Aurora's POV
The air around me was thick and heavy, like breathing in liquid darkness. Each step I took sank into the blackened ground, a chilling mist curling around my ankles as if it wanted to drag me under.
Behind me, Lucien halted at the gates of the Shadow Realm. The jagged, obsidian pillars loomed high above, glowing faintly with runes that pulsed like a heartbeat.
“This is as far as I go,” Lucien said, his voice tense, almost pained. His golden eyes glimmered with warning. “If Damion sees me here, in this place… he’ll lose whatever control he has left. His wolf will turn on you, and he’ll never come back.”
I turned to him, fear and determination warring inside me. “You expect me to face him alone?” My voice trembled, though I tried to keep it steady.
Lucien’s jaw tightened. “Y
