The last and most powerful earthquake to strike Ars Pheria, with a magnitude of seven point four, occurred in the dead of night nearly a hundred years ago. Though there were no immediate casualties, thanks to the resilience of the buildings, the seismic tremor triggered a devastating tsunami from the deep ocean surrounding the small planet. The monstrous waves hit the bay with terrifying force, destroying the entire marina and sweeping away over a hundred people, leaving them lost to the abyss.

  The catastrophic event left an indelible mark on Ars Pherians, who learned a valuable lesson in preparedness. In the wake of the tsunami, the people of Ars Pheria enacted a comprehensive set of emergency plans designed to address a wide range of natural disasters, earthquakes, tsunamis, fires, and floods. These plans became ingrained in their culture, ensuring that future generations would be ready for such calamities.

  However, despite their thorough readiness for natural threats, there was one unforeseen danger that had never been anticipated: an alien attack.

  Emperor Sephianos the Second's heart raced as the explosion erupted above Terra Nova. Though he couldn’t see any actual flames or fire lighting up the sky, the strange spiraling waves of light from the hovering flagship were unmistakable. They pulsed and swirled, growing into larger clusters of concentric circles, creating a surreal and ominous glow in the night sky. Without hesitation, the young Emperor’s command rang out clear and decisive. Whatever to came next could be catastrophic.

  The evacuation plan was one of the most meticulously crafted strategies ever developed by Ars Pheria's engineers, designed to deal with natural disasters. Now, it would serve a new, more immediate purpose. The citizens of Terra Nova were to evacuate the city and ascend to the higher grounds to the east, where the proximity to the portal offered a last-resort escape to Earth, should the worst occur.

  The population of Terra Nova that fateful day was estimated to be around two hundred thousand. With the evacuation plan already tested in simulations, it was designed for efficiency, every second mattered. Under optimal conditions, it was expected to clear the entire city within twenty-five minutes.

  The sound of sirens began to fill the streets of Terra Nova, as emergency lights blazed along the main routes. Terra Nova residents, who were not even accustomed to any sort of drills, yet a real crisis of this magnitude, moved quickly, following the evacuation protocols. The rush to higher ground was intense, but efficient, thanks to their Ars Pherian nature which allowed them to think rationally and have an incredible self-control.

  Alessandro ordered the evacuation, his voice urgent as he quickly ushered everyone out of the palace to join the mass exodus. Perla, Queen Nammu, and General Urla moved swiftly toward the palace vehicles, with Marcus close behind them. General Urla was trying to explain to the Queen what he assumed was happening between the Sumer ships above. Perla could hear him shout, “They think we’re still in the flagship. They have full control now!”

  Ava trailed Perla through the corridor, but a sudden unease gripped her. She slowly fell back until she was behind the group, with only Marcus trailing behind her. It would be impossible to slip away from Marcus’ watchful eyes if the palace personnel and Lady Concetta didn’t rush to join them in the corridor creating a sudden confusion. Ava slowed her pace and offered a hand to Lady Concetta, who seemed shaken but still composed, clutching her pearls with one hand.

  After a couple of more steps, Ava gently slipped from Lady Concetta’s arm, urging her to catch up with Marcus. She glanced back to make sure no one else was following, then quietly slipped away from the crowd, taking the stairs that led to her room.

  She didn’t turn on the lights. The emergency lights from the city bathed her room in the flashing red and blue of the alarms. Once she closed the door, making sure no one saw her slip inside, she moved swiftly. Her hands found the candles she had placed earlier on the coffee table. Without hesitation, she lit them, and their soft glow flickered to life.

  “Ghull, are you here?” she asked, her chest rising and falling with each intake of air. “Why did you abandon me?”

  The eyes of flickering fire rose from the flames, taking shape into his full height, towering over Ava. His chest almost touching hers, Ava had to tilt her head to meet his gaze, her senses overwhelmed by the scent of burnt embers and the warmth of his skin.

  “I would never abandon you,” the Ghull said, his voice low and full of conviction as he slowly shook his head. “Would you abandon me?” He gently cupped Ava’s cheek, his touch warm and firm.

  “No, never,” Ava replied, her voice trembling as tears welled in her eyes. “You’ve become a part of me. I can’t let you go.”

  Another sound explosion echoed across the Ars Pherian atmosphere. Ava could hear the distant wail of sirens and the frantic shuffle of people evacuating outside the palace doors. The city was still under evacuation, but the palace had likely been emptied.

  Ava felt a cold lump in her stomach. She didn’t know where Alessandro was, if he even knew she was missing. Yet she was here alone in her room with her ghull, feeling enchanted by his impossible beauty and captivated under the spell of his powerful words. Each time he surrendered his immense power, he made Ava feel powerful. Each time he protected her, Ava wanted to protect him. With each encounter with the Ghull Ava felt she was walking under his spell. She did not surrender to his dark fumes, but it was easier to surrender to his comforting love and protection. She knew she didn’t have the time to think more about him and what she feels about him. If she did, Ava was scared that she would find things she would not like.

  “No need to worry,” the Ghull said confidently, his voice steady and reassuring. “Listen to me carefully, my beautiful light healer. I will help the young Emperor save this world, and the others. He has the greatness and bravery to wield my gifts, just as he has the heart to give you the love you deserve.”

  “We don’t have time,” Ava pleaded, her voice trembling with urgency.

  “But there is something you must do for me in return, my lovely healer,” the Ghull replied, his tone both soothing and commanding. He circled around her, his presence overwhelming, as his warm, silky touch brushed against her shoulders. He paused in front of her, his fire eyes locked onto hers. Slowly, he lowered his lips near her ear, his cheek brushing against hers in a warm, intimate gesture. He kissed Ava on her neck. Ava trembled with pleasure like she had never experience before, her whole body reacting to the kiss.

  “You and the young emperor will bear my child,” he whispered.

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  Ava froze. While her body was still trembling with the tremor of his kiss and his breath so close to her delicate neck, her mind was frozen with shock. A child from a creature of fire. A child with two fathers. That was impossible.

  Then she remembered. The Sumer Queen had asked the right question: What did the Ghull stand to gain by protecting Ars Pheria? Ava realized he had known what he wanted from the moment he first appeared to Ava. He had taught her how to harness the light, how to bring her to Ars Pheria through the portal. Perhaps it was the Ghull who had nudged Ava toward the art gallery, to meet Alessandro. He had chosen both a mother and a father for his child. But why? Why would such a powerful, divine being want a child born of the human race?

  “I don’t understand,” she said. “This cannot even be possible.”

  “Don’t deny the possibilities of the universe,” said the Ghull. He looked into Ava’s eyes. “No one will know but you and me. Our child will be the miracle from all three. She will be the queen to all we.”

  “What would happen if I don’t accept?” Ava asked, her voice barely above a whisper. She could feel the Ghull’s presence wrapping around her, his charm seeping into her thoughts. Time for Ava to fought against her protector had come earlier than she anticipated. It was becoming more and more difficult for her to gather her own mind in his presence.

  The Ghull had waited for the perfect moment to ask her for this promise, a moment when she would be in dismay, when she would be at her weakest.

  “You don’t want to resist,” he continued, his voice soft yet commanding. “You want me to be a part of you, and I want you to be a part of me.”

  He kissed Ava gently, pulling her into a warm, reassuring embrace. “I will never abandon you.”

  Ava’s breath caught in her chest, the weight of her decision settling on her. She closed her eyes, steeling herself for what was to come. “I accept,” she whispered. “Please, help him.”

  Ava’s eyes snapped open at the sound of Alessandro’s voice calling her name from the corridor. She hesitated for a moment before slowly opening the door. Alessandro stepped inside, his gaze immediately locking onto the room. The flickering candlelight cast long shadows, and a faint smoke curled in the air around them.

  "The Ghull is here," Ava whispered, her voice thick with emotion, almost choking on the words. "He will teach you how to harness the dark fumes. With his power, you'll be able to defeat any enemy."

  Alessandro stared at Ava in disbelief. Despite everything, he was an Ars Pherian, and an Emperor. No, no,he thought, the fumes are deadly. He shook his head, his voice urgent. "We have to leave now. There has to be another way."

  “Alessandro, please listen to me. There is no other way,” Ava said, her voice insistent. “They’ll destroy the flagship, then invade Ars Pheria. You must try.”

  Alessandro’s heart sank as the weight of her words settled in. He knew it was true. There was nothing he could do to stop the Sumerian attack. If they wanted to invade, they would. Fleeing, evacuating, none of it would be enough. The only viable option was to retreat to Earth. But that wasn’t enough. He wished his father were here with him, to guide him through this moment of helplessness.

  “Can I see him?” Alessandro asked, his voice edged with a mix of disbelief and desperation. “I need to speak with the Ghull.”

  “It’s not possible,” Ava replied sharply, her gaze steady. “Do you not believe me?”

  Alessandro’s silence hung between them, a heavy, unspoken weight that broke Ava’s heart.

  “I will protect your mind with my light,” Ava said. “And the Ghull will grant you a part of his dark fumes. He says you will be able to shape them however you wish, even shield against a nuclear strike.”

  “How can I shield an entire planet?” Alessandro asked, his voice rising with disbelief, his rational mind back in charge in such dire situation. “Why would he give me such power but not use it to protect himself?”

  Ava turned her gaze to the Ghull, who was smiling as though he had been waiting for this very question. “Don’t tell him,” the Ghull whispered. “He should not know. Tell him that I wish to correct a mistake I made before. I am begging him to let me fix it.”

  Ava hesitated for a moment before relaying the message. “He’s begging you to accept his gift. He wants to correct a mistake he made before,” she said, her voice steady but conflicted.

  “I accept,” Alessandro said, with no hesitation left. “Yes, he made a mistake by leaving Ars Pheria so vulnerable. If he wants to correct that now, I accept.”

  The Ghull was pleased with Alessandro's response. Time was running out. He instructed Ava to envelop his mind with her light, and as soon as she did, the Ghull wrapped Alessandro's body in dark fumes that resembled thick tar. The intense heat radiated from his body, making him feel as if he were burning from the inside out. The only way he could withstand the searing warmth was by keeping his head cool, thanks to Ava's light that shielded his mind from the overwhelming sensation.

  When the Ghull finally withdrew the fumes from Alessandro’s body, a lingering residue remained on his skin, swirling like the dark fumes that plagued patients in the final stages of the sickness. Despite this, Alessandro’s head felt clear, untouched by the suffocating weight that had once consumed him. He stood, his gaze fixed on his hands, now enveloped in the dark, smoky tendrils.

  “Tell him to shield himself,” the Ghull instructed.

  Alessandro extended his hands, and the dark fumes coiled and solidified into a protective shield around him. It was remarkable how the smoke obeyed his thoughts before he even thought about himself. The dark fume had a mind of its own one step ahead of Alessando’s thoughts.

  “Now, throw something at him,” the Ghull added.

  Without hesitation, Ava hurled a vase toward the shield. The moment it made contact, the vase shattered into a thousand pieces, its fragments scattering harmlessly against the dark barrier.

  “Tell him to break the window with the fume,” the Ghull instructed.

  Alessandro focused and gestured, sending a stream of dark fumes toward the window. With a precise strike, the window shattered into pieces.

  He stood in momentary surprise, watching the remains of the glass fall. The fume had felt almost alive, like an extension of his own body, responding to his will.

  “The rest is up to him. He is unstoppable,” the Ghull said with a sly smile, clearly proud of his creation. “For that there is no God to stop me, only I have the power to stop him in this universe.”

  Alessandro's voice was steady, but there was a hint of awe in it. “Can I shoot down a spaceship?”

  The Ghull’s gaze turned cold with amusement. “He could shoot and destroy Jupiter if he wanted to,” he replied. Then, he shifted his focus to Ava. “Do not forget your promise, my beautiful light healer,” he whispered in her ear. “You will never abandon me…”

  I, the loyal Ghull of the Asaha, once witnessed a witch.

  A witch who was tied to a stick to be burned in the middle of the village.

  The witch denied:

  “I am not a witch.”

  No one would believe her, so she made a twist.

  The witch screamed:

  “I am the darkest witch in this ditch!”

  “My ghost will curse and burn you all and it will start with the rich!”

  “Dare and burn me now, my curse is released!”

  So, the richest of the ditch came forward and untied the witch.

  He ordered that she’d be taken somewhere else and don’t bother the village.

  He gave her gold to break the curse, and a coach to carry her kitsch.

  The witch was rich and lived happily ever after in a village by the beach.

  I, the loyal Ghull of the Asaha, don’t have a choice but to breach.

  To make a twist and scream that I am the darkest witch in the ditch.