Scarlet chains

Chapter 14

Chapter 14---Echoes of the past

Nova collapsed to the floor, panting. The magic inside her pulsed erratically, like it had a mind of its own.

Then—*a blinding flash.*

Her body stilled.

Her glowing eyes rolled back, and suddenly, *she was somewhere else*.

Not just *somewhere*—*somewhen*.

---

*Flash — Cayden's Past*

A younger Cayden stood in a war-torn forest, soaked in blood. He was holding a little girl with glowing eyes—Nova.

He whispered, "I'll protect you. Even if they erase me for it."

Behind him, people in black cloaks surrounded them. He growled—and turned into a massive white wolf.

---

*Flash — Dominic's Past*

A child, cold and alone, in a golden cage.

A voice echoed: "You'll learn power through pain."

Years passed in seconds. Fights. Screams. A bloody throne.

Then older Dominic, kneeling before a vampire elder, saying, "I'll be stronger than them all. I'll make them bow."

The elder whispered, "Then find the chosen one, claim her. Own the power."

---

Nova gasped, snapping back to the present.

Both men were watching her.

She looked between them, breath shaky. "You've both lied to me."

Cayden stepped forward. "Nova—"

She backed away. "You knew who I was."

Nova's hands clenched at her sides.

Her breaths came faster.

Too many emotions. Too many truths. Her powers were still swirling, wild and unbalanced inside her.

Cayden reached for her. "Nova, slow down—your mind just time-jumped."

Dominic frowned. "You're overheating."

Nova opened her mouth to speak—

—but a sharp pain lanced through her skull.

*Drip.*

Blood trickled from her nose, running down her lip.

She blinked in confusion, then her knees buckled.

"Nova!" both men shouted in unison.

But it was too late.

Her body hit the floor.

Eyes rolled back.

Magic sparked around her like static lightning. The walls flickered. The air cracked.

Then—*stillness*.

Dominic growled, picking her up fast. "She's burning out."

Cayden's face was pale. "She went too deep too fast. She's not ready."

Dominic shot him a look. "Then make her ready."

Dominic was mid-step, Nova's body still sparking in his arms, when—

*she vanished.*

Right from his grip.

Gone.

Air rushed in with a *pop*, like the space she'd occupied had been vacuumed out.

He stared at his empty arms, frozen. "What the hell—"

Cayden backed away, shocked. "That wasn't her doing."

Dominic's jaw clenched. "No. That was *them*."

---

Dominics POV

She was gone. And he *felt it*. Not just in his arms—but in his blood.

Dominic punched the nearest wall. Cracks spread like veins.

"Where did they take her?"

Cayden was already pulling out a charmed blade. "If the Forgotten Order has her, we need to move. Fast."

Dominic glared. "*She was mine.*"

Cayden scoffed. "She was never yours, Dominic. You just kept pretending."

He didn't respond. He couldn't.

Because deep down, he knew…

*She didn't just vanish.*

*She was claimed.*

--

They went to his secret base where they planned wars.To try and pull up a strategy to find Nova.

*Some days later*

Dominic stood before the war table, maps and scrolls scattered, ancient texts glowing faintly under candlelight.

He hadn't slept in days.

He didn't need to.

*"Where did you go, Nova?"*

He'd torn apart three black markets, interrogated mages, bribed witches, and even summoned a shade from the underworld.

None of them knew where *The Forgotten Realm* hid her.

But he refused to believe she was gone for good.

Not her.

Not the girl with eyes like fire and bloodline of gods.

He crushed a crystal locator orb in his hand. *No trace.*

*"She's beyond the veil,"* a cloaked oracle finally whispered, "in a realm not bound by time, pulled by her spirit lineage. Only the marked may find her."

Dominic growled. "Then mark me."

The oracle laughed. "It doesn't work like that—"

He grabbed her throat. "Make. It. Work."

She wheezed. "The only one who can lead you there… is her."

He released her with a snarl, stepping back.

He hated this.

The waiting. The unknown. The fact that Cayden had known her longer… maybe deeper.

But she was *his* to protect—even if she didn't want it.