The forest camp was quiet again after the assassins were driven off, but the air still felt heavy with the smell of blood and holy poison.Seraphine sat against a tree, wrapped in a thick cloak, one hand resting on her belly. The baby had finally calmed a little, but she looked pale and drained. Five and a half months pregnant, and the strain was showing on her face with every breath.Kane knelt a short distance away, not too close, afraid his presence might upset the baby again. His hands were still shaking from the fight. The golden spark had faded, but he could feel it lingering just under the surface, waiting for the next moment of weakness.Seraphine looked at him. Her red eyes were tired but steady. “You saved us tonight.”“I almost lost control,” he said quietly. The words came out raw, like they had been stuck in his throat for days. “When I saw that blade coming toward you… I didn’t stop. Even after they were all dead–i kept going. Vesper looked at me like I was a monster.”H

Seraphine sat alone in the quiet corner of the safe house they had found deep in the hills. The baby was kicking again—hard, restless movements that made her wince with every shift. Six months pregnant, and she felt like she was carrying the weight of the entire world inside her.The latest attack had left her shaken. The holy poison from the assassins still lingered in her system, making the baby’s magic clash violently with her own shadow power. She placed both hands on her belly and whispered, “Easy, little one. Mama’s here. We’re going to be okay.”Mira sat nearby, watching her with worried eyes. “You’ve been quiet since we got here. The baby… is it getting worse?”Seraphine nodded slowly. “Every time Kane uses his power, even from far away, the baby fights. It’s like there are two storms inside me. Shadow and death. They don’t want to share the same space.”She closed her eyes and reached deep inside herself, searching for something—anything that could help protect her child. The

Kael lay on the floor of the room, pinned by Seraphine’s shadows. The poisoned dagger had fallen from his hand, but the damage was already done. Seraphine clutched her belly, breathing hard as fresh pain tore through her. The baby was kicking violently, reacting to the sudden burst of holy poison in the air.Kane stood in the doorway, golden flecks sparking wildly in his eyes. “Kael,” he said, voice low and dangerous. “You tried to kill my child.”The boy looked up at him, tears in his eyes but no regret. “I had to. Duke Harrow promised… he said I could be normal again. The child is too dangerous. It will bring more death.”The golden flecks surged.It came fast this time, flooding Kane’s vision until the world looked colder, sharper, less human. The numbness spread through his chest like ice. He took one step forward, power crackling around his fingers. Bones shifted in the floor around Kael, sharp and ready.“You traitor,” Kane growled, the voice no longer fully his own.The Death K

Kane held Seraphine close in the middle of the ruined altar clearing, her head against his chest, one arm wrapped protectively around her belly. The night air was cold and thick with the smell of blood and burned shadows. The ritual circle Nyra had drawn was broken, Kael unconscious on the ground, but the damage was already done.Seraphine breathed in short, painful gasps, her hand never leaving her stomach. “It’s still fighting,” she whispered. “The baby… it feels like it’s trying to push through. Kane, I don’t know how much longer I can hold it.”He pressed his forehead to hers, his hands shaking. “I’m here. I’ve got you. Just breathe. Elias is coming.”Vesper and Mira were already helping Elias tend to her, the healer’s Codex glowing faintly as he worked to calm the early labor pains. Thorne circled overhead, unusually quiet. The group was battered, exhausted, but alive.Kane looked at the broken altar, at the blood and the faint red glow still pulsing in the runes. Nyra had escap

Seraphine’s scream tore through the ruins like a blade.She gripped Kane’s hand so hard her nails drew blood, her body arching off the makeshift blankets as another contraction ripped through her. Eight months and two weeks. She had carried this child through battles, poison, fear, and endless running. Now the baby had decided it was time.“It’s coming,” she gasped, sweat pouring down her face, dark hair plastered to her forehead. Her red eyes squeezed shut as the pain peaked, every muscle in her body burning like fire. The baby pushed hard, a fierce, determined pressure that made her feel like she was being split open from the inside.Kane knelt beside her, one arm supporting her back, the other crushed in hers. His face was pale, eyes wide with terror he couldn’t hide. “I’m here,” he whispered, voice raw. “Breathe with me. You’re so strong. She’s almost here.”Elias worked between her legs, hands steady but voice urgent. “Another big one is coming. Push when you feel it, Seraphine.