I should've known something was off the moment Sable's name was mentioned.
She was one of the Blackthorn family's most trusted members—always calm, always composed, always in the shadows, quietly handling business without drawing attention. She'd been with the family for years, and no one ever questioned her loyalty. Hell, I'd never questioned her loyalty, either. Until now.
It started in the aftermath of the failed ritual, when the air in Noxford Heights was still thick with tension, and both families were nursing their wounds. I had been on edge all week, trying to shake off the feeling that something was coming—something big—and I wasn't the only one. The Blackthorns had been rattled. Their ritual had been interrupted, the power they'd hoped to secure slipping through their fingers. They needed to regroup. They needed someone to blame.
That's when Sable disappeared.
At first, it was just a few days. But when she didn't return, when her absence became a noticeable hole in the Blackthorn ranks, people began to talk. There were whispers about her leaving for business, some kind of urgent assignment, but none of us had seen or heard from her since the ritual.
And then it happened.
I was at one of those typical Blackthorn gatherings—one of those things where they pretend everything is fine, while the entire family is preparing for war in the background. I was sitting in the far corner, trying to stay out of sight, when the door to the mansion's study swung open. It was Vex, his face as grim as I'd ever seen it. Behind him was none other than Sable.
But she wasn't alone.
Noctis Vortex stood beside her.
My heart skipped a beat. For a moment, I thought I was seeing things. How could this be? Sable, who had been a part of the Blackthorn inner circle for years, had just walked in with Noctis like it was nothing? Like they were old friends?
"Vex, let's talk," Noctis said, his voice smooth as ever, but there was an edge to it that made my skin crawl. He didn't look at anyone else in the room—just Vex, who was staring at him like he was the one person he hadn't expected to see.
"Vex," Sable said, her voice softer than I remembered. "You know what has to happen."
That was when the pieces fell into place.
The betrayal was like a slap in the face. Sable, who I had trusted, who I had watched work alongside the Blackthorns for years, was playing both sides. She had been working with Noctis this whole time. She'd been feeding him information—vital information. Details about Blackthorn plans. Secrets. Every move the family had been making to expand their influence in the neighborhood. Every weakness we had. She had sold us out.
Sable had been the leak.
"You're a traitor," Vex spat, the venom in his words cutting through the thick tension. He stepped forward, fists clenched, his expression dark with betrayal.
Sable didn't flinch. She just looked at him with a calmness that only made my blood boil. "I'm doing what's best for me," she said quietly, but the words landed like daggers. "Noctis is offering a better future. One that doesn't rely on shadows and blood magic."
Noctis, as smooth as ever, gave a cold, knowing smile. "I think we can all agree that power isn't just about family traditions. It's about control, influence. You'll understand that soon enough, Vex. You just need to let go of the past."
Vex was shaking with rage. "You've been feeding him everything. Everything we've worked for." His voice was low, dangerous. "You've been a part of this, haven't you?"
Sable didn't answer. She didn't need to. Her silence was confirmation enough.
I felt a cold chill settle over the room. It wasn't just the realization that Sable had been a traitor. It was the fact that this wasn't just about business anymore. This was personal. This was a fracture, a wound in the Blackthorn family that couldn't be healed with apologies or reassurances. Noctis was playing a different game, one that had been set in motion long before the ritual. And Sable? She was a pawn—a well-placed one, but a pawn nonetheless.
Vex's fury had reached its boiling point. He turned on Sable, his voice shaking with betrayal and anger. "You've destroyed everything. The Blackthorns trusted you."
Sable's eyes narrowed slightly, the faintest flicker of something—regret, maybe?—passing across her features before she masked it. "Trust is earned. You never earned it. Not truly."
Her words hit harder than I could've ever imagined.
"Enough," Noctis cut in, stepping between them like a king commanding his court. "Vex, you're upset. I understand. But this is the future. Your future. You can join us, or you can remain here with the Blackthorns, fighting a war you've already lost."
I didn't know what to expect next, but I certainly wasn't prepared for what happened.
Vex's face twisted with something darker than I'd ever seen—something I didn't recognize. A deep, primal anger. It wasn't just about loyalty anymore. It was something deeper. Something personal. Something he couldn't run from.
"You don't get to decide that," Vex hissed, his words like a promise of something far worse to come. His eyes burned with a fire that could consume everything in its path.
There was a long, heavy silence.
And then Vex did something I didn't expect. He stepped back, nodding once, as if something had shifted within him. "I'll take my leave," he said, his voice a low growl. "I have... things to sort out."
As he turned to walk out, the weight of his words hung in the air, the tension thick enough to suffocate anyone who was left in the room. Sable looked at me, her expression unreadable, and I realized then that everything had changed. The Blackthorns were divided, the cracks deepening. There would be no going back from this.
I don't know who's going to win this war, but I'm starting to think that maybe—just maybe—there's no such thing as loyalty in Noxford Heights anymore.
And when the dust settles, we'll all have blood on our hands.