Attempting to focus my chaotic mind, I sought to use all the knowledge they had brutalized me against them. It was a long shot, and I was just a child, disadvantaged in every way against the adults.

Unfortunately, I had never achieved an incantation nor possessed a grimoire, a witch's best friend. So, my chances of doing anything fruitful were slim at best, but spells were feeble and easily manipulated.

I learned that from watching my fellow sisters fail at complex incantations and from all their lectures. This was why human sacrificial spells were the top tier in complexity, making them nearly impossible without something going wrong.

Something as simple as the state of mind of the sacrifice could throw the spell off balance. The wicked Lilith failed because her psych wasn’t correct for breaching the gate, only opening a fraction.

A fragment almost destroyed the world; if its doors swung open, it would annihilate everyone. It was unthinkable even to process how this coven planned to survive the end of everything, and perhaps they didn’t.

All Stella desired was for the realm that took her daughter to burn; many of the witches in this manor shared her sentiments. They all had stories of being oppressed and brutalized by the other races.

I understood their resentment toward our reality, but not everyone deserved it.

Fenris, Liam, Ezra, and Owen… showed me that there is good in the world!

The pups who lit my world anew unveiled a new world to me. They weren’t born that way. The last time the gate opened, the races united against witchcraft users; if it were breached again, we would never have a place in this society.

What did they use to stop it?

That was a close-guarded secret only known by the Cerberus order. The last time the gate made its presence known, they had one advantage: Lilith performed the ritual in a dark forest away from civilization.

Her choice allowed the order to respond to the minor breach between our worlds with as few casualties as possible, but this coven differed.

We were right on Silverant’s border, where wolves, vampires, elves, and humans congregate peacefully. The Silver Fang clan made this city for that purpose; even if racism existed, they were trying.

The coven’s reasons were flawed, and I couldn’t let them destroy the world they were trying to create. I had to keep up with these witches for Fenris and my friends to survive what was coming. Everything I learned, thanks to their torturous methods, stuck to me like a moth to a flame.

The irony of it all…

Even if it was a feeble wish, as my grimoire hadn’t awakened yet, I couldn’t give up.

Anything… There must be something! Think Lilith!

Somehow, I had to be brave for my light and deny them the chance to destroy this world that was still blossoming into something better. Their greatest downfall would come when they underestimated me.

Once the sister purified my body, she dressed me in a white dress. Instantly, stains of blood formed within its fabric from the moment I stuck to my skin. Grabbing me by the chains, she yanked me forward towards the ritual room.

With every step, misery followed in waves, yet somehow, I managed to stay on my feet. The hall we headed through had other sisters, including the children, holding candles in their hands. They were all aligned in a straight line leading to the room where fates would collide.

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When we entered the dreadful room, my limbs trembled as I stood facing my death.

I must be brave! I have to be!

Easier said than done, yet my orbs were wide open for the first time since the beating. My heart was pounding so loud that I could feel it in my drums. Stella was preparing the black ash circle inside the room, which was decorated with red lining and skulls of the dead.

The spells were all in Latin, and words were written on the sides of the circle, some within it.

Impia, succurrat hostium depopulentur nostris nos detinent. Hanc nobiles sanguinem victimae aperire januam regni corpus in lumine; Nos suppressors nostrum cotidianum da nobis hodie justitiam.

Unholy realm, come to our aid and lay waste to our enemies, who suppress us. We offer this noble and pureblood sacrifice. Open the gate to your realm and bathe us in your light! Free us from our suppressors and grant us justice.

They wrote the incantation with red paint or blood; I couldn’t tell the difference between them. Throwing me towards the middle of the circle, I couldn’t help but stumble in the middle, falling on the wooden surface, barely able to turn to see Stella grab a broomstick before she split it in half.

The loud snap caused me to quiver, unsure of what she was about to do.

“Do you know what time it is, child?” Stella asked, taking a step towards me.

Instead of entertaining her, I stayed silent, trying to get everything I could to counter them.

“It’s about to be midnight. Do you know why that is?” She continued with her query.

I remained silent, having no intention of satisfying her anymore. There was no point in exchanging words with her; in her eyes, I was simply a sacrifice for her spell.

“Good grief, child, I didn’t cut out your tongue. Maybe I should’ve.” She retorted, grabbing my chin and forcing me to face her.

Stella’s orbs were fridged; there wasn’t an ounce of life in them; this world had destroyed her. The fun part was that I didn’t feel the same as she did towards her or anyone who had hurt me; no, I pitied her.

It was a pitiful experience to allow hate to dictate everything in their life while I found peace in death. At least when I stopped breathing, peace would envelop me; this bitter woman forced me to grow up faster than I should’ve.

Grandmother tried to force me to be full of hate like her, but I denied her making me into the ruthless force she wanted me to be. Before I met my radiant light, I allowed her to control me with dread, but thanks to my new encounters, they taught me this world was worth protecting.

Stella didn’t know she was playing chess against me, and my mind was full of thoughts on how to outplay her.

“Stupid child, are you still hoping to be saved?” She scoffed, letting go of my face and gripping the wooden stick.

You’re wrong. There isn’t any rescue for me, but… at least I’ll take whatever you’re planning with me!

My voice barely came out, struggling to say every word. “I... don’t... care...”

My defiance triggered her eyes to scrunch up, nasal flaring before smacking my face with the stick. Blood splattered within the circle, not damaging any parts of the runes. All my teeth were still intact, but new lacerations within my mouth formed, and old ones reopened.

I could only taste iron as the crimson liquid dripped onto the floor from my chin.

“Stupid child. We were lucky this morning when Amir came to question us. He was in a hurry to leave, and he got sloppy. Maybe his child’s birthday is all that matters to him.” She tapped the wood on the floor, creating a slight tune.

My arms struggled to hold my body up, shifting my orbs towards her.

“Of course, Amir’s precious child matters more than the life of a young witch. I wonder how he’ll react when we drop this bomb at his child’s birthday party.” Stella gloated, enjoying the thought of watching him bear the feeling of losing his precious child, just like she had.

Cerberus was the main villain in my grandmother’s heart. If they didn’t exist, my mother would’ve still been alive, and if I hadn’t been born, she wouldn’t have gone insane. The sorrow of losing a daughter drove Stella into her current madness.

Something she intended me to feel, too. Fortunately, I stayed sane through the abuse I endured at her hand. Amir's watchful eye on Fenris comforted me; he wouldn’t allow his son to look for me, even though his bracelet glowed madly.

The birthday party was a blessing in disguise. With so much attention on the young silver Lycan, he couldn’t escape to find me. It brought me solace to know my light was safe away from me, though, deep down, I wanted him to find me.

I wished I could look at him one last time and see that beautiful smile that outshined the sun—the moment that thought formed in the shackles that held me captive shone brightly enough to snap me out.

I desperately covered my hands with my thighs, forgetting that I was the only one who could see the crimson glow.