Chapter 2

My father met my eyes, then let out a heavy sigh. His clenched fists fell slack, abandoning his final attempt to salvage our transaction.

"If you're hell-bent on the Abyssal Borders, living among sunless exiles," he said, weary and disdainful, "maybe when you finally break, Lysandra and the Golden Eagles will let a few scraps slip through their fingers for you."

I stepped out of his study and ran straight into Lysandra. She wore a mask of feigned concern.

"Seraphina! Are you really bonding with the Shadow Raven chieftain?" She covered her mouth in shock. "Even if Valerius didn't choose you, there's no need to degrade yourself with a crippled exile. I hear they're starving in the Shadow Rift. They don't even have a sacred tree to roost in."

Malice danced in her eyes. "Their hatchlings are born featherless, sometimes deformed. Meanwhile, the Golden Eagles rule Aurelia's richest territory. Even their servants eat solar-infused fruit. If you starve in the Abyss, I can ask Valerius to send you their scraps."

Lysandra laughed. The surrounding handmaids lowered their heads, avoiding my gaze.

Her sharp laughter dragged me straight back into the nightmare of my past life.

Valerius's enraged face flashed through my mind, his roar echoing: "You useless bird! You can't even incubate a golden-winged egg without draining my solar magic! What good is your high-born blood?!"

I could almost feel the phantom pain of his blazing talons piercing my shoulders. Every extraction of my magic tore at my flight feathers. Locked in the Golden Eagle's cage, I had been drained day and night, degraded to something worse than a wingless beast.

But Lysandra knew none of this. She only saw her triumph, convinced she had secured the perfect mate.

I pushed the memories down. "Don't worry about me, sister. I've chosen my Lord, and I won't regret it."

My calm made her flinch. She'd expected a broken loser.

She bit her lip, her stare turning feverish. "I will have Valerius's ultimate devotion. We will rule the clouds, and I will bear him a perfect heir—the future ruler of the Sky City!"

"Then I wish you exactly what you deserve," I said. I turned away and headed to my chambers to prepare for the Bonding Ceremony.

Inside my room, I stood before the mirror. Lysandra's taunts lingered.

Truthfully, I was worried. The Shadow Ravens had been impoverished for centuries. If Corvus couldn't provide a spiritual token for the ritual, tradition dictated it as a grave insult.

I reached for my mother's jewelry box, ready to make do with old pearls, when a soft knock interrupted me. "Come in."

Corvus stepped into the moonlit room. A heavy black cloak hid his reportedly mangled wings, but his pale face was striking in its cold composure.

It was my first time seeing his crimson eyes up close. They weren't dull like the rumors claimed, but sharp and deep.

"I brought the token," he said, his voice gravelly.

He held out a weathered black stone box. As he opened it, the gemstone inside seemed to swallow the moonlight. It was a dark-gold bone necklace, set with a swirling, night-black stone.

"Forged from Abyssal Star-Marrow," Corvus explained softly. "It holds a crystallized drop of our first Raven God's heart's blood. In the dark, it will let you see through the fog."

He briefly met my eyes before looking away, a slight flush on his cheekbones. "If it's too shabby, tell me. I'll find another way."

"Thank you, Corvus," I said. "I can feel its power. It's beautiful."

The door was suddenly shoved open. Lysandra strutted in, Valerius close behind. The Golden Eagle heir's eyes were full of arrogance.

"Is that your only jewelry tonight?" Lysandra sneered at the bone chain. "A pitiful black rock for a White Swan to play crow?"

She tapped a solid gold collar around her own neck. "Valerius gave me a Sunflare Plume, blessed by the sun! It's not some cheap rock to trick girls."

Valerius watched her. "Lysandra has the best bloodline for nurturing a divine hatchling. She deserves the Sky City's highest reward."

Lysandra only saw his power. She didn't realize Valerius's affection relied entirely on her promise to birth a dominant heir. If he ever discovered her bloodline couldn't survive the magic extraction, his gentleness would vanish.

Corvus ignored them. Stepping forward, his steady hands fastened the Star-Marrow around my neck. The icy stone resonated with something deep in my soul.

"Seraphina," Corvus said, his voice a vow. "If the Sky City gave you only pain, I swear—even with broken wings in the Abyss, I will use my bones to build you a stairway back to the heavens. I will never betray you."

Lysandra scoffed. "How touching. Too bad pretty words can't change the fact that Ravens only breed cripples. A wingless bird stays in the mud."

I studied Lysandra's contorted face. Her obsession with birthing a ruler was pathological. The shame of being an illegitimate daughter had driven her to madness.

Now, she only cared about validating herself through an heir. She hadn't even waited for the Bonding Ceremony before moving into the Golden Eagles' palace. She and Valerius were a perfect match: two ruthless climbers willing to bleed their mates dry.

"If you're so confident, Lysandra," I said, my tone dead, "you should focus on your womb instead of wasting breath in my room."

I took Corvus's calloused hand. "The ceremony is starting," I told him. "Let's go."

As we walked down the corridor, Lysandra's shrill voice echoed behind us, rambling about pureborn heirs and high magic.

My foolish sister. Given a second chance at life, you still think your only worth is a womb destined to birth a monster.