamming like a bag of bricks on the floor made him finally look over his shoulder. And there it was. A Vein beast—black reptilian scales and crawling on all fours, with a long snout.

The beast hissed, trashing around as it struggled under the force of his telekinesis. Azrael slowly pivoted to face it, taking off his ring.

"It’s impressive how such a little trinket can change so much," he sniggered, rolling his object of office between his fingers.

It not only connected him to the High one but also masked his true nature, making him seem like a witch to even Vein beasts.

The point is, he now had what he came here for.

Time to begin the next phase.

"I hold onto my object of office," he spread out his arms, the forest holding its breath with him. "And I stand here tonight with a physical manifestation of the Vein’s chaos."

The incantation wasn’t necessary but it did make him feel like the High One was watching. Listening. And if he knew anything about her and the connection to Vein beasts... he’d be correct.

His ring levitated off his palm, floating until it was directly over the Vein beast. He leaned down, placing a finger on the beast’s forehead.

"... Hear my call, mother of the night," he intoned with finality. "She who conquered the Vein and—"

"Azrael, Azrael, Azrael..."

He froze.

Without looking back he already knew who had that silvery voice. That voice that sounded like she had the world under her feet.

And to some extent... perhaps she does.

"High One." Azrael turned around when an invisible force slammed into his chest.

He grunted, eyes bulging as he was flung back. He crashed into a tree, falling to the floor.

"Does that answer whatever questions you may have for me?" She scoffed with disappointment. "My poison of the night. Just look at you."

Azrael’s teeth gritted, his fangs threatening to sprout out. Standing before him was a woman with gorgeous dark skin, her lush black hair flowing around her like night taking shape.

A sleeveless black dress clung to her body, each step she took making the shadows around her twist into unnatural shapes.

Yet this was just one of her many projections.

Not her actual physical body.

"You’ve become soft." Nyx spat, her arms behind her. "Weak. Disgustingly vulnerable."

Azrael’s chest still ached but he bore it, lifting himself off the ground. "And my ’weakness’ made you cut me off the link?"

"YOUR DEFIANCE DID!"

The wind picked up all of a sudden, the trees rustling above them. The Vein beasts cowered in their hiding spots, either bowing reverently or retreating.

"Defiance?" Azrael repeated. "Tell me, High One. What did you expect would happen when you sent me to watch my mate only to help bring her into your claws?"

Nyx stilled enough for the air to tighten. For the shadows to lean in.

Then... She laughed.

A soft, silvery sound that didn’t match the weight behind it.

"Oh?" Her head tilted, dark eyes glinting with amusement. "So that’s what this is about."

Azrael didn’t respond, but his gaze stayed locked on hers. Unflinching.

"Tell me," he said finally, voice low. "Did you send Professor Amelia?"

For a split second, there was surprise on her face. Then it melted into something colder.

Nyx sniggered, circling him slowly. "You grow bolder by the minute. Questioning me... accusing me..." She leaned in slightly. "Standing against me."

Azrael’s jaw tightened. "I asked a question."

"And I’ll give you an answer you won’t like," she said lightly, straightening. "It doesn’t matter whom I send after Celeste."

The way she said her name made something in him snap.

"My plans," Nyx continued, lifting a hand as the shadows coiled lazily around her wrist, "are already in motion. Whether it is Amelia... or another... or ten others..."

Her lips curved.

"They will fall into place."

A beat passed.

"Not if I have anything to do with it." The words came out steady from Azrael’s mouth.

Nyx paused mid-step. She slowly turned to face him again. And this time, there was no amusement in her eyes.

"Careful, my poison of the night," she murmured. "You are treading dangerously close to a line you were never meant to cross."

"I crossed it the moment I chose her," Azrael replied without hesitation or regret.

Something flickered across Nyx’s expression. Then she smiled.

"You will regret this," she said quietly. "When I am fully released from the Vein... when the world reshapes itself as it was always meant to..." Her gaze hardened. "You will understand just how wrong you were."

The wind howled louder. The trees bent, shadows stretching unnaturally across the forest floor.

"You stand on the wrong side of history, Azrael." A pause. "Just as all traitors do."

And then... she was gone.

The pressure lifted as if it had never been there.

A heavy silence followed.

Azrael stood there for a moment longer, unmoving.

Then slowly, he exhaled, his hand flexing slightly at his side. "...We’ll see about that."

A soft buzz broke through the quiet.

His phone.

Azrael blinked once, pulling it out.

It was a message.

From Atlas.

His brows knitted slightly as he read it:

"Heading back to Bloodoak. Something’s not right with the wards. If anything happens—be ready."

Confusion flickered first.

Then understanding. Then alarm.

"Idiot," he muttered under his breath.

If Amelia was still out there... if she truly had anything to do with the wards failing...

Then walking straight back into Bloodoak wasn’t just reckless. It was walking into a trap.

His jaw tightened.

Bloodoak Academy wasn’t far from here. He could get there in seconds. Stop whatever Atlas was about to stumble into.

Before he could make any moves, he paused.

His grip on the phone loosened slightly.

Celeste...

His gaze dropped.

She hadn’t texted again or called.

And yet he could feel her.

Faint. Distant. But there.

The bond thrummed softly in his chest. No pain this time. Just... her presence.

Azrael closed his eyes briefly.

He weighed down everything.

Atlas.

Celeste.

The possibility of this being a trap.

A quiet exhale left him. ’Decision made then...’

Dark smoke curled at his feet. Then rose, wrapping around him like a living thing.

In the next second—he was gone.

.

.

The night air shifted on the balcony.

Black smoke bled into existence, curling and twisting before condensing into a solid form. Azrael stepped out of it smoothly, his boots landing silently against the stone floor.

He straightened before looking ahead.

Celeste’s room.

The balcony doors stood closed, curtains drawn just enough to block a full view inside.

For a moment, he didn’t move, speak or knock.

His hand hovered slightly at his side. Hesitating. Something he rarely—if ever—did.

"Right," he muttered under his breath.

Then he stepped forward and raised his hand. A knock followed the movement.

A few seconds passed.

Then there was movement behind the curtains. The door slid open... And there she was.

Celeste.

Azrael held her violet gaze.

All the things he could say—none of them came out. Instead, "...Can I come in?"