the demon Prince's accidental bride

Setting: Forest Ruins – Nightfall

The moon was blood-red.

Kael pointed his sword at Talia, but his hands were trembling.

Mira whispered, "That's not her… That's something else."

Talia—no, Dark Talia—stood tall, her golden-black eyes glowing like cursed fireflies. Her hair flowed upward, defying gravity, her voice carried an echo as if a hundred versions of her spoke at once.

Dark Talia (smiling): "You've all protected her for so long… but she never asked to be saved."

Lucien coughed, still on the ground. "Yeah? And did she ask to be possessed by a walking demon's ego?"

Mira muttered, "Still making jokes while bleeding. Classic Lucien."

Kael took a step forward. "Give her back."

Dark Talia: "You think she's trapped inside me? No… I'm the part she locked away. I am her."

Lightning cracked.

The ground shook.

Then suddenly—

Talia turned her head, sharply.

She blinked… and tears rolled down her cheek.

Talia (softly): "Kael... help me..."

Mira gasped.

Kael rushed forward—too fast—just as a dark force blasted him backward again, knocking him unconscious.

Lucien (growling): "Okay, that's it."

He rose. Bleeding, bruised, swaying—his shadows curled protectively around him.

Lucien: "You want to play monster? Then meet mine."

He closed his eyes, and for the first time in years… he let go.

His body pulsed.

From his chest burst a mark—an ancient sigil—glowing in midnight blue.

Mira stepped back. "Lucien, no—You'll lose control!"

Lucien didn't respond.

Suddenly, the forest froze.

The leaves stopped falling.

Time seemed to hold its breath.

And Lucien's true form emerged—eyes glowing with ancient, forbidden power. His voice was layered with hundreds of trapped souls.

Lucien: "Get. Out. Of. Her."

He launched forward—colliding into Talia with a force that shook the sky.

---

Location: Inside Talia's Mind

Everything was black.

Talia stood in a mirror maze.

Alone.

Dark Talia's voice: "Why fight me? We are the same."

Talia looked at her reflection.

It showed her smiling with friends… laughing… crying… loving Lucien.

Talia whispered: "No. We're not the same."

She reached for her chest—where the original pact was sealed.

And she ripped it off.

The pain was excruciating.

But the mirror shattered.

The darkness screamed.

---

Back Outside – Forest

Talia collapsed to the ground, her body smoking.

Lucien caught her in his arms just before she hit the dirt.

She was breathing—but barely.

Lucien (shaking her): "Talia! Hey—wake up! You still owe me a sarcastic comeback!"

She stirred.

Her eyes opened… normal again.

She smiled faintly.

Talia: "You're not getting rid of me that easily…"

Mira (wiping tears): "You idiots are going to give me a heart attack."

Kael groaned, waking up. "Ugh, who do I sue for emotional trauma?"

The group collapsed into laughter—half in relief, half from exhaustion.

But the forest behind them began rumbling again.

From the shadows, a new figure emerged.

Tall, cloaked in ash.

A slow clap echoed through the trees.

Stranger: "Bravo. The merge was… entertaining. But now it's my turn."

Mira whispered, "Who the hell is that?"

Lucien frowned. "Someone worse."

Talia (weakly): "What now…?"

Kael (drawing sword): "Now... we fight again."

Setting: Forest Ruins – Night, After the Possession

A chilling silence fell over the group as the cloaked figure stepped into the moonlight.

No face.

Just a black void where eyes and a mouth should've been.

Mira instinctively raised her daggers. "Okay... Who invited Slenderman's stylish cousin?"

Lucien stepped forward, shielding Talia behind him. "I know who this is. He's not from this realm."

Kael narrowed his eyes. "Then what is he?"

The stranger's voice was distorted—like whispers trapped in a jar.

Stranger: "I am what remains when hope dies… when love fails…"

He paused, turning slightly toward Talia.

Stranger: "And when someone like her breaks the seal between worlds."

Talia flinched. "I didn't mean to—"

Stranger: "But you did."

Suddenly, the trees began twisting into grotesque shapes. Branches morphed into arms. Faces screamed from bark.

Mira backed up. "Okay... Nope. Nope. I'm done. This is officially too haunted."

Kael held out his sword, flames flickering along the edge. "Lucien, ideas?"

Lucien muttered, "We don't fight him here… this forest is alive and he controls it."

Talia (quietly): "Then we run."

Mira: "Run? I thought you were the 'fight me, I'm brave' type?"

Talia: "Bravery isn't stupidity."

Kael scooped Talia into his arms without asking. "I like that plan. Running sounds great."

Lucien (to the Stranger): "We'll finish this. Later."

The group turned and ran—through the deformed forest, branches clawing at them, laughter echoing from nowhere.

---

Setting: An Abandoned Castle Ruin, Nearby

They arrived breathless.

Mira slammed the door shut with her boot. "Okay. Haunted forest, possessed girlfriend, faceless creep—what's next? A zombie chicken?"

Talia leaned against the wall. "I'm sorry… I really didn't know what I awakened."

Lucien sat beside her. "You didn't do it alone. That power inside you—it didn't come from this world. It was placed there."

Kael: "By who?"

Lucien hesitated. "By me."

Everyone froze.

Talia (confused): "What… do you mean?"

Lucien looked at her, regret shadowing his face.

"I went to the Underrealm years ago. To find a way to protect you from what was coming. The only thing they gave me... was a piece of darkness. They said it would lie dormant. Harmless. I was desperate."

Talia: "So all this… is because of that decision?"

Lucien: "Yes. And I'll fix it. I swear."

Talia didn't say anything.

Instead, she pulled him into a hug.

Talia (softly): "Then fix it. But stay alive doing it."

Mira peeked out the broken window. "The forest's gone quiet. Too quiet."

Kael muttered, "Never trust quiet forests."

Suddenly—BOOM!

The castle shook.

Stones fell.

And from beneath the ground, the floor cracked open—

Revealing a spiraling staircase leading into complete darkness.

Mira (dryly): "A haunted basement in a haunted castle. Great. Just what my therapist warned me about."

Talia: "I think we're supposed to go down there."

Lucien: "That's the way to the realm of shadows."

Kael: "Then let's go make some noise."

As they descended, torches lit by themselves along the walls, flickering with blue fire.

Voices whispered from the stone.

Talia gripped Lucien's hand tighter.

She heard a voice in her head.

"You are not ready."

She shivered.

But she didn't stop.

Because whatever was down there… it had answers.

And maybe… the truth about who Talia really was.

Setting: The Spiral Staircase — Underneath the Ruins

As they descended deeper into the spiral staircase, the air grew cold. Not chilly—bone-chilling. The kind of cold that crept under your skin and whispered secrets to your bones.

Mira (shivering): "Okay… this better not end in a demon tea party."

Kael (grim): "You'd be lucky if it were just demons."

Talia, who had been quiet for a while, suddenly stopped.

The blue torchlight reflected off her pale face.

Talia: "Do you hear it?"

The others froze.

At first, silence.

Then... whispering.

Low, ancient whispers... like prayers said in reverse. Like lullabies from a forgotten world.