The silver light remained on their hands long after the ancient voice had disappeared.
Elara stood beneath the white roses, staring at the mark on her palm.
It was small.
A delicate silver rose, no larger than the tip of her thumb, rested against her skin. Thin lines curled around it like vines, disappearing toward her wrist before fading completely.
Across from her, Ravenna was looking at the same mark on her own hand.
For several moments, neither of them spoke.
Blue sat between them in the grass, tilting his tiny head from one woman to the other.
Then he sneezed.
A tiny puff of blue smoke escaped his nose.
Elara blinked.
Ravenna looked down.
Blue looked offended by the entire situation.
Despite everything that had happened, Elara laughed.
It was a small laugh, but it broke the strange tension that had settled over the garden.
Ravenna's lips curved.
"There it is."
"What?"
"Your laugh."
Elara looked at her.
Ravenna immediately seemed to realize what she had said.
"I mean..."
She cleared her throat.
"It is nice."
Elara smiled.
"You could simply say that."
"I could."
"You don't."
"I am the Demon Queen."
"And apparently the Demon Queen has difficulty complimenting people."
Ravenna looked away.
"I compliment you."
"You do."
"Often."
"Usually when you think I am not listening."
Ravenna's ears turned slightly red.
Blue sneezed again.
Elara laughed once more.
For a few precious minutes, the ancient door beneath the castle seemed very far away.
Then the silver mark on Elara's hand warmed.
She stopped laughing.
Ravenna noticed immediately.
"What is it?"
Elara looked toward the rose garden.
"The mark."
Ravenna held out her hand.
The silver rose on her palm was glowing too.
Not brightly.
Just enough to illuminate the lines of her fingers.
Then the ground beneath their feet gave a soft tremor.
Blue jumped.
Ravenna immediately stepped in front of Elara.
"Stay behind me."
Elara sighed.
"Ravenna."
"I know."
"You promised."
Ravenna paused.
She looked back.
Elara raised an eyebrow.
"You promised not to carry everything alone."
Ravenna's expression softened.
"Right."
She stepped beside Elara instead.
"Then we face it together."
The garden fell silent.
A moment later, something clicked beneath them.
Not a crack.
Not an explosion.
A lock.
The sound traveled through the earth like an enormous key turning inside an ancient door.
Then a narrow line of silver light appeared between the stones.
Elara crouched.
"There."
Ravenna knelt beside her.
They brushed away the soil together.
Beneath it was a stone tile engraved with two roses.
One black.
One white.
Their stems intertwined.
And between them was a third rose.
Silver.
Elara touched it.
The tile moved.
A staircase appeared beneath the earth.
Blue peered over the edge.
Then immediately hid behind Ravenna's skirt.
Ravenna glanced down.
"You were very brave until the stairs appeared."
Blue made a small disgruntled noise.
Elara smiled.
"I think he has good instincts."
"I think he is a coward."
Blue bit Ravenna's boot.
"Ow."
Elara covered her mouth.
Ravenna stared down at the dragon.
"Traitor."
Blue looked pleased with himself.
The staircase descended farther than either of them expected.
The walls were made of old gray stone, covered in faded paintings.
There were knights.
Queens.
Saints.
Dragons.
Ancient forests.
And roses.
Thousands of roses.
Some were black.
Some were white.
Others were silver.
Elara ran her fingers over one painting.
The colors were almost gone, but she could still make out two women standing beside one another.
One wore black.
The other wore white.
They were holding hands.
Neither woman was kneeling.
Neither woman was standing behind the other.
They stood as equals.
Ravenna stared at the painting.
"That doesn't match anything in our history books."
"No."
Elara's voice was quiet.
"It doesn't match mine either."
They continued downward.
At the bottom of the staircase stood a pair of enormous wooden doors.
There was no handle.
Only two handprints. Visit g.com for the full chapter.
One black.
One white.
Elara looked at Ravenna.
Ravenna looked at Elara.
"Together?"
"Together."
They placed their hands against the doors.
Nothing happened.
Elara frowned.
"Maybe we need to use magic."
Ravenna shook her head.
"No."
She looked at the silver rose on their palms.
"I think we already did."
The marks began to glow.
Silver light traveled from their hands into the doors.
The black and white roses carved into the wood slowly changed.
Their petals opened.
The silver rose between them bloomed.
The doors unlocked.
With a long, tired groan, they opened inward.
Dust drifted through the air.
Elara stared.
The room beyond was enormous.
Shelves reached from floor to ceiling.
Books filled almost every wall.
Some were stacked neatly.
Others lay in piles on tables.
There were scrolls.
Maps.
Paintings.
Broken tablets.
Old crowns.
Fragments of armor.
And countless books covered in dust.
A library.
A forgotten library.
Ravenna stepped inside.
"When was this built?"
Elara looked around.
"I don't know."
Blue flew from behind Ravenna and landed on a table.
A cloud of dust rose.
Blue sneezed.
Elara laughed.
"Perhaps we should name this place the Dust Kingdom."
Ravenna smiled.
"That would offend the librarians."
"If there are any librarians left."
A voice came from somewhere behind them.
"There is one."
Both women froze.
Blue stopped sneezing.
Slow footsteps echoed between the shelves.
A figure appeared from the darkness.
It was not a ghost.
At least, Elara thought it wasn't.
An elderly woman stood between the shelves, holding a lantern in one hand and a stack of books in the other.
She wore a long gray robe.
Her hair was white.
Her eyes were sharp.
She looked at Ravenna.
Then Elara.
Then their silver marks.
The woman's expression changed.
"You came."
Ravenna stepped forward.
"Who are you?"
The woman smiled faintly.
"I have been waiting for the Black Rose and the White Rose."
Elara felt a chill.
"How long?"
The woman looked toward the shelves.
"Three hundred and seventeen years."
Ravenna's eyes narrowed.
"You're human."
"Yes."
"You should be dead."
"Probably."
Elara blinked.
The woman shrugged.
"I've never been particularly good at following the rules."
Ravenna stared at her.
Then, unexpectedly, she laughed.
The woman smiled.
"Good."
"What?"
"The old records said the Black Rose Queen had forgotten how to laugh."
Ravenna's smile disappeared.
Elara tried not to laugh.
The woman walked toward them.
"My name is Archivist Mira."
She pointed toward the endless shelves.
"This is the Library of the First Pact."
Elara looked around.
"The First Pact."
Mira nodded.
"The agreement that existed before your kingdoms."
She pointed toward the black and white roses carved into the far wall.
"Before the war."
Elara felt her heart tighten.
"You know what happened?"
"I know what was written."
"Is it the truth?"
Mira's expression became serious.
"No."
Elara and Ravenna exchanged a glance.
Mira continued.
"That is why this library was hidden."
She placed her books on a nearby table.
"The truth was dangerous."
Ravenna crossed her arms.
"Dangerous enough to erase from history?"
"Yes."
"Who erased it?"
Mira looked at her.
"Both sides."
Silence filled the library.
Elara stepped closer.
"Humans and demons?"
"Humans blamed demons."
Mira's gaze shifted toward Ravenna.
"Demons blamed humans."
She walked to a shelf and pulled out a thick book.
She opened the book.
"The truth was much harder."
Elara looked down.
The first page contained an illustration.
Two women stood beneath a silver tree.
One had black hair.
One had white hair.
Their hands were joined.
Behind them stood a sealed stone door.
And written beneath the image were the words:
The Black Rose and the White Rose were never enemies.
Elara's breath caught.
Ravenna slowly sat down.
"Then why did we fight?"
Mira closed the book.
"Because someone wanted you to."
The lantern flickered.
For the first time, there was no humor in Mira's expression.
"The thing beneath your castle has many names."
Elara whispered.
"The Void King."
Mira looked at her.
"That is one of them."
"What is its true name?"
Mira hesitated.
Then she shook her head.
"Names have power."
Ravenna stood.
"Then tell us what it does."
Mira looked toward the sealed shelves at the back of the library.
"It feeds."
"On what?"
"Fear."
The word seemed to settle over the room.
"And hatred."
Mira's voice became quieter.
"The more humans feared demons, the stronger it became."
"The more demons hated humans, the stronger it became."
Elara stared at the old book.
"So the war..."
"Was its food."
Ravenna's fingers tightened.
"Then the marriage."
Mira looked at their hands.
"The marriage was never supposed to be a punishment."
Elara felt her heart beat faster.
"What was it supposed to be?"
Mira smiled sadly.
"A choice."
She turned another page.
There was a drawing of the same two women.
This time they were standing before the ancient door.
Their hands were joined.
A silver rose bloomed between them.
Beneath it were several lines of ancient writing.
Mira translated them slowly.
"When Black and White stand together..."
Elara whispered the next words.
"...Silver shall bloom."
Ravenna finished the sentence.
"And the sleeping king shall remain asleep."
Elara stared at the page.
"So the pact was meant to be renewed."
"Yes."
"Through marriage?"
Mira shook her head.
"Not exactly."
Ravenna frowned.
"Then what?"
Mira closed the book.
"Through choice."
The room seemed colder.
"The first Black Rose Queen and White Rose Saint did not marry because the world ordered them to."
Mira looked directly at Elara.
"They chose each other."
Then at Ravenna.
"And because they chose each other freely, their magic became something the Void King could not consume."
Elara looked at the silver mark on her palm.
A strange warmth spread through her chest.
Not because of destiny.
Not because of an ancient prophecy.
Because of choice.
Ravenna was staring at the same mark.
"What happens if we fail?"
Mira did not answer immediately.
Finally, she said,
"The seal will open."
Elara swallowed.
"And then?"
Mira looked toward the darkness behind the library.
"Then the world will remember why the ancient kings were afraid."
The lantern flame trembled.
Somewhere deep beneath the castle, something moved.
A distant sound rolled through the stone.
Not a roar.
Not a scream.
A heartbeat.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Blue crawled into Elara's arms.
Ravenna moved closer.
Their shoulders touched.
Neither stepped away.
Elara looked at Ravenna.
Ravenna looked back.
"We're not going to let it decide for us."
"No."
Ravenna held out her hand.
Elara placed hers in it.
Their silver marks touched.
The light returned.
Soft.
Steady.
Warm.
Mira watched them in silence.
Then she smiled.
"Good."
Elara glanced at her.
"Why?"
"Because the old pact never needed two people who were destined to love each other."
Mira closed the ancient book.
"It needed two people who would choose each other after learning the truth."
The library fell silent again.
And somewhere beneath the castle, the thing that had been sleeping for three hundred years opened its eyes.
This time, it was afraid.