The door opened, and Alma stepped in, wiping her face. She looked up to see Carter staring at her, her brows furrowed.

"Lord Carter?" she called.

The man blinked, caught off guard. "How is she faring?" he asked.

Alma shrugged, "She'll live. Of course, she's feisty, but it can be tamed," she replied calmly, stepping closer to the man.

"How's the palace?" she asked.

Carter shook his head. "The king has lost his mind," he began. "The entire kingdom is on lockdown. There are warriors searching each carriage, each cabin, every abandoned house. He's doing everything to find her."

Alma's brows raised. "Even after the chaos she caused?" She shook her head. "Didn't he say his people were the most important to him? Now they aren't all that important even though she killed a dozen of his men," she said.

"While I know he's never finding her, I'm inclined to wonder, just what she is," Carter said.

"What do you mean, Lord Carter?" Alma asked.

"A true sage can't be corrupted. That girl, the things she did. I was there and I saw it all unfold. How can such a woman be a sage?" he scoffed, remembering how violent and dangerous she'd been. "A sage is a divine being, a holy vessel to all other realms. The direct hand of the goddess. How then can a sage be—"

"It's not our job to speculate what the goddess was thinking making her a sage, Lord Carter. What matters is what we can do with her."

Alma stepped closer, lowering her voice as she spoke. "You saw it yourself—the destruction she left in her wake. No ordinary wolf, no witch, not even a Lycan could have summoned that kind of power. The crest responded to her, too. It glowed the moment she was near. It glows only for sages."

Carter hesitated, his jaw tightening as the memories flashed in his mind yet again. "That girl... she didn't look divine. She looked like a monster."

Alma's smile widened. "Exactly. Which makes her perfect." She leaned in. "It doesn't matter what else she is. It doesn't matter if she has something else in her or if she simply lost control. As long as her body can withstand all fifteen curses of Khaos and still hold his power, she is the vessel we've been waiting for."

"The curses. Do you still think that will work, seeing as she herself seems cursed?" he said.

"Lord Carter, did you forget what it is we seek from the sage? We don't just want her as a vessel for Khaos' power. We need the curses sent to put him into eternal rest by the gods lifted. All fifteen of them. A divine being such as a sage can absorb all of the curses and also withhold his powers."

Carter looked away, his jaw clenched hard. "And if she breaks?" he asked, glancing at her.

Alma shrugged. "Then she breaks. What's the use of a sage if she can't be her full potential? What use is it for a useless sage? She might as well break."

________

Adina curled into herself on the hard wooden floor. Her eyes were hollow, and her cheeks dried with tears. She had no more tears to cry, no will to live anymore.

She couldn't catch a break. Every single time things were about to go her way, she somehow ended up in an even worse scenario. Why? Why was it always her? Why couldn't she catch a break?

She'd finally found a man, someone who loved her for who she was and cared for her. She found a kingdom where she was accepted as its queen. And once again, it was all being ruined.

She squeezed her eyes shut, the memories from that day rushing in. She could never forget it, not even if she shoved her hand into her mind and forced it out. The day she turned into a beast.

Her body shook as tears slipped from her eyes. She could still see their faces. The fear. The shock. And Thorne— he'd hate her. Despise her. She ruined his kingdom. His life.

The door creaked open behind her, and she scrambled to sit, wiping her cheeks dry. She squinted her eyes to see who it was coming in. The figure stepped in slowly, the hold was large, different from the woman's own.

The figure stepped fully into the room, and Adina gasped, eyes wide with shock.

"L-Lord Carter?" she whispered.

The man stopped a few feet away from her, his gaze flickering over the room to where she was. He stepped closer, and she scrambled back even more. He passed, smirking.

"You're scared. That's good," he noted, nodding.

"W-why?" Adina asked, anger suddenly building up in her the more he stood there, watching her with that condescending gaze of his.

"Why! What have I ever done to you? Why would you do this to me?" she screamed, her voice cracking from the intensity.

"You give yourself way too much credit, girl. What would I ever need to do with a thing such as yourself?" he spat, as if even the thought of it disgusted him.

"I see why you would think of yourself with such importance that I would need to do something to you. A sage?" he scoffed, and Adina froze.

Apart from Thessara, no one else knew who she was.

"I'll admit, I didn't believe it. Couldn't actually, even when the evidence dangled right in my eyes. The goddess was blind when she chose you. A slave... a stain of nothing... carrying a divine gift?" he leaned closer. "It's laughable."

Adina's nails dug into her palms as her blood boiled. "What do you want from me?" she bit out. "You went through all this trouble to get me right where you need me. Tell me, what do you want from me?" she spat out.

Carter stepped closer, his eyes on her. "Me? Nothing. But Khaos..." His grin widened. "Ah, he's waited a long time for you."

Adina's heart dropped. What? What was the man talking about? Khaos? The dark Lord who ruined the realm? The one who killed Thorne's former mate and pup?

Carter burst out laughing, seeing the fear in her eyes, the way her face turned pale.

"In all the ways I've imagined finding the sage, I must say, not once did I ever think Thorne's little plaything would be the one. The one I've been searching for all this while."

Adina's heart pounded hard in her chest. She couldn't hear anything past the name he called. Khaos.

"I'll put you out of your misery," he began. "For years, you've all heard different versions of who Khaos is. What he stands for. The truth is, Khaos is a god. A man of true substance. He saved a lot of souls. Fulfilled their heart desires. He was a great man that even the gods were envious of. He had the heart of the people. People being people couldn't stand it. They stood against him. They betrayed him and killed him. They silenced all of his supporters and buried those who stood against their cruelty. They changed the narratives and told every soul willing that the Lord himself was evil." The more he spoke, the more his eyes seemed to darken, the more his jaw clenched tight like he was reliving the moment. He blinked, his gaze snapping to her.

"For years, we've searched. For years, the world has been rotting under this false king's rule, and all because the true lord was unjustly defeated." His eyes glinted. "Thorne ripped away what didn't belong to him. But Khaos—Khaos is the only one who sees this world for what it is. He is the only one who truly cares enough to burn it down."

"The dark Lord is being reawakened. He'll ascend soon and take over his rightful position as king of the realm. And when he rises, he'll need a sage. One strong enough to bear all fifteen curses of the gods and his power. A divine vessel." His gaze bored into hers. "That's where you come in."

Adina's breath hitched, her chest rising and falling as though the walls themselves were closing in on her. A vessel? Her?

Her nails bit deeper into her palms, the sting grounding her against the terror crawling up her throat.

"You're insane," she whispered, her voice trembling. "If you think—" she gulped. "If you think I will accept this— that I will—"

Carter cut her off as he burst out laughing again. Adina stared at him. She knew the mate disliked her. But this—this was beyond her imagination.

"You speak like you have a choice, girl." He stepped closer to her, grabbing her jaw hard, forcing her eyes on him. "You don't have a choice, Adina. This is your destiny, and you will fulfill that which you have been born for."

Adina's eyes burned red. "You must be out of your sick and twisted mind if you think I will allow myself to be sacrificed to curses for a beast!" she spat out, the spit landing on his face.

Carter shut his eyes tight as it landed on his face. Then in a rage, he slapped her hard across the cheek, her lips bleeding from the harshness.

Adina fell to her side, her ears ringing loudly. Carter grabbed her hair hard, pulling out a couple of strands as he forced her to look at him. "You will learn," he spat.

"You must've forgotten who my mate is, Lord Carter! You will die for this. He'll never let you live, and I will—"

He slapped her hard across the other cheek, sending her falling to the ground.

Adina groaned, her face throbbing, blood coating the inside of her mouth. "I will never be his vessel. I'd rather die. Kill me!" she screamed manically.

Carter grabbed her by the hair again, grinning. "You want death? Then I'll give you death!"