The night did not belong to the earth.
The moon hung too low, too bright, its light bleeding silver into the forest like a wound that refused to close. The air trembled, not with wind, but with pressure, the kind that made bones ache and instincts scream.
She felt it first.
It was not fear. Fear implied uncertainty.
This was recognition.
Her fingers curled instinctively into the fabric at her side, breath catching as something ancient brushed against her consciousness, cold, vast, and utterly indifferent.
They're watching.
No,
They were coming.
"Move."
His voice cut through the silence, sharp and urgent. He was already on his feet, body angled slightly toward her, dark eyes lifted to the sky as if he could see what had not yet descended.
"You feel it too," she said. It wasn't a question.
He nodded once. "Heaven doesn't knock."
The words had barely left his mouth when the sky split.
Thunder did not roll, it shattered.
A pillar of white-blue light slammed into the clearing, obliterating trees on impact. The earth screamed as it cracked, soil turning to molten glass beneath the divine force. The pressure knocked her back a step, lungs burning as if the air itself had turned hostile.
From the heart of the storm, he emerged.
Tall. Broad. Clad in armor forged from stormclouds and lightning veins. Electricity crawled over his skin like living serpents, eyes glowing a blinding cerulean.
The God of Thunder.
And beside him, stepping out of the torn sky like a blade drawn from its sheath,
Silence.
No explosion. No sound.
Just light so sharp it hurt to look at.
The God of Lightning smiled.
"Found her," he said pleasantly, gaze locking onto her with surgical precision. "Heaven's moon."
Her knees nearly buckled.
Not from power, but from the weight of being named.
Before she could react, lightning struck.
He moved.
She didn't even see him cross the distance, only felt his arm slam around her waist as they rolled across the ground. Where she had been standing, the earth disintegrated, leaving a smoking crater humming with residual divine energy.
"Stay behind me," he snapped.
She bristled. "I'm not…."
Another strike.
This one aimed at him.
He caught it.
Lightning screamed as it wrapped around his forearm, skin splitting, blood sizzling as it hit the ground. His jaw clenched, but he didn't release her.
The God of Lightning laughed softly. "How touching. A mortal king playing protector."
Thunder rumbled in answer, the other god raising his weapon, a hammer forged from condensed storms. "Enough. The Immortal King demands her return. Alive."
Return.
The word echoed in her skull.
"I was never theirs," she whispered.
The God of Thunder's gaze flicked to her, eyes unreadable. "You were born under Heaven's law. That makes you ours."
Something inside her snapped.
Power surged, not wild, not uncontrolled, but familiar. Like a door she had always known was there finally being opened.
The ground beneath her feet glowed.
"Behind you," she said suddenly.
He trusted her.
He pivoted without hesitation just as lightning speared toward his spine. She raised her hand, instinct guiding her, and the light bent.
It curved around her palm like water, dissolving into sparks that danced harmlessly against her skin.
The gods froze.
The God of Lightning's smile vanished.
"…Impossible."
She stared at her own hand, heart hammering. "I didn't…. I don't know how…"
"You don't need to," he said, low and fierce. "Just feel."
Thunder roared as the God of Thunder charged.
They moved together.
She didn't remember deciding to run, but suddenly they were side by side, her power flaring instinctively where his blade could not reach. He shielded her from physical strikes; she tore through divine barriers with light that burned silver instead of gold.
They fought like they had done this before.
Like their souls remembered something their minds did not.
A hammer crashed down. He intercepted it, knees buckling under the force. She screamed his name, power surging violently as she slammed both palms into the god's chest.
Light erupted.
The God of Thunder was thrown back, armor cracking, divine blood sizzling as it hit the ground.
For the first time,
A god bled.
Silence fell.
The God of Lightning stared at her, awe and something like fear flickering in his eyes. "Heaven didn't tell us," he murmured. "They said she was… dormant."
Her breath shook. "What does that mean?"
He smiled again, but this time, it was tight. Calculating. "It means you're not just a pawn."
The sky darkened further.
A voice echoed, not from above, but everywhere.
ENOUGH.
Her blood ran cold.
The Immortal Queen.
"You defy us," the voice continued, calm and merciless. "You align yourself with a mortal who will die. And still, you resist."
Her knees hit the ground.
Pressure crushed her lungs, her bones screaming as Heaven's will bore down on her.
He caught her before she collapsed fully, holding her against his chest like an anchor in a storm.
"She is not yours," he growled into the sky. "You lost the right to her the moment you chose control over mercy."
The Immortal Queen laughed softly. "You think this is mercy?"
The pressure eased, just enough for her to breathe.
"This is restraint."
The gods began to retreat, summoned back by unseen chains of light. The God of Lightning paused, glancing back at her.
"They'll come harder next time," he said quietly. "Because now they're afraid."
Then he was gone.
The forest lay in ruins.
Smoke curled through shattered trees. The moon dimmed slightly, as if ashamed of what it had witnessed.
She trembled, adrenaline crashing through her veins. "They said I belong to Heaven," she whispered. "They said I was born under their law."
He cupped her face, forcing her to meet his gaze. His hand was warm. Solid. Real.
"Then we'll break their law," he said simply.
Her throat tightened.
"But if Heaven controls me…" Her voice cracked. "What if I hurt you?"
His thumb brushed a tear from her cheek. "Then I'll bleed," he said. "And I'll still stand beside you."
She leaned into him before she could stop herself, forehead resting against his chest, heart pounding in time with his.
Above them, far beyond the mortal sky,
The Immortal King watched.
And smiled.
"So," he murmured, "the moon has begun to burn."