The wind howled through the shattered remains of St. Ivy High, a bitter chill settling over the bloodstained courtyard as dawn broke on the horizon. The first light of day barely pierced the thick, unnatural mist that still clung to the school grounds — as though the earth itself hadn't yet decided whether to claim what remained or let it fester a little longer.
Selena Carter stood alone at the edge of the old chapel, the smoldering ashes of the Thornheart behind her. Blood matted her dark hair to her face, and her dagger hung limp in her grasp. She felt numb. Empty.
It should've been over.
But it wasn't.
She turned the locket over in her hand, the faintest remnants of blood still clinging to the engraved name:
Lilith Morgan.
The face inside haunted her — the pale, dark-eyed girl whose name none of them had ever spoken. A face that hadn't been in any yearbook, photo archive, or student record. It was as though Lilith had never existed.
But Selena knew better. Anyone connected to the Thorn Society never truly disappeared.
Footsteps crunched over debris behind her.
Eira Carter appeared, her face pale and streaked with grime, bruises blooming along her neck where Mason's hands had gripped too tight. But her eyes were sharp, stubborn.
"You okay?" Eira asked.
Selena gave a humorless laugh. "Define 'okay.'"
Eira didn't press further. Instead, she glanced down at the locket. "We need to find out who she is."
"Was," Selena corrected softly. "If she was tied to Morgan, she's either buried or worse."
Eira shuddered. "Worse than what we just saw?"
Selena met her gaze. "Trust me, Eira… there are things older than this town. Things older than St. Ivy. The Thorn Society was just a branch. The roots go deeper."
Eira swallowed hard, then squared her shoulders. "Then let's rip them up."
Selena actually smiled — a flicker of the old queen bee surfacing. "Damn right."
But before they could move, a voice crackled from the busted intercom speakers across the courtyard. Static at first — then words, warped and distant, yet unmistakably female.
"Hello, Selena."
Both girls froze.
"Did you really think it would be that easy?"
The voice wasn't Cassandra's. It wasn't Amara's. It wasn't anyone they knew.
Selena's grip on the dagger tightened. "Lilith."
Eira's stomach twisted. "But she's dead."
"Maybe," Selena whispered. "But that's never stopped them before."
The voice continued, echoing through the broken PA system.
"You took my heart. You shattered my relic. But I am not gone. You merely woke me."
The mist thickened, curling low around their ankles like cold fingers. A new figure stepped out from behind the gymnasium ruins.
It was a girl.
At least, she looked like one.
Pale as bone, eyes pure black. Her long white hair clung to her face like wet silk, and a Thorn Society pendant hung around her neck, gleaming with fresh blood.
"Lilith Morgan," Eira breathed.
Selena took a step forward, her heart hammering. "Why now? Why come back after all this time?"
Lilith tilted her head, her voice a sweet, unnatural lilt. "Because he called me. And because you… Selena Carter… wear the Thorn's mark now."
Selena's throat tightened. "I destroyed your Elder. I burned your cult. I bled your followers dry."
Lilith smiled. "And still, you carry the mark."
Eira looked at Selena sharply. "What's she talking about?"
Selena didn't answer.
Lilith raised a hand. The ground beneath the broken chapel cracked again, releasing a putrid, ancient stench. From the earth, skeletal figures began to rise — the long-dead members of the Thorn Society, their empty eyes fixed on Selena.
"You belong to us," Lilith whispered.
Eira stepped in front of Selena. "You're not taking her."
Lilith's smile widened. "Then you'll die with her."
Before either girl could react, Lilith flung her hand outward. A wave of shadow burst from her palm, slamming into them both. Eira was hurled against the chapel wall, crumpling with a gasp. Selena staggered but managed to stay on her feet.
"Selena, run!" Eira choked.
But Selena didn't move. Not this time.
She remembered the old prophecy — the one Morgan had whispered before his bones turned to dust. One queen must fall for the other to rise.
"I'm not running anymore," Selena snarled.
She lunged at Lilith.
The dagger flashed.
Lilith caught it mid-swing, her inhuman strength stopping it cold.
"You're brave," Lilith murmured, "but you've already lost."
Then — from the mist — another figure appeared.
Baron.
His face was gaunt, his skin ash-grey, but his eyes… they were his own. He looked between Selena and Lilith, his jaw tight.
"Get away from her," Baron growled.
Lilith laughed, the sound cold and hollow. "You betrayed her, boy. You're no savior."
"I made mistakes," Baron said, raising his blood-streaked sword. "But I'll die fixing them."
Without hesitation, he charged.
Lilith's eyes widened for a fraction of a second before Baron plunged his blade through her chest.
An unearthly scream tore through the dawn air. The ground quaked. The skeletal figures crumbled.
Selena didn't waste a second. She drove her dagger into Lilith's heart, right beside Baron's blade.
The light that burst from Lilith's body wasn't crimson — it was blinding white.
The Thorn Society's power shattered in an instant.
Lilith's form convulsed, her face contorting in fury and pain.
"This isn't over," she hissed, before her body crumbled to ash.
Silence fell.
The mist cleared.
The sky lightened.
It was over.
Selena dropped her dagger, her knees buckling. Eira staggered to her side, blood on her face, but alive.
Baron knelt, his body flickering between solid and spectral.
Selena reached for him. "Baron…"
He gave her a sad smile. "Guess this is the part where I finally get it right."
"No," she whispered.
"I don't belong here anymore. But you do. Lead them, Selena. Be the queen you were meant to be."
Then, before either girl could stop him, Baron's form dissolved into mist — carried away on the wind.
Selena let out a ragged breath, her chest aching.
Eira knelt beside her. "It's over. The Thorn Society's finished."
Selena glanced down at the bloodstained locket still clutched in her hand.
"No," she said quietly. "This chapter is over. But the story's not done."
Eira frowned. "What do you mean?"
Selena held up the locket. Inside, the photo had changed.
Now, it showed a new face.
Selena's own.
Her stomach turned to ice.
"The Thorn chooses its next queen," Selena whispered.
And somewhere, in the depths of the ruined chapel, a faint, feminine voice laughed