Chapter 58: The Crimson and the Shadow

[The Next Day — Emperor’s Chamber — Morning]

Morning had barely begun to touch the towers of the Imperial Palace.

Soft golden light slipped through the tall lattice windows, painting the marble floor in pale ribbons of sunlight. The curtains moved gently with the morning breeze, while the candles from the previous night had long since burned themselves into silence.

For once, the Emperor’s chamber was peaceful, almost unnaturally so.

Kael remained curled comfortably against Lytharion’s chest, still half-asleep, his cheek resting against the deity’s warmth. Lytharion, however, had been awake for some time.

In one hand, he held something that seemed completely out of place beneath the morning sunlight.

A single leaf, as its surface was divided by two impossible colors. One half was as black as the deepest night; the other was a dark crimson, almost the color of blood.

The ancient leaf he had taken from the sacred tree. Lytharion’s golden eyes remained fixed upon it, his expression unreadable as his thumb slowly traced the crimson edge.

His gaze darkened for a moment.

Then—

Wiggle...

Lytharion’s attention immediately returned to the warmth in his arms. Kael shifted against him, his fingers curling lightly into the fabric of Lytharion’s robe.

His lashes fluttered once and twice. Then his amber eyes slowly opened; for several seconds, Kael simply stared at the Shadow King.

Sleep still clouded his expression; then, without saying anything, he moved closer. His forehead rested against Lytharion’s chest.

Lytharion’s lips curved faintly. "Good morning, beloved."

Kael made a quiet sound of acknowledgment.

"Mmm..."

His voice was still thick with sleep as Lytharion chuckled softly. "Still tired?"

Kael nodded against him.

"Perhaps."

Lytharion’s hand moved gently through his hair. "You slept well."

"I did." Then Kael’s fingers tightened slightly around Lytharion’s robe.

"...You didn’t."

Lytharion raised an eyebrow.

"What makes you think that?"

"You were awake when I opened my eyes."

There was a faint accusation in his sleepy voice, and Lytharion smiled. "My queen has become observant."

Kael finally lifted his head as his eyes wandered toward the leaf in Lytharion’s hand. "What is that?"

For the briefest moment, Lytharion’s expression became serious, but he closed his fingers around the leaf.

"Something I will explain to you later, at the temple."

Kael’s brows furrowed. "The temple?"

Lytharion nodded.

"Yes."

Kael stared at him for a moment before slowly settling back against his chest. "Do you have to go somewhere again?"

There was something almost too quiet about the question. Lytharion noticed as his gaze softened immediately. He wrapped one arm securely around Kael’s waist.

"No, this time..." His fingers gently traced along Kael’s back. "...you are coming with me."

Kael blinked.

"We?"

"Yes."

Lytharion looked down at him as his golden eyes held a strange mixture of tenderness and something deeper—something Kael couldn’t quite read.

"We have to go to the temple of shadows."

Kael’s brows drew together. He had never been there.

Not truly.

He had heard whispers about it, of course. The ancient sanctuary hidden beyond the mortal realm, where the servants of the Lord of Darkness gathered and where even gods were said to lower their voices.

Kael looked at him.

"Why?"

Lytharion didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he brushed his thumb across Kael’s cheek. "There are things you should know."

Kael’s eyes narrowed slightly. "About the crystal and gimfangs?"

"Partly."

Kael stared at him as a faint smile appeared on Lytharion’s lips. "And about your status."

Kael’s expression softened; he didn’t ask anything more. Perhaps because, for the first time, he trusted that if Lytharion wanted him to know something...the Shadow King would tell him.

"You have an empire to govern. I hope you have cleared your schedule."

Kael gave him a small nod, saying, "Very well."

Lytharion leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss against Kael’s forehead. "Shall we go for a bath?"

Kael’s cheeks warmed, and Lytharion’s smile became teasing as he saw Kael’s cheeks were warm, the small smile that touched his lips.

For a moment, neither spoke; the ancient deity simply held his mate while the morning sunlight slowly brightened the chamber around them.

Then Lytharion’s arms tightened as he pulled Kael closer until there was barely any space between them, resting his chin gently against the top of Kael’s head.

Kael relaxed against him; the warmth felt strangely safe but hidden within Lytharion’s closed hand...the crimson-and-black leaf pulsed once.

THUM.

Lytharion’s golden eyes opened as he looked toward the distant window. For one fleeting moment, the shadows inside the chamber moved against the direction of the sunlight.

Something had sensed the leaf, something ancient and something that should not have been able to reach them.

Lytharion’s expression hardened, but his arms only tightened around Kael. He would tell his beloved the truth. He would take him to the temple.

And whatever waited there...the Lord of Darkness would face it with his mate beside him. For this time, he would not walk into the darkness alone.

***

[High Mage’s Tower — Imperial Palace — Same Morning]

Far above the eastern towers of the Imperial Palace stood the Tower of the High Mage.

Unlike the rest of the palace, the tower was never truly silent.

Ancient books whispered beneath their enchanted bindings. Blue flames burned without fuel inside crystal lanterns. Runes crawled slowly across the walls, shifting and rearranging themselves whenever the stars changed position.

But today...something was wrong.

The entire tower had gone still. At the highest chamber, behind seven layers of magical barriers, the High Mage Azharel Enki stood alone as his eyes remained fixed upon the object beneath the magical dome.

The Grimfang crystal.

It floated several inches above the surface of the black obsidian table; around it, dozens of magical circles rotated slowly.

WHIRRRR...

WHIRRRR...

Enki raised one hand, and a thin stream of blue mana flowed from his fingertips and touched the crystal, but nothing.

He frowned as he changed the spell; a second circle appeared, then a third, and then a fourth.

SHIIIIING—!

The entire chamber suddenly illuminated, and the crystal responded, but instead of releasing the black corruption Enki had expected...

GOLDEN LIGHT spread through the room.

Eldric’s eyes widened.

"Impossible..."

He immediately stepped backward as the golden light moved through the magical circles like liquid, passing through every barrier without disturbing a single rune.

Enki’s expression became increasingly serious.

"Reveal your origin."

BOOOOM!

An enormous magical formation appeared beneath the crystal; ancient symbols emerged, one after another.

Enki’s breathing stopped as he stared.

"No..."

The crystal rotated slowly in the air as its golden radiance intensified. Then something appeared inside it, not an image, not a memory.

A symbol.

A symbol so ancient that Enki couldn’t immediately identify the language. He rushed toward the table.

"That inscription..."

His fingers trembled as he quickly opened an enormous ancient tome. Pages flew by themselves.

FLAP—FLAP—FLAP—FLAP!

Enki searched through hundreds of ancient symbols, but nothing. He opened another, nothing, and another...still nothing.

His breathing became heavier as he turned another page.

"Come on..."

Then he froze as his finger stopped upon a faded illustration. An ancient symbol, the same symbol floating inside the crystal.

Enki’s pupils contracted.

"No..." He leaned closer as his voice became barely audible. "This symbol disappeared from the records thousands of years ago."

The crystal suddenly pulsed.

THUM.

The entire tower trembled as Enki looked up. The symbol inside the crystal changed; the golden light split into two streams, one becoming crimson and the other becoming black.

The two energies intertwined around the crystal, not fighting, not destroying one another, but coexisting.

Enki’s expression slowly changed.

First confusion, then disbelief, and then...a smile...a genuine smile. He stepped closer to the crystal, his eyes shining with excitement.

"This..." He reached toward it but stopped his hand just before touching the golden surface as his voice trembled.

"This has never happened."

The two energies continued circling one another as the ancient symbol burned brighter.

"Not even in mortal history."

Enki searched frantically towards the shelves. His eyes moved from one parchment to another until his expression changed and he found something.

A single line, almost completely erased by time.

"When two divine essences become bound through a mortal vessel...the crystal shall no longer obey its creator."

Silence.

The High Mage looked toward the floating crystal.

"So that’s why...the crystal wasn’t merely controlling the Grimfang King. It was responding to something else."

The golden light suddenly surged.

FWWWWOOOOSH—!!!

The chamber shook violently and the crystal cracked.

CRACK.

He froze as a tiny fracture appeared across its surface.

Then another.

CRACK...

The crystal wasn’t breaking. It was opening. Golden light poured from the fractures, and for the briefest instant, Enki saw something within the crystal.

Two silhouettes, one surrounded by darkness and one surrounded by crimson light, standing together, hand in hand.

Then—

SHIIIIIIIIING—!!!

His eyes were wide, then gradually...a smile appeared upon his lips, not a smile of joy. A smile of someone who had just discovered something that should not exist.

"Could it be...?"

He carefully lifted the crystal again, examining its golden veins as his fingers trembled slightly. "Did the essence within this crystal just show me...a glimpse of the future?"

He stared at it for several long moments.

Then his smile deepened.

"Impossible..."

He whispered the word almost reverently.

"Such a phenomenon has never been recorded in the history of Qashmar. Not in the sacred archives...not in the records of the High Mages...not even in the oldest texts left behind by the gods."

The crystal gave one faint pulse.

THUM.

The High Mage’s eyes gleamed.

"Then what exactly are you?"

He slowly turned the crystal beneath the candlelight, and suddenly, his expression changed there was something hidden inside it.

Something far greater than the power that had controlled the Grimfang King. Something that had been sleeping and waiting.

The High Mage’s smile returned.

"It seems..." He gently closed his fingers around the crystal. "...we have discovered a treasure hidden within the heart of a Grimfang, and perhaps...this treasure is not merely capable of showing the future."

He looked toward the enormous window of his tower, where the moon hung above the Empire of Qashmar.

His voice fell into an almost reverent whisper.

"Perhaps it knows something about the future that even the gods have forgotten."

And somewhere deep within the crystal—

THUM.

A single golden pulse answered him. For the first time...he wondered whether the crystal had allowed him to see the future—or whether...the future had allowed him to see it.