The forest around them was thickening, dark twisting branches weaving together into near-impenetrable walls. Even the moonlight struggled to filter through. Every step Sebastian took seemed deliberate, calculated, yet there was a subtle tension in the way he moved, something uncharacteristically sharp in the set of his shoulders.
Aliena followed closely, trying not to falter. Her legs ached, and the residual fear from her abduction made every shadow seem alive.
"Why are they here?" she asked softly, breaking the oppressive silence.
Sebastian didn't answer immediately. His gaze scanned every shadow, every rustle of leaves, as though the trees themselves could conceal enemies. Finally, he spoke.
"They are testing Nacrifa," he said quietly, almost to himself. "Probing defenses… searching for weaknesses. The demons are not random. They have a goal."
Aliena's brow furrowed. "Testing? Searching… why me? Why the palace?"
Sebastian stopped abruptly and turned toward her, the moonlight catching the sharp planes of his face. His golden-red eyes burned with a dangerous intensity, the kind that made the air itself seem to hum.
"They think they can find power where it is weakest," he said. "Where vigilance slips. Where humans and vampires alike are complacent. They want chaos. They want to see the world bend before them."
Aliena swallowed hard, shivering despite herself. "And the attack… you said it was coming. Soon?"
"Yes," he said grimly. "Sooner than anyone realizes."
Deep down Sebastian knew that the attack was nothing to worry about, he only said that to ensure that Aliena was always careful wherever she was. He was only being cautious in the forest because Aliena was with him if not, he wouldn't care about the demons in the forest because they would dissipate before they got near him.
A distant howl cut through the forest, a sound low, guttural, and utterly alien. The very air seemed to pulse with it.
Sebastian tensed, hands curling into fists. His usual calm, controlled demeanor flickered, revealing something darker beneath, a raw, predatory edge that made Aliena instinctively step back.
"What's wrong?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.
"They're near," he said. "Closer as I expected."
Before she could react, Sebastian moved, a blur of motion so fast it left her breathless. His cloak whipped through the trees as he disappeared from her side into the shadows.
Aliena's heart raced. She realized, with a chill, that she had no idea if he would return.
Moments stretched, each second heavy with tension. Then, suddenly, he was back, his expression dark, jaw tight. The calm veneer he usually wore had cracked, replaced by a shadow of something dangerous and impatient.
"They underestimated me," he muttered, more to himself than to her. "They will regret it."
Aliena flinched at the cold edge in his voice. She had never seen Sebastian like this, utterly untethered from restraint, his anger coiled beneath the surface like a caged beast.
"Sebastian?" she asked cautiously. "Is it… bad?"
Sebastian's heart spiked at the sound of her calling him by his name, with no title attached to it, he loved the sound of it and was tempted to tell her to repeat herself but he refrained from doing so.
"It is," he replied, voice low and dangerous. "They are more organized than I expected. More… prepared."
Sebastian knew a lot about demons, and the demons he chased after were stronger than the ones who abducted Aliena.
The forest seemed to lean closer, listening. Branches creaked under their weight, shadows flickered with unnatural life.
Aliena's stomach tightened. "What do we do?"
Sebastian's lips pressed into a thin line. "We survive, which we will because obviously...I'm here. That is all. Everything else will follow."
Another sound echoed through the trees, a whispering, almost like multiple voices speaking at once. It was distant, yet it carried a weight that pressed into her chest, making it hard to breathe.
"They know we're here," Sebastian said immediately. "And they are coming for us."
Aliena froze. "We? Us?"
"Yes," he snapped, frustration lacing the word. "You are part of this now, whether you believe it or not. And if you're not careful, you'll get yourself killed."
His hand gripped her shoulder briefly, not gently. The pressure was firm enough to make her wince, yet there was an unspoken urgency in it, a warning, not punishment.
Aliena nodded, swallowing the lump in her throat. She had never felt such raw intensity from him before. Even in the palace, even when he had forgiven her, even when she had felt safe, this was different. This was danger personified, and she was standing right next to it.
Sebastian took a deep breath, visibly trying to calm himself. But the storm behind his eyes lingered, dangerous and unreadable. He was annoyed at the fact that she wandered the Palace corridors alone and if he hadn't sensed that she was missing, she would've have been dead. Just the thought of it made his stomach churn.
"We move," he said finally. "Keep close. Do not speak unless I tell you to. Do not falter. Do not look back."
Aliena obeyed immediately, following him as they pressed deeper into the forest. The moonlight grew sparser, shadows darker. Every crack of a branch, every rustle of leaves made her heart jump.
Minutes stretched into what felt like hours. Aliena's legs burned. Her mind spun with fear, confusion, and a strange awe at Sebastian, the way he moved, controlled yet untouchable, deadly yet protective.
"Why are you so… calm?" she asked softly, almost afraid to disturb him.
Sebastian glanced at her from the corner of his eye, expression unreadable. "Calm? I am not calm."
"You don't seem… angry," she whispered. "Or afraid."
"Anger is a weapon," he said, voice low. "Fear is a tool. Both must be wielded carefully. I wield them constantly, just not at you."
Aliena's stomach churned. "Not at me?"
"Yes," he said. "Because if I allowed either, I would lose control. And if I lose control… you would die before you even understood what struck you."
Her heart thudded painfully. He was terrifying, and yet, somehow, her fear of him was tempered by the fact that he had saved her. Repeatedly. And yet… she knew instinctively that his restraint was not limitless.
The forest thickened further, and a sense of being watched returned. Every shadow seemed to twitch, every sound amplified.
"They're close," Sebastian muttered, stopping abruptly. "Do not panic. But be ready."
Aliena felt herself nod, though her hands were trembling. "Ready for what?"
He didn't answer immediately. Instead, he scanned the perimeter, senses razor-sharp, every muscle coiled. His jaw clenched. These demons were nothing compared to the powers he possessed, he didn't want to make the fight easy in the eyes of Aliena, he wanted her to know the danger that was out there. Sebastian knew that he could kill the demons in the vicinity with just a snap of his finger but he chose not to.
"They underestimate the consequences of crossing me," he said finally. "And tonight… they will learn."