And that was when Meryn chose her moment.
My owl had followed silently, as always, a pale ghost weaving through the branches. She dropped lower now, settling on a branch just above the priestess’s head. Her golden eyes caught the faint glow of the priestess’s fire as she stared down, unafraid and curious.
My enemy smiled softly, despite her obvious exhaustion, and reached out further, her fingers brushing against Meryn’s feathers.
“There, now,” the priestess murmured, her voice barely audible in the quiet of the forest. “It’s alright. You’re a beautiful one, aren’t you?”
Meryn tilted her head, watching her closely before hopping down onto the priestess’s arm, her talons light against the priestess’s skin.
A faint smile touched my lips as I watched the scene.
The Sun Priestess, unaware that she was petting the familiar of the very creature she had spent years hunting.
And yet, there was something tender about the moment,something I couldn’t tear my eyes away from. It was the way she smiled—soft, genuine, despite the battle and weariness that weighed her down.
Her golden hair, usually glowing with the power of the sun, now hung loose and tangled over her shoulders, reflecting the faint moonlight that dared to filter through the canopy.
She looked… human. Fragile.
For a moment, she was not High Priestess, not Phoenix, not enemy.
And that realization unsettled me more than any blade ever had.
The priestess yawned softly, her eyes fluttering closed as she leaned back against the tree, her body sinking deeper into exhaustion.
Meryn remained perched on her arm for a moment longer before spreading her wings and taking flight, disappearing into the dark trees above.
The priestess didn’t seem to notice, her breathing slowing, as though she might slip into sleep even here, in the heart of her enemy’s domain.
I could not allow that.
With a silent command, the shadows responded to my will, slithering out from the forest floor like living smoke. They coiled around her wrists and ankles, binding her to the tree before she could fully succumb to sleep.
Her eyes snapped open, her entire body tensing as she tried to move. Panic flashed across her face as she pulled against the restraints, but the shadows held her fast.
“What—” She struggled, her breath coming in shallow gasps as her eyes darted around the darkened forest. “Who’s there? Show yourself!”
I stepped forward, letting the shadows peel away from me as I revealed myself to her.
The moonlight that dappled through the leaves above turned me parts of me incorporeal, while the rest of me stayed cloaked in shadow, producing an effect that seemed to disorientate her.
Good. It would work to my advantage if my captive was confused. Raising a hand, I tightened the shadows that bound her.
I stood just a few feet away now, close enough to see the confusion and anger in her golden eyes.
“Let me go!” she demanded, her voice sharper now as she tried to summon her power.
A faint golden light flickered across her skin, but it sputtered out just as quickly as it had appeared. She was too weak, too exhausted from the earlier battle to summon the full might of her sun powers.
I took another step forward, close enough to see the rapid flutter of her pulse at her throat. Close enough to hear her breath catch as the shadows tightened their grip.
And though she was bound, though I had won, I felt no triumph.
Only a strange, inexplicable pull, as though her fire had already reached deeper into me than it had any right to.
I watched her for a moment, my expression unreadable. “You’re in no position to make demands.”
She froze at the sound of my voice, her eyes narrowing as she took me in.
