The air inside Jasmine Manor’s study was suffocating, heavy with the stench of impending doom. SeventhSight stood at the center of the room, flanked by me, Aria, and Eliana.
Eliana’s piercing green eyes locked onto SeventhSight’s with desperate intensity. Her voice fell low, trembling beneath a fragile coat of urgency. “SeventhSight, tell me… what progress has Erebus made?”
Before he could answer, she abruptly stopped, catching her breath as if the truth itself might crush her. Beside her, Aria remained frozen, her wide eyes glittering with terror as her slender fingers dug into her mother’s arm. I kept my eyes fixed on Eliana, my own heart hammering against my ribs at the escalating tension.
“Does he still plan to summon the Devourer in three lunar cycles?” Eliana pressed, her composure fraying.
Silence swallowed the study. SeventhSight glanced briefly at me before turning back to Eliana.
“We fought Oblivion recently,” SeventhSight said, his tone grim.
Eliana’s breath hitched. “Yes… and what did the entity reveal?”
SeventhSight paused, gathering the heavy weight of his words. “That Erebus seeks the Devourer… and the deadline remains three lunar cycles.”
“Oblivion spoke of this?” Aria whispered, her voice barely audible.
SeventhSight nodded gravely. “Erebus serves it, fueling Oblivion with the souls of the fallen.”
The color drained completely from Eliana’s face. “Then Erebus will stop at nothing… when he spared my life, it was nothing more than a calculated deception.”
Aria tightened her grip on her mother, panic lacing her voice. “Mother, what does he want from you?”
“SeventhSight,” Eliana said, her eyes burning with a sudden, tragic clarity. “He wants me to betray you… to tear down your father’s legacy through you.”
My eyes narrowed, catching the critical detail. “Your father’s legacy?” I murmured softly.
Eliana ignored the question, pressed forward by time running out. “He spared me for a reason—for the night before the summoning ritual officially begins. The full ritual may be three lunar cycles away, but the foundation is set tonight.”
SeventhSight’s jaw tightened. “We cut the head off the snake. We stop Erebus first.”
“Then do we strike his stronghold tonight?” Eliana urged.
He hesitated, shaking his head. “No. Thea and I already launched an assault on his stronghold.”
Eliana’s eyes widened in shock. “Recently?”
“Yes,” SeventhSight confirmed. “He was severely weakened, but his dark power regenerates every night. We need to know his immediate move.”
Eliana fell silent, pacing for a brief moment before coming to a sudden halt. “If Oblivion told you he acts tonight… I suspect he is heading to Blackwood Cemetery.”
SeventhSight stepped forward, his expression sharp. “Why there?”
“Your father is buried there,” Eliana’s voice dropped to a sinister whisper. “His soul remains tethered to the earth.”
A chill ran down SeventhSight’s spine, a visible shock rippling through him. “My father’s soul… Erebus wants it?”
“Yes,” Eliana confirmed, nodding slowly. “He needs that essence to fully anchor and summon the Devourer.”
Aria gasped softly, burying her face slightly behind her mother’s shoulder. I took a decisive step closer to SeventhSight, raw determination washing over my concern. “We don’t have a choice. We go to Blackwood Cemetery… now.”
Outside Jasmine Manor, the night crashed down like a dark omen.
As SeventhSight turned toward the exit, Eliana reached out, her hand violently clutching his sleeve. “SeventhSight, beware. Erebus holds more leverage than you know. He has Aria’s twin sister—taken years ago.”
SeventhSight turned to me, catching the shock in my gaze. He gave a grim nod, confirming the dark memory before turning back to lead the way out.
We crossed the threshold of Jasmine Manor, the heavy wooden doors shutting behind us like the lid of a tomb. The night air was thick, suffocating, and laced with foreboding. SeventhSight set a fast, relentless pace through the dark, with Eliana and Aria following closely behind.
The gnarled trees of the forest closed in around us like looming sentinels, blocking out what little moonlight managed to pierce the clouds. Up ahead, jagged, ghostly gravestones emerged from the creeping fog like shattered teeth rising from the soil. A bitter wind howled through the iron gates of Blackwood Cemetery, whispering SeventhSight’s father’s name into the darkness…
“SeventhSight…” I whispered, drawing my weapon as the shadows around the graves began to twist. “We’re here.”
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