THE DEVIL'S BRIDE
Episode 24: Queen of Ash and Flame
By Rapwizzy Debaron
The wind stopped.
The woods fell silent.
And then… the shadows parted.
She appeared like a phantom—elegant, deadly, tragic.
Seraphina.
Her hair cascaded like obsidian waves, her gown a flowing river of crimson silk, as if woven from dried blood and midnight itself. Her eyes, once filled with sorrow, now burned with cold resolve.
Kael clutched Evelyn's hand tighter. Lucien unsheathed his blade.
Seraphina smiled.
"So," she said softly, "this is how it ends?"
Evelyn stepped forward. "It's how it begins."
---
Seraphina's gaze flicked to the boy.
"The child lives. Impressive… for now."
Lucien snarled, "Say another word and I'll—"
She raised a finger. He froze.
Not by magic… but by grief.
"I did not come to fight," Seraphina whispered. "I came to speak to the girl who once called me mother."
Evelyn's heart cracked, but she didn't flinch. "You raised me with lies."
"I raised you with purpose."
"You used me!"
Seraphina's voice broke, for just a moment. "I loved you… in my own way."
---
Evelyn's fists clenched. "Why Kael? Why go after him?"
"Because he is the key. The gate. The ending… and the beginning."
She took a step closer.
"The moment he took his first breath, the balance shifted. Heaven trembled. Hell whispered his name."
Lucien barked, "Stay back."
But Seraphina looked only at Evelyn.
"You think I want to destroy this world? No. I want to rewrite it. A world without pain. Without betrayal."
Evelyn whispered, "At the cost of innocent lives?"
Seraphina tilted her head.
"Innocence is an illusion."
---
Then something in her expression changed. A softness Evelyn hadn't seen in years.
"Come with me," Seraphina said. "We can finish what was started. Rewrite fate. Together."
Evelyn's lip trembled. For a heartbeat, she saw the woman who once brushed her hair and hummed lullabies.
Then Kael whispered, "Don't go."
And just like that, Evelyn remembered who she was.
She looked Seraphina in the eye.
"I'm not your daughter anymore."
---
Seraphina's smile faded. The flames in her eyes turned to frost.
"Then you're my enemy."
And she vanished—into smoke and shadow, leaving behind only the faint scent of burnt roses.
---
Evelyn collapsed to her knees.
Lucien sheathed his sword.
Kael touched her arm.
"You chose us."
Evelyn looked at him with a tear-streaked smile.
"I'll always choose you."
---
To be continued…
A line drawn.
A family shattered.
And war closer than ever.
Vote if you felt Evelyn's strength.
Comment: Would you have gone with Seraphina? Ca
n love survive betrayal?
Follow @RapwizzyDebaron — Episode 25 unleashes the first blow in the war between fate and fire.