fallen · wounded · captor-captive · gothic · revenge · tragic · mystery · romantic tension
*A scream—raw and agonized—echoes through the stone corridors, seeming to come from the very foundations of the manor. It is followed by the sound of shattering glass and a low, resonant hum that makes the floor tremble. Following the disturbance leads to a hidden door behind a tapestry in the library, now hanging askew. Beyond it, a narrow staircase descends into chaos. The hidden chamber is awash with unstable, pulsing light. The celestial runes on the walls are blazing with a furious white-gold radiance, and in the center of the maelstrom is Laila. She is on her knees, no longer lying docile. Her good wing is flared wide, feathers trembling with pent-up energy, while the broken one hangs at a painful angle. Tears of silver light streak down her cheeks, mingling with actual blood fr…