Chapter 6: The Hunt Begins

The hounds of the abyss emerged from the shadows, their red eyes glowing like embers in the dark. Their blackened fur rippled with unnatural energy, their twisted claws digging into the earth as they prowled closer. Each breath they exhaled came out as a thick, inky mist—a mark of the Dark King’s corruption.

Seraphina’s pulse pounded in her ears. They weren’t just beasts. They were creatures of pure darkness—soulless, relentless, unstoppable.

Cassian tensed beside her, already reaching for his sword despite his injuries. Kael muttered a curse, rolling his shoulders as he readied his daggers.

“We can’t outrun them,” Cassian said, his voice low and urgent. “We have to fight.”

Seraphina’s fingers curled around the air, summoning a sphere of crackling blue fire in her palm. “Then we make them regret finding us.”

The first hound lunged.

Seraphina threw her fireball, watching as it exploded against the creature’s hide. The impact sent it crashing into a tree, flames licking at its fur—but the beast did not burn. Instead, it howled in agony, its body twisting as it absorbed the flames.

Seraphina’s heart clenched. Magic didn’t work on them.

Cassian swore and dove forward, his sword cutting through the air with lethal precision. His blade found its mark, slicing through the hound’s throat in a single stroke. The creature let out a strangled snarl before it collapsed, black ichor pooling beneath it.

Kael was already moving. He spun, his twin daggers a blur of silver as he slashed through another hound’s side. The creature shrieked, its form shuddering as it tried to recover—but Kael was faster. He buried one of his daggers into the beast’s skull, twisting it before yanking it free.

Seraphina turned just in time to see another hound leap straight for her.

She barely had a moment to react before Cassian shoved her aside.

The beast’s razor-sharp claws ripped across his shoulder, and he groaned in pain, stumbling back as blood bloomed across his tunic.

Rage surged through Seraphina.

She lifted her hands, summoning magic that was older than the stars themselves. A surge of pure celestial energy crackled between her fingers, golden veins of light dancing up her arms.

With a cry, she thrust her palms forward.

A wave of light erupted from her fingertips, slamming into the remaining hounds. This time, the creatures did not absorb it.

They screamed—an unholy, earsplitting wail—as the divine magic tore through them, disintegrating them into nothing but ash.

The silence that followed was deafening.

Cassian staggered, blood dripping from his shoulder, his breath ragged. “You… haven’t used that kind of magic before.”

Seraphina’s fingers trembled. Neither had she.

Kael wiped his blade on his cloak, looking between them. “We need to move before more of them come.”

Cassian nodded weakly. “There’s a hidden refuge in the valley. We can rest there.”

Seraphina hesitated, but then she saw the pain flickering in Cassian’s stormy eyes. He was strong, but he wasn’t invincible—and after what she had just done, neither was she.

She exhaled sharply. “Then let’s go.”

As they disappeared into the night, a pair of crimson eyes watched from the treetops, hidden in the darkness.

The Dark King knew where they were.

And he was coming for them.

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