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Lyanna’s POV
A vision gripped me, making me go still before I could even attempt to fight it off. My mind plunged into darkness. I was no stranger to these visions, but this one—it felt different. Heavier, darker, as if the very air in the room had been sucked out. My pulse quickened as images, sharp and jagged, began to piece together, each one more disturbing than the last.
I stood in the middle of a field, the sky overhead a deep crimson, casting an eerie glow on the ground beneath my feet. In the distance, I could see a figure. It was Sophia, but she wasn’t alone. Shadows, twisted and deformed, lurked around her. They circled her like predators, closing in. She cradled her belly, swollen with the life of the child she was carrying, but her face was pale—frighteningly pale—and her eyes were wide with fear.
The shadows shifted, and I saw them more clearly now—werewolves, their eyes gleaming with malice, their teeth bared. But there was something else behind them, something much worse, hidden just out of sight. A presence that I couldn’t place, but that sent a chill down my spine. And then, as if sensing me watching, the presence turned Its gaze toward me.
The world trembled, and I heard a voice—coold.and familiar. “The child cannot live. The royal line must fall.”
I gasped, my breath catching in my throat. The vision shifted violently, and now I was back in the vampire realm, standing in the council’s chambers. Ian was there, but he looked different—older, wearier. He stood at the center, arguing with the council members. Their faces were distorted, as if hidden behind masks, their voices accusing.
And then it happened—one of them, a tall figure cloaked in darkness, raised a hand, and Ian crumbled to the ground. The figure turned to me, his eyes burning with hatred, and he whispered, “You cannot stop this.”
I tried to scream, but my voice failed me. Everything around me began to collapse, the walls of the council chamber crumbling into dust. I was suffocating, drowning in the darkness, and all I could see was Sophia, her terrified face frozen in my mind.
I jolted back into reality with a sharp gasp, my chest heaving as I struggled to catch my breath. The vision had left me shaken, my hands trembling as I pressed them to my temples. This was unlike any vision I have ever had.This wasn’t just a warning—this was a prophecy. And if we didn’t act soon, everything would fall apart.
I had to tell Ian. I had to tell them all.
I arrived at Ian’s condo in the human realm just as the sun began to set. My heart pounded in my chest, and each time I blinked I felt like I could still see the vision haunting me. As I stepped through the door, I could hear voices coming from the living room—Sophia, Ian and Jenny. They were all here.
They sounded so normal, so blissfully unaware of what was coming. For a moment, I hesitated, wondering if I should wait, but there was no time to spare. I would have myself for being the one to ruin this peaceful time for them, but I couldn’t wait. The vision had been clear—Sophia and her child were at the center of a growing conspiracy, and we were running out of time.
I walked into the room, and all eyes turned to me. Ian immediately stood, the mood shifting. “Lyanna,” he said, concern flashing in his eyes. “What’s wrong?”
I swallowed hard, glancing at Sophia. She looked peaceful, her hand resting on her belly. It made my heart ache to think about the danger she was in. “I had a vision,” I said, my voice steady despite the fear gnawing at me. “And it’s worse than we thought.”
Sophia’s smile faded, and she exchanged a worried glance with Ian. “What did you see?” she asked, her voice trembling slightly.
I took a deep breath, trying to find the right words. “I saw you, Sophia. You were surrounded by shadows—werewolves, but something more than that. There’s a darkness, a presence that I can’t quite place, but it’s after you. It’s after the baby.”
Ian’s jaw tightened, his fists clenching at his sides. “Who’s behind this?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted, shaking my head. “But they’re powerful. More powerful than anything we’ve faced before. And they want to end the royal line. They see your child as a threat.”
Sophia’s face paled, and she instinctively placed a protective hand over her belly. “But why? What could they possibly gain from hurting our baby?”
“It’s not just about the baby,” I said, my voice low. I shook my head. They didn’t understand. “It’s about the royal bloodline. They want to destroy everything—your future, Ian’s reign, the entire balance of power. If they succeed, there will be nothing left.”
Ian stood rigid, his face dark with anger. “Whoever they are, they won’t get anywhere near her. I’ll kill them before they even try.”
“It’s not that simple,” I said, my voice sharp. “This isn’t just a physical threat. There are forces at play here that go beyond what we can see. We need to be smarter, more careful. We can’t let them know we’re onto them.”
Jenny, who had been quiet up until now, finally spoke up, her voice shaky. “But what can we do? If we don’t even know who’s behind this, how can we stop them?”
“We start by being prepared,” I said, looking at each of them in turn. “We need to tighten security around Sophia. No more leaving the condo alone, no more unnecessary risks. We need to keep her safe at all costs.”
Sophia’s eyes filled with worry, but she nodded. “I understand. But I can’t just hide forever. We still have a life to live.”
Ian moved to her side, wrapping an arm around her. “We’ll find a way to keep you safe without locking you away, I promise.”
I could see the strain on his face, the weight of responsibility he carried. He was trying so hard to protect her, to protect their future, but I could feel the desperation creeping in. This was bigger than any of us had realized, and it wasn’t going to be easy to navigate.
“There’s more,” I said, hesitating for a moment before continuing. “In the vision, I saw the council chambers. There was… an argument. And then Ian… you—”
I couldn’t bring myself to finish the sentence, the image of Ian collapsing to the ground still fresh in my mind. He didn’t need to hear that, not now.
“What?” Ian pressed, his eyes narrowing. “What did you see?”
I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter right now. What matters is that we stay ahead of this. The council might be involved, or at least some members. We can’t trust anyone fully.”
Ian’s expression darkened. “The council has been a problem for a long time. But if they’re really conspiring against us…”
“Then we need to tread carefully,” I finished for him. “They’re waiting for you to slip up, to make a mistake. Don’t give them the chance.”
Sophia looked between the two of us, her voice barely a whisper. “What are we going to do?”
“We fight,” Ian said firmly, his gaze locked on hers. “We fight with everything we have, and we make sure that no one comes between us. Not the council, not the werewolves, not whoever is behind this.”
I nodded in agreement. “And we start by being prepared for whatever comes next. There’s no time to waste.”
The room fell Into a heavy silence, each of us lost in our own thoughts. We were standing on the edge of something terrible and chaotic, and none of us knew how to stop it. But one thing was certain: we couldn’t afford to lose. Not now. Not when everything was at stake.
Sophia looked at Ian, her voice small but determined. “We’ll get through this, right?”
Ian leaned down, kissing her gently on the forehead. “We will. I promise.”
But even as he said the words, I could see the uncertainty in his eyes. He didn’t know how this would end any more than the rest of us did. But we didn’t have a choice. It was either we die, or the enemies did. And we couldn’t afford to die.