MARKED FOR PRETEND - Chapter 40: Chapter 40
You are reading MARKED FOR PRETEND, Chapter 40: Chapter 40. Read more chapters of MARKED FOR PRETEND.
The air was too still.
Chelsea opened her eyes slowly, blinking against the faint gold shimmer that clung to the sky like dust. She was no longer floating, no silver fog,no echo of her parents’ voices calling her Krippa. Just… earth beneath her, warm and humming, like it remembered her.
She sat up sharply, heart pounding. Her fingers dug into soft, mossy ground. Trees surrounded her — tall, ancient things with black bark and deep purple leaves, swaying even though there was no wind.
Not Duskveil.
Not even the realm.
Somewhere else entirely.
Her breath trembled as she rose to her feet. Her body felt… different. Lighter. Stronger. But her chest ached like something had been left behind in that light. Her parents. Their warnings. The prophecy carved into her name.
“You can either build a bridge between worlds… or set it on fire.”
A snap echoed behind her.
Chelsea spun, her wolf flaring beneath her skin not fully awake, but present. Watching.
From the trees, someone stepped forward. He was tall, draped in a dark red cloak stitched with metallic thread. His face was sharp, his smile sharper.
“So,” he said smoothly, “the girl finally arrives.”
Chelsea didn’t speak.
“We’ve been expecting you. You’re not easy to find ,not even with blood magic.” His eyes glinted. “But now that you’re here… Lady Krippa, is it?”
Her jaw tightened. “Who are you?”
“A friend. Or a threat. That depends on you.”
Two others appeared behind him — one carrying a staff, the other cloaked like a shadow. They didn’t raise weapons. They bowed.
Chelsea blinked.
“We don’t want your power in chains,” the man said. “We want to place it on a throne. You’ve been crawling beneath wolves who feared what you could become. We would never fear you.”
She laughed bitterly. “Is that supposed to make me trust you?”
“No. But perhaps it makes us better than the ones who chained you like a beast.”
Chelsea flinched. Her wrists still stung at the memory. That cold chamber. Those chains. The hunger in the first group’s eyes — like they thought they could control her with metal and fear.
This group was different. Softer in approach. But not in motive.
“Why am I here?” she asked.
“Because your blood woke something older than us all. And every realm is watching now, waiting to see who claims you.”
He stepped closer. Too close.
“We offer you power, Chelsea. Freedom. Not as a pawn. As a ruler.”
She stared at him.
Power?
Freedom?
Or another cage… just with prettier bars?
Chelsea opened her eyes slowly, blinking against the faint gold shimmer that clung to the sky like dust. She was no longer floating, no silver fog,no echo of her parents’ voices calling her Krippa. Just… earth beneath her, warm and humming, like it remembered her.
She sat up sharply, heart pounding. Her fingers dug into soft, mossy ground. Trees surrounded her — tall, ancient things with black bark and deep purple leaves, swaying even though there was no wind.
Not Duskveil.
Not even the realm.
Somewhere else entirely.
Her breath trembled as she rose to her feet. Her body felt… different. Lighter. Stronger. But her chest ached like something had been left behind in that light. Her parents. Their warnings. The prophecy carved into her name.
“You can either build a bridge between worlds… or set it on fire.”
A snap echoed behind her.
Chelsea spun, her wolf flaring beneath her skin not fully awake, but present. Watching.
From the trees, someone stepped forward. He was tall, draped in a dark red cloak stitched with metallic thread. His face was sharp, his smile sharper.
“So,” he said smoothly, “the girl finally arrives.”
Chelsea didn’t speak.
“We’ve been expecting you. You’re not easy to find ,not even with blood magic.” His eyes glinted. “But now that you’re here… Lady Krippa, is it?”
Her jaw tightened. “Who are you?”
“A friend. Or a threat. That depends on you.”
Two others appeared behind him — one carrying a staff, the other cloaked like a shadow. They didn’t raise weapons. They bowed.
Chelsea blinked.
“We don’t want your power in chains,” the man said. “We want to place it on a throne. You’ve been crawling beneath wolves who feared what you could become. We would never fear you.”
She laughed bitterly. “Is that supposed to make me trust you?”
“No. But perhaps it makes us better than the ones who chained you like a beast.”
Chelsea flinched. Her wrists still stung at the memory. That cold chamber. Those chains. The hunger in the first group’s eyes — like they thought they could control her with metal and fear.
This group was different. Softer in approach. But not in motive.
“Why am I here?” she asked.
“Because your blood woke something older than us all. And every realm is watching now, waiting to see who claims you.”
He stepped closer. Too close.
“We offer you power, Chelsea. Freedom. Not as a pawn. As a ruler.”
She stared at him.
Power?
Freedom?
Or another cage… just with prettier bars?
End of MARKED FOR PRETEND Chapter 40. Continue reading Chapter 41 or return to MARKED FOR PRETEND book page.