ra’s POV

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    I woke up again, only to find myself surrounded by darkness. The kinds of dark that seeps into your bones and makes you question whether you’re even alive. I couldn’t tell if this was a room or just a void–everything felt… empty.

    I tried to move, but the sharp clink of chains rattled around my wrists. Shackled to the wall. Great. Just great.

    I cleared my throat, the air too thick to breathe properly, “Hello?”

    The silence that followed felt suffocating. There was nothing. No response. Not even a whisper. I tried again, louder this time, my voice breaking against the emptiness. “…Dorian? Are you there?”

    But again, nothing. Just the oppressive silence, closing in on me. It was too much.

    I shifted, curling my body on the cold, unforgiving ground. The chill seeped through my skin, deep into my soul. What was Dorian trying to do? Was this the “torment” he’d mentioned? This wasn’t the dungeon I’d expected. There were no torture devices, no crowd of people waiting to pass judgment. Just… darkness. And silence.

    “Dorian! Please!” I cried, my voice desperate. My throat felt like it was closing up, but I kept calling out. Still,

    no answer.

    I closed my eyes, hoping for sleep, wishing for escape. But my mind wouldn’t stop racing. Where was Thorne? What was he doing right now? He must be frantic, trying to find a way to get to me. But how? That damn forest. He couldn’t cross it. Not without… something.

    Hours? Minutes? I couldn’t tell. Time meant nothing here. Nothing but the silence.

    I drifted back into an uneasy sleep, my mind filled with images of Thorne, of what might be happening on the outside. What was Dorian trying to prove?

    When I woke again, the silence was still there. Nothing had changed.

    “Hello?! Can anyone hear me?” I shouted, my voice hoarse now, rattling the chains for effect. “Dorian! Dario! Where the hell are you?”

    The only answer was the cold, empty air. It felt like my body was fading into the darkness, like the very essence of me was being swallowed whole.

    I shivered involuntarily, my throat dry, as if I’d swallowed hot coals.

    Was this his n? To starve me out, to dry me up, to reduce me to nothing?

    I couldn’t help but think back to an experiment I once read about–a patient locked away in darkness. A week, and they werepletely insane.

    It hadn’t been a week. Not even close. But here, in this godforsaken ce, it might as well have been an

    eternity.

    9:26 Thu, Sep b4 /bbG/b…

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    I lost track of time. Was it days? A week? I couldn’t remember. All I knew was the silence. The relentless, suffocating silence.

    I started to hear things. Whispers. Footsteps. Couldn’t tell if they were real or just the madness creeping in.

    Please, just let me hear a voice. Any voice.

    “Dorian!” I begged, my voice barely above a whisper, “Please… I’m begging you…e out. Let’s talk. Don’t leave me here alone.” I started banging my head against the wall in frustration, desperation. Anything to break the silence.

    I wasn’t sure if I was talking to him anymore, or if I was just talking to the darkness.

    Then, just as I was starting to lose it, I felt something.

    A presence.

    “Who’s there?” I whispered, my voice shaky.

    Please, don’t leave me.

    “Don’t go!” I pleaded. “Talk to me. Please…”

    A sudden sh of light hit me, and I winced, instinctively closing my eyes. I could barely handle the light after so long in the dark.

    Footsteps.

    Then, a hand.

    A real hand.

    I grabbed it. Desperate. Hungry for touch. For warmth. Anything to remind me I wasn’tpletely alone.

    Then, a kiss.

    Soft, fleeting, but real.

    “Look how good you are nowi,/i” a voice purred, husky and familiar. “If you’d been this obedient from the start, we wouldn’t have a problem, my love.”

    I blinked, heart racing. I slowly opened my eyes, and there he was–Dorian. His face just inches from mine, his smile wide, eyes gleaming.

    “Did you enjoy the darkness, ra?” he asked, his toneced with something cold.

    My breath caught in my chest. “How long has it been?” I choked out, my voice trembling.

    “Three days,” he said, almost casually.

    Three days? I couldn’t believe it. It had felt like an eternity, a never–ending hell of silence and nothingness.

    9:27 bThu/b, Sep b4 /bbG/b..

    Thorne’s voice broke through the silence again. “ra! Please… answer me!”

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    “You looking for someone, King Thorne?” A cold voice slithered through the air, chilling my veins.

    A tall figure emerged from the darkness, stepping into the pale moonlight with a mocking smile.

    Dorian.

    Thorne’s face twisted into a mask of fury. “Dorian,” he growled, his fists clenching at his sides.

    Dorian chuckled, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “I haven’t personally congratted you on your coronation yet,” he said, his smile thin and cruel. “Congrattions, King. You’ve got what you wanted. But that doesn’t give you the right to make a scene in mynd.”

    “Where is ra?” Thorne’s voice was thick with demand.

    Dorian spread his hands, feigning innocence. “What makes you think I have her? Maybe she got tired of you and ran off. You know, you’ve always been a bit… obnoxious.”

    “Cut the crap!” Thorne’s eyes burned with rage. “You took her. Hand her over now, or-”

    “Or what?” Dorian taunted, unfazed by Thorne’s fury.

    “Or I’ll spill your kingdom’s blood, starting with you!” Thorne’s growl was primal as he leapt into the air, shifting into his wolf form mid–flight.

    The transformation was terrifying–his ck wolf, streaked with gold fur, seemed to shimmer with an otherworldly power.

    Dorian’s eyes widened with shock, but he recovered quickly, his own transformation swift as he became a massive silver wolf.

    They collided mid–air, fangs bared, and the sound of their battle echoing through the trees. Dorian was thrown back, crashing into a pine tree with a deafening crack.

    Thorne wasted no time. He lunged again, his jaws snapping viciously at Dorian’s nk. The silver wolf howled in pain as Thorne tore into him, ripping flesh from bone.

    I could barely believe my eyes. When Thorne first met Dorian, he stood no chance. But now… now, he was stronger than I ever imagined.

    My heart pounded, and part of me wanted to run to him, to see this fight through.

    But Dario’s grip on me was relentless. In the chaos of the battle, he hauled me onto his back, dashing deeper into the forest.

    “No!” I screamed in my mind, fighting against the pounding fear. I can’t leave now… I’m so close to him…

    The sounds of the battle grew quieter as we moved further away.

    Dario didn’t stop until we reached the heart of the misted forest. He set me down on a jagged rock, the cold

    9:27 bThu/b, Sep b4 /bbG /b

    bite of the earth grounding me in the harsh reality of my situation.

    He ripped the tape from my mouth, and I gasped for air, ring at him with everything I had.

    “Don’t touch me,” I snarled as he bent to untie my legs.

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    He paused, his hands hovering over me for a second before he slowly withdrew them, a cold smirk tugging at his lips.

    “You’re making this harder than it has to be,” he said in a low tone. “Stupid idea to run.”

    “Stupid?” My voice cracked with fury. “You’re the one who kidnapped me. You’re the one keeping me from Thorne!”

    Dario’s expression didn’t change. “He won’t kill Dorian,” he said tly. “I know that for a fact.”

    Iughed bitterly. “You’re delusional if you think he won’t.”

    He didn’t respond right away, just looked at me with those pitying eyes. “You better pray his rage doesn’t cloud his judgment,” he warned.

    We sat in silence then, the weight of the night pressing down on me. My eyes stayed on the dark woods, hoping against hope that Thorne would burst through the trees,e to rescue me, and take me home.

    Minutes, or maybe hours, passed before a figure appeared, stumbling toward us through the mist. My heart leapt–Thorne?

    But as he stepped closer, my heart sank. It wasn’t him.

    It was Dorian.

    He limped toward me, covered in cuts and bruises, his silver fur matted with blood. His once–gentle eyes were now clouded with a storm, dark and full of rage.

    I couldn’t help the sneer that pulled at my lips. “Fuck you,” I hissed.

    Dorian smiled, his lips curling in that infuriatingly calm way. “I love you, ra,” he said softly, his voice almost tender. “I could be so good for you, you know. But why do you have to turn me into a monster?”

    I trembled under his touch as he caressed my chin with his thumb. I couldn’t hide the disgust in my voice. “You are a monster,” I spat,

    Dorian’s smile faded slightly, but he held my gaze, his eyes cold and calcting. “You’ve made a big mistake, my love. And now, you’re in more trouble than you know.”

    I didn’t flinch. I couldn’t. Not now.

    …

    9:27 bThu/b, Sep 4 bG /b..

    ra’s POV

    b65 /b

    55 vouchers

    I woke up again, only to find myself surrounded by darkness. The kinds of dark that seeps into your bones and makes you question whether you’re even alive. I couldn’t tell if this was a room or just a void–everything felt… empty.

    I tried to move, but the sharp clink of chains rattled around my wrists. Shackled to the wall. Great. Just great.

    I cleared my throat, the air too thick to breathe properly, “Hello?”

    The silence that followed felt suffocating. There was nothing. No response. Not even a whisper. I tried again, louder this time, my voice breaking against the emptiness. “…Dorian? Are you there?”

    But again, nothing. Just the oppressive silence, closing in on me. It was too much.

    I shifted, curling my body on the cold, unforgiving ground. The chill seeped through my skin, deep into my soul. What was Dorian trying to do? Was this the “torment” he’d mentioned? This wasn’t the dungeon I’d expected. There were no torture devices, no crowd of people waiting to pass judgment. Just… darkness. And silence.

    “Dorian! Please!” I cried, my voice desperate. My throat felt like it was closing up, but I kept calling out. Still,

    no answer.

    I closed my eyes, hoping for sleep, wishing for escape. But my mind wouldn’t stop racing. Where was Thorne? What was he doing right now? He must be frantic, trying to find a way to get to me. But how? That damn forest. He couldn’t cross it. Not without… something.

    Hours? Minutes? I couldn’t tell. Time meant nothing here. Nothing but the silence.

    I drifted back into an uneasy sleep, my mind filled with images of Thorne, of what might be happening on the outside. What was Dorian trying ito /iprove?

    When I woke again, the silence was still there. Nothing had changed.

    “Hello?! Can anyone hear mei?/i” I shouted, my voice hoarse now, rattling the chains for effect. “Dorian! Dario! Where the hell are you?”

    The only answer was the cold, empty air. It felt like my body was fading into the darkness, like the very essence of me was being swallowed whole.

    I shivered involuntarily, my throat dry, as if I’d swallowed hot coals.

    Was this his n? To starve me out, to dry me up, to reduce me to nothing?

    I couldn’t help but think back to an experiment I once read about–a patient locked away in darkness. A week, and they werepletely insane.

    It hadn’t been a week. Not even close. But here, in this godforsaken ce, it might as well have been an

    eternity

    9:27 bThu/b, Sep b4 /bbG /b

    …

    :

    b65 /b

    E55 vouchers

    I lost track of time. Was it days? A week? I couldn’t remember. All I knew was the silence. The relentless, suffocating silence.

    I started to hear things. Whispers. Footsteps. Couldn’t tell if they were real or just the madness creeping in.

    Please, just let me hear a voice. Any voice.

    “Dorian!” I begged, my voice barely above a whisper, “Please… I’m begging you…e out. Let’s talk. Don’t leave me here alone.” I started banging my head against the wall in frustration, desperation. Anything to break the silence.

    I wasn’t sure if I was talking to him anymore, or if I was just talking to the darkness.

    Then, just as I was starting to lose it, I felt something.

    A presence.

    “Who’s there?” I whispered, my voice shaky.

    Please, don’t leave me.

    “Don’t go!” I pleaded. “Talk to me. Please…”

    A sudden sh of light hit me, and I winced, instinctively closing my eyes. I could barely handle the light after so long in the dark.

    Footsteps.

    Then, a hand.

    A real hand.

    I grabbed it. Desperate. Hungry for touch. For warmth. Anything to remind me I wasn’tpletely alone.

    Then, a kiss.

    Soft, fleeting, but real.

    “Look how good you are inow/ii,/ii” /ia voice purred, husky and familiar. “If you’d been this obedient from the start, we wouldn’t have a problem, my love.”

    I blinked, heart racing. I slowly opened my eyes, and there he was–Dorian. His face just inches from mine, his smile wide, eyes gleaming.

    “Did you enjoy the darkness, ra?” he asked, his toneced with something cold.

    My breath caught in my chest. “How long has it been?” I choked out, my voice trembling.

    “Three days,” he said, almost casually.

    Three days? I couldn’t believe it. It had felt like an eternity, a never–ending hell of silence and nothingness.

    9:27 Thu, Sep 4 B.

    :

    b65 /b

    b55 /bvouchers

    “You see,” he continued, his fingers tracing my profile, “this is the best way to tame a wild beast. And it worked better than I thought. Hearing you beg for my name, crying for me toe out… Do you know how happy that made me? I wish we could stay like this forever, ra. I want my name to be the only thing you say.”

    A chill ran down my spine.

    “You’re insane,” I whispered, trembling. “You’re crazy. You have a problem.”

    Dorian’s smile faltered, just slightly, before his eyes darkened. “Looks like you haven’t learned your lesson.”

    He straightened, towering over me. “Maybe three days wasn’t enough. I should’ve kept you here longer. Locked away until you understand.”

    I froze, dread pooling in my stomach. No. No, not again. I couldn’t go back into that suffocating dark. Not after this brief glimpse of light.

    I leaped forward, grabbing his pants, desperate to stop him from leaving.

    But he turned, fast–so fast–and before I could even process it, his lips were on mine.

    It was brutal, wild, a kiss that felt like punishment. His lips crushed mine, forcing me to open my mouth, his tongue invading. I fought it, gritting my teeth, but he was relentless.

    He bit my lip, drawing blood. The taste of it was sharp, metallic, mingling with the bitterness of his kiss. His hands were everywhere–holding me still, keeping me trapped against him.

    I gasped for air, but he wouldn’t let me go. His grip tightened, and I felt dizzy, light–headed, like I might pass

    out.

    Finally, he pulled away, breathing heavily. “I wanted to do this the first day we met,” he whispered, his thumb tracing the redness of my lips. “But I held back. I thought I’d win your heart first. Treat you with respect. But what did I get in return? Lies. Betrayal. I was a fool.”

    He stood back, his eyes cold, void of any warmth. “Now, all you’ll get is this.”

    He shoved me roughly against the wall, his lips crashing into mine again. His hands went straight for my clothes, tearing at them, no tenderness, and no care.

    “NO!” I screamed, my voice hoarse, but it didn’t matter. He wasn’t listening.

    This was his world now, and I was just the prey.