THE DEVIL'S BRIDE
Episode 20: The Price of Power
By Rapwizzy Debaron
The battlefield still crackled with the aftershocks of Evelyn's storm.
Bodies lay in smoldering heaps. The scent of burnt magic and broken oaths hung in the air.
Lucien sat beside her, pressing a healing stone to her shoulder. "That was reckless," he muttered.
She smiled faintly. "But worth it."
He looked away, voice low. "You scared me."
"I scare myself sometimes," she admitted.
---
Before they could rest, a raven landed at Evelyn's feet — its eyes glowing red.
A scroll hung from its beak.
She took it, hands trembling.
The message was written in blood.
"We have the boy. Come alone. Or he dies."
Beneath the words was the mark of Seraphina — a crown split by fire.
---
"No," Evelyn whispered. "Not Kael…"
Lucien read over her shoulder, fury twisting his features.
"She's baiting you," he said. "You know it's a trap."
"I don't care."
He stood, blocking her path. "You can't just walk into her hands."
"I have to!" she shouted. "He's just a child!"
Lucien stepped back, eyes dark. "Then I'm coming too."
"No," she said. "If she kills me… the world still needs you."
"You are my world, Evelyn."
She touched his cheek. "Then let me protect it."
---
Under the cover of night, Evelyn rode alone.
The air was thick with darkness — a silence too loud to be natural.
She reached the Black Marsh, a dead place where no light dared linger.
There, Seraphina waited.
Wearing a crown of thorns.
Kael stood beside her, bruised but alive. Chains glowed with cruel runes around his ankles.
"Let him go," Evelyn said.
Seraphina laughed, sharp and cold. "And lose my leverage? No, dear girl. You came for him… but you'll stay for me."
---
The queen raised her hand — the marsh came alive.
Shadows slithered, forming soldiers made of pure night.
Evelyn gritted her teeth.
"I didn't come empty-handed."
She threw a small crystal to the ground.
It shattered — releasing a blinding burst of light.
Lucien emerged from it, blades drawn.
Seraphina screamed in rage. "You lied!"
"No," Evelyn said. "I improvised."
---
Battle erupted.
Kael dropped to the ground, curling as magic flew past him.
Lucien fought three at once, cutting through shadows.
Evelyn faced Seraphina — lightning against blackfire.
"You stole my childhood," Evelyn growled.
Seraphina's smile was venom. "And now I'll take your soul."
They clashed.
Power shook the sky.
Blood painted the swamp.
And in the chaos, Kael crawled toward Evelyn—only to be snatched by a shadow hand.
"No!" she screamed—
The boy vanished.
---
To be continued…
A trap set.
A boy taken.
And the storm left broken.
Vote if your heart dropped at the end.
Comment: Do you think Kael will survive? What is Seraphina
's true goal?
Follow @RapwizzyDebaron — Episode 21 takes us deep into Seraphina's prison… and the darkest corner of Evelyn's soul.