"They think I'm the monster that will get them all killed," Ethan said, his voice low and rough as he stood at the edge of the hidden camp. "Maybe they're right."Flickering torches cast long shadows over the cluster of tents nestled in a rocky ravine. Evelyn stayed close, her hand brushing his arm.A grizzled outcast named Garrick stepped forward first, arms crossed tight. "You bring the beast with you. Malakar's dogs are already sniffing closer because of your kind. Why should we risk our necks for one man and his sister?""Because I'm not just one man anymore," Ethan shot back, meeting the man's hard stare. "I've seen what the Church does. They drain souls to prop up a dead empire. My mother is one of them. Yours could be next."Garrick laughed, bitter and short. "We've all lost people. Doesn't mean we roll over and die for your revenge. Look around. These are survivors. Not soldiers."Evelyn cut in, her voice trembling but fierce. "You think we wanted this? I hunted my own brother

"I sold pieces of my soul to them long before I pointed a blade at you," Evelyn confessed, her voice cracking in the dim tent light. "And I still don't know if I can forgive myself."Ethan sat across from her, the weight of her words pressing down harder than any wound. A single lantern flickered between them, casting harsh shadows on her pale face.Ethan leaned forward, fists clenched on his knees. "Tell me everything. No more hiding. How did they get to you? How deep did it go?"Evelyn looked away, tears already forming. "Mom started asking questions two years ago. Small things at first. Why the soul tithes kept rising. Then they came for her in the night. Dragged her away while I watched from the cupboard like a coward.""You were protecting your daughter," Ethan said, though the words tasted bitter. "I get that. But you hunted me, Ev. You almost handed me over.""I know," she whispered, voice thick with guilt. "They showed me her soul shard. Just a flicker in their machine. Said s

"I can teach you to touch souls without breaking them," Lira said, her voice steady but eyes haunted as she faced Ethan in the secluded clearing. "But only if you stop treating the power like a weapon."Ethan stood opposite her, sweat already beading despite the cool air. Evelyn watched from the edge, arms crossed tight. Thorne rested nearby, still recovering."You don't understand," Ethan replied, frustration thick. "Umbra wants blood. Every time I reach for the energy, he pushes for destruction."Lira stepped closer, her former Church robes tattered but her posture regal. "I wore those same robes once. I drained souls for them. Gentle or brutal, the result was the same. Empty shells. I won't teach you if you only want another way to kill."Evelyn interrupted. "He needs this, Lira. For Mom. For all of us. But he's right. The beast inside doesn't do gentle.""I do now," Ethan said, meeting Lira's gaze. "After the ambush. I held

"Take it from me," Ethan said, stepping forward to face the towering shadow of the shrine guardian. "My blood. My soul. Whatever you want. Just let them in."The ancient stones pulsed with faint, hungry light. Refugees huddled behind him. Evelyn leaned heavily on Calla, blood seeping through her bandage. Malakar’s scouts shouted in the distance, closing fast.The guardian's voice boomed like cracking stone. "The Tenth's heir offers freely? Many have tried. None left whole."Lira moved beside Ethan, voice urgent. "Careful. This place remembers old prices. It might take more than you mean to give.""I don't care," Ethan replied, eyes locked on the guardian. "They're dying out here. Evelyn's wound. The storm. We need sanctuary now."Evelyn reached for him weakly. "Not your soul. You've already given so much. Let me be the price instead.""No," he snapped back, turning to her. "I lead. I pay. You live. That's the deal I made with myself."Garrick gripped his axe, glancing back at the peri

If you push yourself like that again, Ethan, I swear I will tie you to this stone myself and let Malakar find us.Evelyn's voice cracked, sharp and trembling in the damp air of the ancient Tenth shrine, her hands hovering anxiously over the jagged tear in Ethan's tunic where dark, ethereal residue still hissed against his skin.I had no choice, Evelyn, Ethan rasped back, his breath hitching as a violent shiver racked his frame. If I hadn't sealed the outer wards when I did, Malakar's scouts would have breached the courtyard before we even caught our breath. We would all be dead.And what good are we if you kill yourself getting us here? Evelyn fired back, her eyes shining with unshed tears that she stubbornly blinked away. You are bleeding out from the inside, Ethan. Your soul shard is tearing you apart, and you are standing there acting like you just scraped your knee. Look at me. Look at my eyes. You are not invincible, no matter how many times