Chapter 18: Chapter 18

IRIS

“My father is dead… who is going to teach me? Are there still demons here? Or someone who knows about these powers?” I asked worriedly.

“I know someone here in Antaris who can help you. We will go to him in the morning,” replied the king.

I was overwhelmed with all the information I had been given. I had found out so much in such a short time.

How was I supposed to keep up?

Avery tried to comfort me. “We’re taking you to Devas. He was a good friend of your father. Devas is a demon who chose to be by your father’s side. However, he has long lived in isolation and far from everyone here in Antaris. We’ll see if he can help you.”

I agreed. What choice did I have?

I couldn’t go back. No one in the human world could help me.

No one could protect me from Abaddon there. And why would I even leave?

Here, I had people who cared about me. They looked after me.

They laughed with me. They stood by me.

The warmth they gave me was something I’d always longed for—friends who lifted you up, who shared joy and pain alike, who promised ~I’ve got you~ even when the ground shook beneath us.

Maybe that’s what friendship really was: a constant, messy exchange of stumbles and catches, of ~I’ll fall with you~, but never letting each other truly hit the ground.

And family… I had Aidan now. For the first time in my life, I had a family.

Aidan wasn’t just my brother, he was a piece of my parents—a living treasure I carried with me, the last remnant of the love they’d left behind.

Every conversation with him felt like coming home. The way his voice softened when he knew I needed comfort, the way he’d tease me just to hear me laugh, the quiet understanding in his eyes when no words were enough—it was all a silent promise… ~You’re not alone. Not anymore.~

And then there was Avery… The tenderness he gave me was unlike anything I’d ever known.

Just his presence, just him being near, felt like a gift I didn’t deserve. I hadn’t realized how lost I was. How shattered.

How deep the loneliness had carved into me… until he stood behind me, until his warmth pressed against my back, until his voice, soft and steady, whispered without words. ~It’s okay. You can fall now. I’ll catch you.~

And God, I believed him. Every brush of his fingers was a promise.

Every glance, a quiet devotion. He looked at me like I was something precious, like I wasn’t broken, but beautiful despite the cracks.

I never knew love could feel like this. Like safety.

Like coming home to a place you never knew existed.

King Elior gave me his word. He promised me a visit to Devas straight away in the morning.

The few hours of sleep we had would be enough to be fit for our visit. And so we retired to our rooms and prepared for the morning.

Avery stayed with me, his calm breath and the warmth of his closeness slowly calming the storm inside me.

But despite his reassurance, guilt gnawed at me, that nagging, relentless question… Could I have prevented all of this?

Could I have saved my parents? I begged him not to leave.

That was what I needed—just him, his breath, his existence. And he stayed.

Even though we both knew we only had a few hours of rest, he gave it to me without hesitation.

We lay next to each other on the narrow bed. His voice was soft as he spoke to me.

“It’s all right,” he kept murmuring, as if these words could heal the wounds in my soul.

The injuries my uncontrolled power had inflicted on him didn’t matter to him. He pretended they were nothing, as if it hadn’t been my fault.

But I knew he could feel how much I hated myself for it. I never wanted to hurt him.

How could I even bear it? I liked him… so much, the thought nearly tore my heart apart.

His fingers gently stroked through my hair, pulling me closer until my head rested on his chest. He pressed a tender kiss to my forehead and for a brief moment, I felt safe.

Like I wasn’t the one who had destroyed everything. As if I was simply me.

The tension slowly eased, my breathing became calmer, and eventually I drifted into a restless sleep, still in Avery’s arms.

But even there, in the quiet of the night, the voice haunted me. It called out to me. Over and over again.

~Iris…you have to find me…search for me~, I heard the familiar voice in my dream.

Again, I walked on red flowers in an unfamiliar environment. I looked around and sought the voice calling me.

The noises around me were creepy and terrifying. It was as if wild animals were attacking me from several directions at once.

However, that growl sounded far more dangerous than any predator I knew.

~Iris…find me~, called the voice again.

“But where are you? Tell me where you are!” I shouted loudly.

Then I heard all that growling rushing in my direction. It was as if I had given away my position with my shouting.

I felt them running closer and closer to me; the ground was literally shaking…my whole body was trembling.

I jerked up with a strangled cry, my forehead sweaty, my heart a raging hammer against my ribs.

Clutching the sheet as if these tangible things could hold me back—from the shadows that still haunted me. They were ~here~. They were almost upon me.

“Iris!” Avery’s voice cut through the darkness, firm and instantly awake.

Before I even properly realized where I was, he had already grabbed me by the shoulders.

“Hey…I’m here. You’re safe,” he said.

But my body did not believe him. I flinched back, muscles tense as a taut spring, eyes searching wildly in the darkness.

The walls of the room blurred; instead, I saw ~them~…those glowing eyes, those bony hands reaching for me.

“They were there…” I gasped. “They almost had me.”

“No,” Avery whispered.

His hands cupped my face, gentle but firm, forcing my gaze to his.

“Look at me. Only me. There’s nothing else here,” he said.

His thumb stroked my cheek, gently wiping away tears. Reality slowly returned. His breathing was steady and reassuring.

“It’s okay…” he murmured, pulling me close to him. “I won’t allow it.”

My head sank against his shoulder, the fear only hesitantly receding. But his arm around my waist, his heartbeat under my cheek…this was real.

I hugged him while I cried, and he kissed my cheeks. His kisses spread across my face, and I just focused on him.

The affection he gave me was so gentle…so loving. The horrible dream was quickly forgotten as Avery kissed my lips.

The gentle touch of his lips on mine made me moan softly.

His lips were made for mine and felt so tender. Each kiss that followed only made me want more.

More kisses…more touches.

I could feel his hands gliding over my body, with so much caution, yet so dominant. Pulling my head back, I gave him a staring look.

“No, Avery! What if I hurt you again?” I whispered.

“You won’t hurt me, my love,” he whispered back, his hot breath hitting my lips.

And so I allowed myself another kiss from him. His hand tangled in my hair, and he pulled me even closer.

His body pressed against mine was the best thing I had ever felt in my life. I inhaled his scent, and my senses were dulled by the attraction I was feeling.

He broke the kiss and rested his forehead against mine.

“Once you embrace your powers, we can connect and have all the perks that soulmates have,” he said softly.

“How do you mean that?” I asked, confused.

He bit his lower lip and looked into my eyes. “Only after we are one is the bond complete…not only the soul connection…I mean the physical connection too,” he said.

My jaw dropped, and my eyes widened in sudden realization. Avery smiled when he saw me like that.

He kissed the tip of my nose, and I was sure my cheeks turned bright red again.

“Don’t worry, my love. I’ll wait for you until you’re ready,” he stated reassuringly.

What if this Devas couldn’t help me… What if my powers remained wild, untamed, a storm I could never control?

Without my past, without understanding what I truly was… Would I still have worth? Or would I just be another lost soul, shattered by the very force meant to make me strong?