The wind whipped through the desolate hillside, carrying with it the scent of pine and the chill of impending night. Anya stood at the edge of the cliff, the sprawling valley below cloaked in shadows. The faint glow of the Dragon Clan's fortress was visible in the distance, a reminder of the life she had left behind. But tonight, her path had led her somewhere else entirely—somewhere she hadn't expected.
Behind her, the crunch of footsteps on gravel broke the silence. She didn't turn. She didn't need to. She knew who it was.
"You're late," she said, her voice steady, though her pulse betrayed her.
Madden emerged from the shadows, his face unreadable. He had a way of appearing larger than life, his presence commanding even in the most desolate of places. He stopped a few feet behind her, his gaze fixed on her back.
"I didn't think you'd come," he said after a moment, his voice low, almost cautious.
Anya turned to face him, her features hardened by the weight of everything she had endured. "You left me no choice. You and your father—and mine."
Madden's jaw tightened at the mention of their fathers, but he said nothing.
Anya stepped closer, her boots crunching against the rocky ground. "Tell me the truth, Madden. No more lies, no more games. Why did my father die? Why did your father order it?"
The question hung between them, heavy and unrelenting. Madden's gaze didn't waver, but something in his eyes shifted—a flicker of pain, of conflict. For the first time, Anya saw the man beneath the mask, the one who had been shaped by the same forces that had shaped her.
"My father didn't order it," Madden said finally, his voice quiet but firm. "But he didn't stop it either. Your father… he knew too much. About the Clan, about its secrets. He became a threat."
Anya's heart clenched, a storm of emotions surging within her—grief, rage, betrayal. "He was loyal to the Clan. To your family."
Madden took a step closer, his voice tinged with an urgency she hadn't heard before. "He was loyal to the truth. And that's what got him killed."
Anya's breath hitched, her mind racing. The pieces were falling into place, but the picture they formed was far more devastating than she had imagined. Her father had died for the truth—a truth the Dragon Clan had buried in blood.
"What truth?" she demanded, her voice breaking. "What was he trying to protect?"
Madden hesitated, his eyes searching hers. "You."
The word hit her like a blow, stealing the air from her lungs. "Me?" she whispered, her voice barely audible.
Madden nodded, his expression grave. "Your father discovered something—something about you, about your bloodline. He wanted to protect you, to keep you from becoming a pawn in the Clan's games. But my father saw it differently. He saw you as an asset, a weapon."
Anya staggered back, her mind reeling. The training, the manipulation, the lies—it had all been leading to this moment. To the realization that she was nothing more than a tool in a game she had never wanted to play.
"So what now?" she asked, her voice trembling. "Do I become the weapon they want me to be? Or do I die like my father?"
Madden stepped closer, his hand reaching out to her. "You don't have to choose either. We can end this—together."
Anya stared at him, her mind a whirlwind of emotions. Could she trust him? After everything they had been through, after all the lies and betrayals, could she truly believe he wanted to help her?
But as she looked into his eyes, she saw something she hadn't seen before: vulnerability. He wasn't just a soldier of the Clan. He was a man who had been caught in the same web of lies, a man who was willing to risk everything to break free.
Taking a deep breath, Anya reached for his hand. "If we do this, there's no going back."
Madden's grip tightened around hers, his expression resolute. "There's nothing to go back to."
Together, they turned toward the fortress, their path illuminated by the pale light of the moon. The Dragon Clan had taken everything from them—family, trust, freedom. But tonight, they would take it back.
As they descended the hill, the air crackling with the promise of revolution, Anya felt a sense of clarity she hadn't known in years. She wasn't just a weapon. She wasn't just a pawn. She was Anya Mikhailova, the daughter of a man who had died for the truth.
And tonight, she would make sure his death wasn't in vain.
Season 2 coming soon.