The night after the attack was restless. The palace guards doubled their patrols, but it did little to calm the tension that had sunk into the walls like smoke after a fire. Lila couldn't sleep. The mark on her palm no longer burned with fire—but something else stirred beneath her skin, something fluid and cold.
She sat at the edge of the moonlit reflecting pool in the inner garden, barefoot and silent. The water shimmered under the silver light, perfectly still until her fingertips brushed its surface. At first, she thought it was a trick of the wind, but then the water responded—coiling gently around her hand like a curious serpent.
Lila froze.
The ripple she'd caused didn't fade. It danced and swirled as if aware of her touch, almost playful. Then the faint blue light spread from her fingers across the surface in glowing tendrils. Her breath caught.
Another mark.
Like the flame had claimed her before, now water was responding to something inside her.
"Second king," she whispered.
The power didn't feel like fire at all. Fire had been raw and fast, urgent. But water was deeper—calm on the surface, wild beneath. It whispered in her mind like an echo in a cavern, waiting for her to understand.
A soft footstep sounded behind her.
"You shouldn't be alone right now," Cassian's voice said gently.
"I needed air," Lila replied without turning. "And I think… something's happening again."
Cassian approached slowly. "The water?"
She nodded, even though he couldn't see her. "It's moving with me, like fire did before. I think I just awakened a second element."
He didn't respond right away, but she could sense the tension in him. After a pause, she said, "Cassian. I want to try something."
He stood behind her. "What is it?"
"I want to look at your curse. Not just with my eyes. With… this." She lifted her glowing hand from the water. "With water."
Cassian hesitated. "You think you can see it?"
"I don't know. But I can feel the water inside you. In your blood. Maybe this can show me something others haven't seen."
After a moment, he moved to sit in front of her, the moonlight outlining his strong features and shadowed eyes. She took a breath, then raised her glowing hand and placed it gently over his closed eyes.
The second her palm touched his skin, the world tilted.
She was no longer in the garden. She was… inside.
Inside Cassian.
Darkness wrapped around her like fog. It wasn't blindness—it was more like being submerged in deep, ancient water. Cold, quiet, waiting. She let her power guide her deeper.
And then she saw it.
A coil of shadow, wrapped tight around the space behind his eyes like a snake made of smoke. It pulsed with a sickly blue energy, not natural—twisted. Poisoned magic. A curse, yes—but older than she expected. And not just made to blind him.
It was eating away at his magic.
She gasped and pulled back, eyes wide. Cassian caught her by the wrist.
"What did you see?"
"It's not just a curse to take your sight," she said breathlessly. "It's feeding off your power. It's draining you."
His face darkened. "That explains why I've felt weaker."
"I could see it," she murmured. "Like it was alive. Like it didn't belong in you."
Cassian turned his head slightly toward her. "And?"
"I think I can fight it," she said, "but not yet. It's too strong right now. I need more—more control, more elements."
Cassian's brow furrowed. "You want to try all four?"
"They're inside me," she said firmly. "I've touched two. I think I can reach the others."
He didn't speak for a while. Then: "Most people never wield more than one. You're barely trained. Why risk yourself?"
"Because I saw it, Cassian. That thing inside you? It's not waiting to be broken—it's trying to win. If we don't act, it will kill you."
He stilled, then nodded. "Then we fight it."
Lila exhaled, her fingers still tingling from the connection. "You trust me?"
"I trust the girl who burned down half a hedge maze to protect me," he said wryly.
She laughed, then sobered. "I'm going to need help. We both are."
Cassian's voice lowered. "There's something else."
"What?"
"I remember something… from before the curse. A name. A voice."
She leaned in, pulse quickening. "Whose voice?"
He looked toward her, as though he could see. "My uncle, Lord Veren. He was whispering to someone—about removing obstacles. About taking the throne 'by cleansing the line.'"
Lila felt a cold chill race through her. "He cursed you?"
"I think he's behind it. I think he's behind Elira's death, too."
The pieces clicked together in Lila's mind. The attack in the garden. The assassins. The ancient curse. Someone wanted Cassian gone—and her, too, now that she stood in Elira's place.
"We have to expose him," she said.
Cassian nodded. "We will."
She reached for the water again, letting its coolness wrap around her fingers. It responded eagerly now, a friend rather than a stranger. It didn't blaze like fire, but it carried strength in its depths. Quiet power. Hidden strength.
Just like her.
Tomorrow, she would ask Isolde to guide her to the Earth King.
And after that, the King of Storms.
End of Chapter 6