Jayden's breath was ragged, each inhale sharp and shallow as he collapsed in a forgotten alleyway.
Blood soaked through his torn shirt, mixing with the grime of the city, a stark reminder of just how close he had come to losing everything.
He had been running for hours, but the exhaustion weighed him down, and the gnawing pain in his side made it nearly impossible to think straight. The streets had begun to grow quieter, the usual bustling of the city fading into an eerie silence.
But he couldn't stop now. He couldn't afford to.
He was a target now — not just for The Harbinger, but for everyone who had a hand in this cruel game.
As he sat back against the cold brick, the dim light of a streetlamp above barely illuminating his face, his mind raced through the events of the past few days.
Matilda's betrayal…
Tielen's unspoken silence…
Wendy's cool indifference…
They all had something to hide.
But in the end, it was his own blood that had sealed his fate. His father's secrets, buried beneath layers of power and deceit, were now his to bear.
A figure approached from the shadows.
It was a woman, her movements deliberate and slow, as if each step was calculated.
Her face remained hidden beneath a dark hood, but Jayden could feel her presence like a cold wind brushing against his skin. She was familiar, yet unfamiliar — a ghost from his past.
"Are you planning to die here, or do you want to live?" she asked, her voice sharp, cutting through the thick silence.
Jayden blinked, struggling to recognize her.
"Who are you?" he asked hoarsely, struggling to keep his eyes open.
She stepped into the dim light.
Her face was pale, almost ethereal, and her eyes were a dark shade of amber, gleaming with something ancient, something powerful. She was beautiful in a way that made his heart skip a beat, though he could sense a deadly force beneath the surface.
"Call me Seraph," she said. "I'm here to offer you a way out."
Jayden narrowed his eyes, unsure of whether to trust her or not.
He had learned that the world didn't offer kindness to those like him. Every offer came at a price.
"A way out?" he repeated, his voice low. "And what's the catch?"
She smirked, her lips curling in a way that was almost predatory.
"The catch is that nothing is ever as it seems," she said, her eyes flickering with a spark of amusement. "But if you're willing to survive, I can help you."
He stared at her for a long moment, the weight of his injuries, the gravity of his situation, pressing down on him.
He needed answers.
He needed strength.
But did he need her?
"Why me?" he asked finally, his voice rough from the strain.
Seraph's smile faltered, just slightly. "Because you're more than you realize. More than even you've been told. And if you survive, you'll shake the very foundation of this broken world."
Her words hung in the air, pregnant with meaning.
Jayden swallowed hard, the offer tempting, but his instincts screamed at him to be cautious.
But he had no other choice. His enemies were closing in on him faster than he could outrun them.
And so, against all his better judgment, Jayden nodded.
"Alright," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "Help me. But if you try to play me... I'll bury you."
Her eyes flickered with amusement once more. "I never intended to play you," she said, taking a step closer, her hand reaching for his shoulder, a gesture that both comforted and chilled him.
"You're not the first to trust me," she said softly, "but you will be the last to regret it."
---
Elsewhere...
Matilda stared out of her penthouse window, her fingers absently tracing the edge of the glass. The lights of the city twinkled far below, but all she could see was Jayden's face — the hurt in his eyes when he found out the truth.
She had betrayed him.
And no amount of excuses could change that.
The thought of him lying on the ground, bloodied, broken, haunted her.
But there was no turning back now. The strings had been pulled, and the game was in motion. She had made her choices. She had made her alliances.
But when the storm broke — when everything came crashing down — she would be swept up in it too.
The door behind her clicked open, and she didn't need to turn around to know who it was.
Tielen stepped into the room, his expression unreadable.
"Is he alive?" Matilda asked, her voice barely a whisper.
Tielen nodded, though his eyes were clouded with something darker. "For now. But he won't stay that way. They'll hunt him down, Matilda. And you know it."
She closed her eyes, taking a shaky breath.
"I didn't have a choice," she whispered. "I had no choice."
But Tielen's cold gaze never wavered.
"You always have a choice."
His voice was low, hard. "And if you think Jayden's the only one who can survive this, you're wrong. We all have our parts to play in this war."
And with that, he turned and left, his footsteps fading into the silence of the night.
---