Not This Time,My Lord

The floor was cold. Stone soaked in piss and blood. My blood. My magic. My name. They'd stripped me of everything. My title. My dignity. My power. And him. I used to say I didn't care. That losing Kael meant nothing to me. That I had no heart left to break. But that was a lie. Because when Kael stepped into the dungeon-armor dusted in ash from the last border raid-I felt everything I'd tried to bury rise like wildfire beneath my ribs. Even now, half-starved and knee-deep in rot, I still noticed the way his black cloak curled in the air like smoke.

Still felt the aching pull in my chest when his boots struck the stone like thunder. Still hated that he looked like a god while I was dying like a dog. "You asked for this," he said. His voice was calm. Cold. Clear. Like ice cracking across a lake. He didn't step past the glowing magical barrier that sealed me in. Not even close. He kept his distance like I was some kind of monster. Like I hadn't once been the woman he whispered to beneath moonlight. Like I hadn't once burned for him. Kael didn't look at me like he used to. Not with longing. Not with pity. Not even with hate. He looked... hollow. And somehow, that hurt more than if he'd spat in my face. Then he reached into his cloak. Pulled out a scroll. And tossed it through the barrier. It hit the dirt softly. Almost gently. Like a farewell kiss. I didn't need to open it. I knew what it was. Divorce. That word landed harder than the chains ever could. ⸻ I Never Cried. Until Now. "You're finally letting me go," I said, voice hoarse from thirst, not emotion. Kael's jaw flexed. "You let yourself go, Elaria. A long time ago." It was the first time he'd spoken my name in months. The first time it didn't sound like a prayer or a curse. Just... a fact. That's when I knew he was done. Not angry. Not grieving. Done. And something inside me cracked open. Not because I loved him-not then. Not the way he deserved. But because I realized I'd been wrong. Wrong about Seren. Wrong about him. Wrong about what love really looked like. Seren's whispers, her warnings, her half-truths about Kael's hunger for power-I swallowed them whole. Built a palace of suspicion and let it rot from the inside. And now it had collapsed. "She lied to me," I croaked. "About everything." Kael's eyes met mine. And for a moment, just a flicker, I saw him. The man who once held me like I was the only thing that made sense in a crumbling world. But that version of him vanished. "Too late," he said. "You believed her. You chose her." And then he turned. And walked away. ⸻ So This Is How I Die The guards didn't return. No one did. The silence in that dungeon settled around me like a funeral shroud. My limbs went cold. My heart slowed. My pulse thinned like smoke in the dark. This was it. Not a battlefield. Not a fiery duel. Just me. Alone. In chains. With regret bleeding from my bones. "Coward," I whispered. "You deserve this." I closed my eyes and waited. But death didn't come. Something else did. ⸻ The Voice Beneath the Veil "Elaria." It wasn't a sound. It was a force. A voice like shattered crystal and ancient wind, humming beneath my skin. I opened my eyes. Time had stopped. The torchlight froze mid-flicker. Even the drip from the ceiling hung in the air like a suspended tear. She stood in the center of it all. Cloaked in shadows. Face veiled. Eyes infinite. "Who are you?" I rasped. "You are bound to something older than pain," she said. "Older than this kingdom. Older than him." I tried to laugh. It came out as a cough. "Magic?" She tilted her head. "Fire and blood. But also something greater. You were once divine." The world trembled. I didn't believe her. Not really. But some part of me-the part buried under years of shame and softness-wanted to. She raised her hand. And the dungeon shattered. ⸻ Birth of the Second Beginning Warmth. Silk sheets. Golden drapes. The smell of honeyed tea and firewood. I sat up with a gasp. No chains. No blood. No pain. Just breath. And light. I stumbled to the mirror. There she was. The girl I used to be. Seventeen. Naïve. So easily led by Seren's poison. So quick to believe Kael didn't love me. I wanted to slap her. Instead, I touched the mirror and whispered, "Not this time." A knock came at the door. "My lady," a maid called brightly. "Happy birthday!" I blinked. Birthday. The day he proposed. The day everything began to rot. "Seren says to hurry," the maid added. "Lord Kael arrives soon." Of course he did. Even in this life, he still walked into my fire without hesitation. ⸻ Reflection and Resolve The perfume on my vanity was the same. Seren's gift. Crimson glass. "To make Kael obsessed," she'd once said with a wicked smile. I knocked it to the floor. It shattered. Like the illusion I'd lived in for too long. This time, I wouldn't be her pawn. This time, I'd see Kael with my own eyes. Not hers. This time, I'd make him fall in love with me-not because he still cared. But because I'd earn it. Because I wanted him. Gods, I wanted him. Not just as an apology. But as a man. ⸻ The Beginning of the Fire I descended the stairs in silence. The palace buzzed beneath me. Music played. Servants danced around the edges of my vision. And then the horns sounded. He was here. Kael. My stomach twisted. He stepped into the hall, tall and devastating in black. Eyes sharp. Presence like a storm wrapped in silence. His gaze found me instantly. He didn't smile. Neither did I. "Happy birthday," he said, voice velvet and steel. "Feels more like fate," I answered, lips curling. He raised an eyebrow. The faintest flicker of interest. I leaned in just slightly, just enough to breathe him in. His scent hadn't changed. And for one terrifying second, I wanted to kiss him. Right there. Before I remembered he didn't know me. Not really. Not yet. ⸻ The Twist Beneath the Surface Later that night, while Seren slithered her way into the ballroom and Kael's eyes drifted to me again longer this time, heavier I felt something shift beneath my skin. A flicker of heat. Magic. Rage. And power. My hand burned. I turned, startled, and saw the scorch mark left on the chair I'd just touched. It wasn't an accident. I wasn't just back. I was different. Awakened. Rewritten in fire. ⸻ This Time, I Burn The prophecy they feared? They were wrong about it. It didn't speak of a child who would destroy kingdoms. It spoke of rebirth. A queen of fire and ruin. A child born of flame and frost, destined to unify a world torn in two. And Kael? He wasn't just a man I once loved. He was the other half of the prophecy. But if he didn't remember... I'd make him fall again. Burn for me again. And if Seren or anyone else got in my way this time? They'd learn firsthand what it meant to betray a woman reborn in fire. Because I wasn't the same girl they broke. I was the legend they should've killed when they had the chance. And I was just getting started. Kael's gaze lingered. Just a moment too long. Then he turned to greet my mother. Formal words. A nod. The same cold courtesy he always carried in public. But I saw it. The way his hand twitched when I moved. The way his eyes dropped to my wrist as though remembering the chains. The way he stood straighter, like bracing for a battle he didn't know was coming. I was no longer the girl who clung to her sister's lies. I was the storm she tried to drown. Kael didn't remember it. Yet. But I did. Every scar. Every silence. Every shattered truth. And I could already feel the clock ticking. "Lord Kael," Seren purred, materializing beside me. "You look... sharper than ever." Her smile was as polished as her emerald pendant. Her skin too smooth, her voice a little too warm. Glamour. It shimmered faintly around her, like oil on glass. She had used magic to change her face, but it couldn't hide the rot underneath. Kael's smile barely lifted. "Lady Seren." He didn't look at her twice. But I did. Because now I knew what I was looking for. The shadow behind her charm. The hunger behind her compliments. She thought I hadn't noticed her ring obsidian cut with blood-runes. The kind used in forbidden bargains. The kind that could rot your soul if worn too long. And suddenly I understood. This wasn't just about me or Kael anymore. Seren had made a deal. And whatever she traded, it wasn't enough. She needed something more. She needed me. The thought made my skin crawl. But I smiled anyway. Let her think I was still the same fool. Let her play her little games. Because I wasn't here to play anymore. The musicians began a soft melody. My mother clapped her hands. A servant guided us toward the ballroom. Kael offered me his arm. My pulse quickened, but I placed my hand on his sleeve. The same sleeve I had once stained with tears and blood and fire. "Are you ready?" he asked. I glanced up at him. And for a second, I saw the man he could've become...if I hadn't ruined him. If I hadn't believed her. "Not even close," I whispered. He frowned. But then I leaned closer, just enough for my breath to kiss the edge of his jaw. Just enough to make him still. "I remember everything," I murmured. Then I walked past him. He didn't follow right away. He just stood there. Frozen. Like I'd set a match to the past and dared him to watch it burn. I didn't look back. Because the girl who used to beg for love was gone. And the woman who replaced her? She was about to start a war.