The Black Bell tolled again.
No one in the waking world heard it.
But every midnight, it echoed in the bones of the cursed a deep, metallic groan that peeled back reality like skin from flesh.
And somewhere, in the choking silence between that toll and the first scream, a girl opened her eyes.
Not in her bed. Not in her world. In the Nightbound.
Seren Vale stood barefoot on a shifting surface of ash and glass, the air humming like the breath of something alive. Towers of shadow loomed above her, hollow and cracked whispering names in voices not quite human.
She didn't scream. She never did.
This was the third night in a row. The third night her dreams weren't dreams. And this time… something had changed.
Beneath her skin, something pulsed a mark she didn't remember getting, glowing faintly like a brand of silver fire. Her breath hitched. Around her, the shadows stirred, watching, like predators scenting fresh blood.
One of them moved.
Its shape twisted too many limbs, not enough eyes and the moment it saw her mark, it stopped. It bowed. Seren's heart pounded once.
And somewhere in her soul, something old and forbidden smiled.
"You've returned."
"Our Queen."