"The deepest wounds are not carved by enemies, but by the hands that once held yours."

********

The forest trembled beneath the weight of magic.

Silver light burst through the shattered doorway of the cottage, illuminating the faces of the creatures gathered outside. The wind howled violently between the trees as though nature itself feared what stood before the house.

Rosaline could barely breathe.

Her translucent form remained frozen near the overturned shelf while her eyes moved between the two identical women standing opposite each other.

Twins.

The realization echoed through her mind endlessly.

The same body

The same green eyes.

The same beauty.

Yet where her mother looked like moonlight...

the other woman looked like its shadow.

Selene stepped forward slowly, the dark fabric wrapped around her shoulders shifting against the cold wind. Unlike her sister, there was no softness left in her expression. Her eyes carried something sharper now. Something hungry.

"You still look at me like I can be saved," Selene said quietly.

Rosaline’s mother stared at her for a long moment before finally speaking.

"Because you are my sister."

The words struck harder than any spell.

For the briefest second, something flickered across Selene’s face.

Pain.

But it disappeared almost immediately.

"Do not say that as though it means anything anymore."

Her mother inhaled shakily.

"Selene..."

"No." Selene’s voice sharpened instantly. "You lost the right to speak my name like that the moment you chose them over me."

Rosaline frowned slightly.

Them?

Before she could think further, selene spoke again.

"Lysara."

The name settled heavily into the air.

Rosaline’s chest tightened.

Lysara.

Her mother’s name was Lysara.

Selene laughed softly at the way her sister looked right now.

"Still pretending to be merciful after all these years." Her gaze darkened. "You were always good at pretending."

Lysara stepped forward slowly despite the vampires surrounding the cottage.

"I never pretended with you."

"Then give me the box."

The warmth vanished entirely from the air.

Every vampire behind Selene became still.

Waiting.

Watching.

Lysara’s expression hardened immediately.

"No."

Selene tilted her head slightly.

"You would rather die protecting it?"

"You do not understand what you are asking for."

"I understand perfectly."

"No," Lysara said more firmly this time. "You understand power. That is different."

Selene’s eyes narrowed dangerously.

"And you think you deserve to decide who holds it?"

"I think no one should."

Silence fell briefly.

The vampires exchanged glances behind them while the wind continued screaming through the trees.

Then Selene smiled.

Coldly.

"That box does not belong buried in some forgotten forest."

"It does not belong in the hands of someone willing to use blood magic."

At that, the atmosphere shifted violently.

Several vampires tensed instantly.

Selene’s expression darkened with terrifying speed.

Rosaline could feel the hatred between them now.

Not fresh hatred.

Old hatred.

The kind built over years of betrayal.

"You still speak as though you stand above me," Selene whispered.

Lysara’s eyes softened unexpectedly.

"No," she answered quietly. "I speak like someone mourning her sister."

The words struck harder than any attack could have.

Selene’s jaw tightened sharply.

"You should have mourned me long ago."

Then magic exploded.

Dark crimson energy burst from Selene’s hand in a violent wave that shattered the remaining windows instantly. Lysara reacted just as quickly, silver light erupting around her body like a shield forged from moonlight itself.

The collision shook the entire cottage.

Rosaline stumbled backward in shock as books flew from shelves and furniture splintered apart beneath the force.

Outside, the forest groaned.

The vampires retreated several steps immediately.

Even they feared the magic between the twins.

Lysara raised her hand sharply, sending dozens of glowing silver symbols spiraling through the air toward Selene.

Selene smiled.

Then sliced her palm open with one claw-like nail.

Blood dripped onto the floor.

The moment it touched the wood, dark red magic erupted upward like living shadows.

Rosaline’s eyes widened.

The spells collided midair with an explosion so violent that the ceiling beams cracked.

"You are poisoning yourself!" Lysara shouted over the chaos.

Selene laughed bitterly.

"And whose fault is that?"

More blood dripped from her hand.

The crimson magic surrounding her thickened instantly.

Rosaline could feel how wrong it was.

The power carried hunger.

Violence and death.

Lysara’s face filled with horror.

"You used the forbidden rites..."

"I used what worked."

"It destroys the soul!"

"And yet here I stand." Selene fired back immediately.

Selene thrust both hands forward violently.

Dark spikes of magic tore across the room.

Lysara blocked most of them, but one pierced through her defenses and slammed directly into her side.

Rosaline screamed instinctively.

"Mother!"

No one heard her.

Lysara crashed against the wall hard enough to splinter wood behind her.

Blood spilled from her lips instantly.

Still...

she stood.

Rosaline stared at her mother in horror.

Even wounded, Lysara immediately raised another shield before the vampires could advance toward her.

Selene’s expression flickered briefly.

Not triumph.

Frustration.

"You were always stubborn."

"And you were always impatient."

Silver light burst outward from Lysara’s body so fiercely that several vampires hissed and stepped backward.

One covered his face as the light burned against his skin.

Selene narrowed her eyes.

"Enough."

Suddenly the vampires moved.

Three rushed into the cottage immediately, their crimson eyes scanning every corner of the room.

"Find the box," Selene ordered coldly.

Rosaline’s panic surged instantly.

The hidden passage.

Florence.

Little Saline. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

The vampires overturned shelves violently while others ripped through drawers and furniture.

Books scattered everywhere.

One vampire snarled in frustration.

"It’s not here."

Selene’s expression darkened.

"Search again."

Another vampire approached carefully.

"The child is gone."

Silence.

Pure deadly silence.

Then Selene slowly turned toward Lysara.

"You gave it away."

Lysara wiped blood from her mouth weakly but smiled anyway.

"You are never going to find her."

Something terrifying entered Selene’s face then.

Not rage.

Obsession.

"She cannot hide from me forever."

"She can," Lysara whispered painfully, "if the forest protects her."

Selene’s eyes flashed crimson.

"Search the god-damned forest." She shrieked at the vampires.

The vampires vanished immediately into the darkness outside.

Rosaline felt sick watching them disappear between the trees.

The forest that once looked beautiful now felt horrifying.

Meanwhile Lysara collapsed to one knee, struggling to breathe.

Blood stained the front of her pale dress while silver light flickered weakly around her body.

Rosaline rushed toward her instinctively despite knowing she could not touch her.

"Please..." she whispered desperately. "Please get up..."

But her mother could not hear her.

Selene stepped closer slowly.

For the first time since arriving, uncertainty crossed her face as she looked down at her wounded sister.

"You should have joined me."

Lysara laughed weakly despite the blood leaving her lips.

"You mistake power for freedom."

"And you mistake weakness for kindness."

Lysara lifted tired green eyes toward her twin.

"No, Selene." Her voice softened painfully. "I mistake nothing anymore."

Something flickered across Selene’s face again.

Pain and regret.

Then it vanished beneath coldness once more.

Suddenly...

the memory shifted.

Rosaline gasped as the world around her blurred violently.

The shattered cottage faded.

The fighting disappeared.

And another scene formed.

Darkness.

Cold stone.

Rainwater dripping somewhere deep underground.

Florence stumbled through the forest desperately while clutching little Saline tightly against her chest. The silver-wrapped box remained pressed beneath one arm while branches scratched violently against her skin as she ran.

The child cried softly against her shoulder.

"I want Mother..."

Florence’s breathing turned ragged.

"She’s coming," she lied shakily. "She’ll come soon."

Behind them...

growls echoed through the forest.

The vampires were close.

Too close.

Florence looked back once in terror before running faster.

Then suddenly...

the ground beneath her gave way.

She screamed.

Rosaline’s eyes widened as Florence and the child fell violently through darkness before crashing hard against damp stone below.

The box slipped from Florence’s grasp.

Saline cried loudly in fear.

And somewhere deep inside the cave...

something ancient opened its eyes.