𝗖𝘆𝗿𝗮 𝗨𝗻𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱: 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗲𝗽𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗺 - •°Chapter 2: A Pawn's Demise°•

Nadia held her second-born with trembling hands, cradling the tiny form against her chest as a storm of emotions churned within her — awe, wonder, fear. The child’s warmth against her skin grounded her, but her mind raced with the enormity of what had just come to pass. A Nephalem. Something that should not exist.

King Zarius had departed for an urgent council meeting with the Devil Lords, leaving her alone with the child, and with her spiraling thoughts. The silence in the chamber felt both peaceful and unnerving, amplifying her fears.

She whispered softly, her voice quivering as she looked into her daughter's small, peaceful face. “I swear to protect you, always. I won’t let anyone beyond our family know of you. You are safe with me.”

Her wings instinctively curled slightly around the child, as though to shield her from a world she knew could be cruel and unforgiving. The weight of her promise settled heavily on her heart, but her resolve was unshaken. No matter what came, she would protect her daughter.

The baby's unusual features only strengthened Nadia’s resolve. Snow-white hair framed her tiny face, while two small black horns peeked gently from her head. Her pale skin glowed softly under the flicker of her delicate, faint halo. A slender devil’s tail curled and twitched lazily at her side. Most striking of all were her wings — one pure white, resting on her right, and one deep black, folded against her left — a living embodiment of the impossible union between light and darkness.

As Nadia whispered soothingly, cradling her daughter close, the infant stirred. Slowly, her eyes opened — and Nadia’s froze.

The left eye gleamed a vivid crimson — the Death Eye — while the right shimmered gold — the Life Eye. The contrast was breathtaking and unnerving, a combination that should not exist. This child was something far more than a mere mixture of their worlds; she was something wholly new. And dangerous.

Nadia’s heart ached with both awe and fear, but her resolve only deepened. No one must ever know. No one must ever take her away.

Staring into her daughter’s glowing gaze, the perfect name rose naturally to her lips. "You are Cyra," she whispered with quiet conviction. "And I will always protect you."

But even as she spoke, a faint tremor of unease gnawed at her soul — a silent warning she dared not acknowledge.

She would not be able to keep that promise.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

King Zarius had prepared a sanctum worthy of the Nephalem princess. The chamber radiated an unsettling beauty — its walls clad in dark, rich woods, and velvety black curtains embroidered with intricate silver threads that shimmered faintly under the dim glow. In the center stood a majestic crib, carved from a single, flawless slab of polished obsidian, its smooth surface gleaming under the ethereal light of floating orbs that hovered like silent sentinels, casting a soft, otherworldly radiance across the room.

After gently laying Cyra in the crib, Nadia brushed a strand of white hair from her daughter’s tiny face, her heart still heavy with anxious wonder. King Zarius placed a hand on her shoulder, his voice deceptively soft. “Wait for me in my chambers.”

Nadia nodded and quietly left, her wings brushing the curtain as she exited.

The moment she departed, a flash of red light burst into the room as Lloyd teleported in, his bright eyes wide with fascination. “Wow! She’s so tiny!” he gasped, rushing to the crib. His face lit up with childlike wonder. “Her horns are so cute! And her wings — they’re different! Can I touch them?”

King Zarius stood nearby, his expression unreadable as he observed the scene in silence.

Lloyd glanced up. “Father, what’s her name?”

“Cyra,” King Zarius replied, his deep voice steady and low.

“I love it!” Lloyd beamed. “It suits her perfectly!”

King Zarius gave a small nod, his gaze lingering on the infant Nephalem, studying her with a calculating stare. Then he turned to his son. “Stay here and watch your sister. I have matters to attend to.”

Lloyd nodded eagerly, still fixated on Cyra as she let out a soft, barely audible coo.

As King Zarius exited the sanctum, the shadows seemed to deepen around him, and his thoughts whispered darkly, 'The first phase is complete. Now... onto the second.'

With that, he vanished into the dark corridors, leaving Lloyd to watch over Cyra in the sanctum.

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.King Zarius entered his chambers — a grand, ominous expanse veiled in luxury and shadow. The floor gleamed with polished black marble, while flickering crimson candles lined the walls, casting long, shifting shadows that danced across ancient tomes secured behind black iron grilles. Symbols of forgotten power adorned the bindings, each pulsing faintly as if alive.

Nadia stood near the center of the room, wings folded close, her head slightly bowed, lost in uneasy thought. The tension in her shoulders betrayed the weight pressing upon her, though she tried to hold her composure.

The sound of King Zarius clearing his throat sliced through the silence. Nadia’s head snapped up instantly, her voice soft but edged with concern. “My king?”

King Zarius offered a practiced, tender smile — one that did little to hide the glint of something darker behind his eyes. “Come here, Nadia. I have something for you.”

Her wings fluttered slightly in hesitation, but she rose and stepped forward, each movement measured, cautious. Her gaze searched his face for clues, for any hint of what awaited her.

“Close your eyes, my dear,” he continued smoothly, his voice gentle — almost affectionate. “I have a gift. A surprise.”

Nadia's eyes narrowed briefly, but she obeyed, a faint unease prickling beneath her skin as she closed her eyes. Without warning, King Zarius seized her hand — his grip cold, firm, and utterly devoid of warmth. In a blink, the world around them dissolved, and they were wrenched through the fabric of space.

When Nadia's eyes snapped open, the sight before her stole the words from her lips.

A desolate, nightmarish expanse stretched endlessly beneath a sky choked with swirling crimson clouds. The air stank of brimstone and ash, thick and suffocating. Beneath her feet, the cracked, dry earth twisted as if alive, shifting like the brittle hide of some slumbering beast. In the distance, gnarled black trees rose like skeletal sentinels, their twisted branches clawing at the blood-colored sky. Their leaves pulsed faintly with an ominous, fiery glow, casting long, restless shadows across the barren landscape.

The deeper depths of Hell.

King Zarius’s smirk deepened as Nadia staggered back, her eyes wide with dread. “W-Where are we?” she whispered, her voice barely audible. Her gaze darted across the bleak, shifting landscape, panic rising like a storm within her.

He remained silent, his eyes locked onto her with unsettling stillness. The gleam in his gaze wasn’t just malevolent — it was hungry. Patient. Cold.

Nadia’s strength faltered beneath the oppressive weight of the place. Every breath — if one could even call it breath — felt heavier, as though the very air sought to sap her energy. Her legs wobbled, and she struggled to remain upright, her voice faint as she pleaded, “Why do I feel like this? What’s happening?”

King Zarius finally spoke, his voice smooth but edged with cruelty. “You feel weak because you are weak, Nadia. Here, in these depths, the light cannot reach you. Your power has no refuge.” He paused, letting the words settle like poison. “And I no longer have need of you.”

Her blood ran cold. The truth struck her with brutal clarity. All this time — his affection, his tenderness — a fabrication. She was never more than a pawn, carefully maneuvered into place.

She stumbled backward again as King Zarius conjured a dagger into existence — its form unnatural, pulsing with a sickly violet energy. The blackened blade glimmered with twisting runes that writhed like living creatures, feeding on the thick despair around them. This was no ordinary weapon; it was crafted for one purpose — annihilation.

“You served your purpose,” he continued, voice devoid of warmth. “You gave me what I desired. And now… your existence only complicates things.”

Nadia’s lip trembled. “Zarius… please… I—”

But mercy was never his intention.

He stepped forward with eerie grace, his expression frozen in detached indifference. "Goodbye, Nadia."

With a single, deliberate strike, he drove the dagger into her chest. The weapon cut through her essence like silk, bypassing flesh, bypassing bone — severing her very being. She gasped as her vision blurred, her energy bleeding into the suffocating darkness.

Her body crumpled to the scorched earth, rapidly dissolving into ash, until nothing remained but a faint, swirling wisp — a hollow echo of her existence. King Zarius watched, unflinching, as the last fragments of her light vanished into the cursed winds.

His smirk lingered.

The second phase was complete.

»»———————-　♔　———————-««

Nadia: "What's the plan for Cyra's education?"

King Zarius: "We'll start with 'Introduction to World Domination' and go from there."

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[A/N]: So... that happened 😗

Thanks for reading! ^^

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