The air in Sabrah was thick with ancient magic. Its towers shimmered in soft violet hues, and protective wards pulsed quietly around the hidden forest city of the witches. Deep in the Moonweaver Hall, Queen Vantessa stood at the center of a summoning circle, her emerald eyes glowing with prophecy.
Before her, Maika and Carl Landon appeared through the teleportation portal, summoned by an urgent summons they dared not refuse.
Carl's arms crossed, tense. "You called for us, Your Majesty."
Queen Vantessa gave them no pleasantries.
> "The Crimson Order is moving."
The words dropped like a blade.
Maika's brows furrowed. "I thought they were disbanded."
> "They never disbanded," Vantessa replied coolly. "They simply waited. Watching. Building. Their eyes are set on the bloodline of Lucille, eighth and last child of Lucifer and his only bride, Corinne."
Carl scoffed under his breath. "Why?."
> "mission" Vantessa said, voice sharp. "Her bloodline continues in secret. And from her line, a mage with revival magic will be born—the key to unsealing Lucifer's soul."
Maika inhaled sharply. "You think that mage is alive now?"
Vantessa stepped forward. "I believe they are not only alive... they are already stirring."
She turned her gaze toward Maika, a strange flicker passing through her eyes.
> "There is more. The Order is searching for wielders of black flame—a power only Lucille's blood could manifest. And you, Maika… are the only known living mage to have summoned it."
The room fell into cold silence.
Carl stepped in. "She only used it to protect Caveen."
> "Intent does not shield you from interest," Vantessa said. "The Crimson Order will come to you. They will offer you alliance. Revere you. Perhaps even seek to manipulate your son."
Maika's voice was tight. "They will regret it."
> "You must do more than resist. They will bring back the dead."
Carl's eyes flashed with fury. "We've served this realm for centuries."
> "And that is why I am warning you instead of condemning you. As Queen of the Witches, I do not make this decision lightly."
She took a scroll from her sleeve—sealed with Witch Empress—placing it in Maika's hands.
> "This bears their decree. Be vigilant. Should the Order come, you are to send word through the Carello fire immediately."
Maika looked down at the scroll, then back to the queen. "And if the mage they're looking for… is closer than we think?"
Vantessa paused, her eyes unreadable. "Then may the stars have mercy on us all."
---
That night, back in Santossa, Maika sat in her study, staring at the sealed scroll, the candlelight flickering against her face.
She remembered her daughter's eyes—Elira's strange aura, the way the wind once bent around her.
She was only a baby. She had died.
Hadn't she?
Carl entered quietly. "We'll protect Caveen. Whatever it takes."
Maika didn't look up. Her hand hovered over a flicker of black flame that danced above her palm, whispering a truth no one dared speak aloud.
> "We've already lost a daughter. We won't lose another child… to prophecy."
Maika's fingers trembled as she opened one of the oldest grimoires from the Carello archives. The pages were brittle, stained with time and magic, yet they whispered truths far too dangerous to ignore.
She paused at an entry, her heart skipping a beat as she read aloud the text, the weight of its words pressing down on her chest.
> "Lucille, the eighth child of Lucifer and Corinne. The first to bear the black flame. A power so dangerous that it could not be contained. It is said that her bloodline carries the flame, dormant, until awakened by great grief or sacrifice. Those who seek the flame will stop at nothing to revive Lucifer. One day, the black flame will rise again, but only through the descendants of Lucille."
The flame flickered, casting shadows that danced on the walls as the words settled deep within her.
The black flame.
She had seen it before—sensed its presence in her blood, a dark whisper of power that had always haunted her. But what did it mean? How could it be linked to Lucille? And why was it so important?
Maika leaned in closer to the book, her gaze narrowing as she absorbed every word, every detail.
> "The descendants of Lucille are marked, born with the black flame within them. They are destined to awaken the flame and, in doing so, could either bring destruction or salvation."
Her breath caught in her throat. If the descendants of Lucille were real, then it meant that there were others—others who carried the same dangerous power that could either destroy or save the world. And if the Crimson Order sought them, then they were more than just a threat—they were a ticking time bomb.
She slammed the book shut, her mind racing. She had to find them. She had to stop the Order before they could carry out whatever dark plan they had in store.
---
The next day, Maika left her sanctuary in the dead of night, her footsteps silent as she made her way to a secluded part of the estate. Carl, her ever-watchful husband, had not questioned her odd behavior in recent weeks, but Maika knew he would soon.
She didn't have time to explain. Not yet.
She found herself in front of the library's secret entrance, hidden deep beneath the ground, accessible only by a series of arcane symbols. The chamber held the ancient records of her ancestors—records that detailed every known bloodline, every descendant, every alliance forged or broken in the name of magic.
Her fingers brushed over the worn symbols as she recited the incantation. The door creaked open with a soft sigh, and Maika stepped into the dimly lit chamber. The smell of dust and old parchment filled the air. She moved with purpose, her eyes scanning the rows of shelves, seeking the one record she knew would contain the answers she desperately needed.
There, tucked away in a far corner of the room, was a tome bound in dark leather. She could feel its presence before she even touched it. It hummed with a dark energy that matched the black flame she had sensed within herself.
Opening the book, she searched through its pages, scanning for any mention of Lucille's descendants. She stopped at a passage that seemed to pulse with ancient power.
> "The descendants of Lucille were scattered across the realms, hidden from the eyes of those who would seek to control them. Among them, there are whispers of a child born under the blood moon, marked by the flame of her ancestors. She will be the one to awaken the power of the black flame, to either bind it or unleash it."