Chapter 3 — Flashback: A Fractured Legacy

Thea Larkson

Thea Larkson sat alone in her sprawling office at the top of Larkspire Tower. The city lights twinkled below, an endless grid of ambition and opportunity. Yet tonight, the luminous skyline offered no solace. The quiet hum of her Chronos Cuff on her wrist matched the ache in her chest—a dull, persistent reminder of something she couldn’t quite silence. The faint scar on her left wrist caught the cool glow of her cuff’s light, and her fingers brushed over it absently.

Her gaze slipped out of focus, the weight of memory pulling her under.

---

It was a moonless night, the kind that cloaked the world in shadow. The damp air reeked of iron and pine sap, and Thea’s heart drummed a relentless beat against her ribs as she crouched low in the underbrush. The forest around them seemed alive, the trees whispering secrets in a language she couldn’t understand. Every rustle of leaves felt deliberate, every shadow a threat.

Her sister, Elise, moved a few paces ahead, her auburn hair catching the faintest glimmer of starlight. Every movement Elise made was purposeful, confident, the mark of a hunter who had spent years honing her craft. Thea, by contrast, felt clumsy and exposed, her every step a potential misstep.

“Thea, stay sharp,” Elise whispered, her voice firm yet carrying a thread of tension. “We’re almost there.”

Thea tightened her grip on the crossbow in her hands, its wooden stock slick with sweat. She hated how heavy it felt, how foreign. Their mother’s voice echoed in her mind: *This crossbow is your birthright. It’s more than a weapon—it’s a promise.* But no amount of training had prepared her for this—a real hunt, with no safety nets, no second chances.

It was supposed to be simple. Their mother had sent them after reports of a vampire nest just outside the Whispering Grove. A routine mission, she’d called it. Yet something about the forest felt wrong, as though it was holding its breath. Thea’s eyes darted to the gnarled trees, their branches like skeletal fingers. She couldn’t shake the feeling they were being watched.

“Elise,” Thea murmured, her voice barely audible. “What if—”

Elise glanced back, her amber eyes softening. “Trust me, Thea. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

There it was again—Elise’s unwavering calm, her ability to make it all seem manageable. Thea nodded, swallowing her fear. Elise had always been her anchor, her protector. Even when their mother’s expectations had weighed heavy on Thea’s shoulders, Elise had been there, a shield against the suffocating pressure of their family’s mission.

As they moved forward, Elise’s hand brushed against the family pendant she wore—a silver charm shaped like a crescent moon. Thea caught the gesture and knew it was as much for Elise’s reassurance as it was for hers. Even Elise wasn’t impervious to the weight of what they carried.

The faint glow of firelight flickered through the dense foliage. The vampires were close.

Elise signaled for Thea to stop, her hand raised in a silent command. She pointed toward a clearing where three figures clustered around a makeshift fire. Their faces were pale, their features sharp and predatory. The vampires spoke in low murmurs, their words unintelligible but laced with an otherworldly cadence.

Elise turned back to Thea, her expression resolute. “We take them out quickly. Aim for the heart. If anything goes wrong, you run. Understand?”

Thea’s pulse quickened. “But—”

“No arguments,” Elise said, her tone brooking no dissent. “Promise me.”

Thea hesitated, her throat tightening. “I promise.”

Elise smiled—a fleeting, bittersweet curve of her lips. “Good. We’ve got this.”

Thea raised her crossbow, her hands trembling as she took aim. Elise moved first, a blur of precision and power. The first vampire didn’t even have time to react before Elise’s silver-tipped arrow pierced its chest, reducing it to ash. The second turned with a snarl, but Elise was faster, her blade slicing through the air with deadly grace.

Thea focused on the third vampire, her finger trembling over the trigger. The creature’s eyes locked onto hers—cold, calculating, and ancient. Time seemed to stretch, the world narrowing to the weight of the crossbow in her hands and the inhuman stare that pinned her in place.

Elise’s voice cut through the fog. “Thea, now!”

Thea fired. The bolt missed, thudding harmlessly into a tree trunk. The vampire’s lips twisted into a grotesque smile as it lunged—not at her, but at Elise.

“Elise!” Thea’s voice cracked, panic surging as the vampire’s claws raked across her sister’s side. Elise crumpled with a gasp, her blade falling from her grasp.

Thea’s breath hitched, her vision blurring as fear overtook her. The crossbow felt impossibly heavy in her hands, her fingers fumbling to reload. The vampire loomed over Elise, its fangs bared, its movements slow and deliberate, as if savoring the moment.

“Elise!” she screamed, her voice raw.

Elise’s gaze flicked to Thea, her expression a mix of pain and urgency. “Thea, focus. You can do this.”

Thea’s hands steadied, her trembling replaced by a cold, desperate clarity. She raised the crossbow, exhaling as she aimed. The silver bolt struck true, and the vampire disintegrated into ash, its snarling visage frozen in death.

The silence that followed was deafening. Thea dropped the crossbow and rushed to Elise’s side, her hands pressing against the wound that stained her sister’s shirt a deep, sickening crimson.

“Elise, stay with me,” Thea pleaded, her voice breaking. “Please.”

Elise’s eyes fluttered open, her lips curving into a faint, pained smile. “You did good, Thea,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “I knew you could.”

“No, no, no,” Thea sobbed, her hands trembling as she tried to stem the bleeding. “You’re going to be okay. You have to be okay.”

Elise’s gaze softened, her hand reaching up to cup Thea’s cheek. “Remember the treehouse? You were so scared to climb, but you did it anyway. You always do. You’re stronger than you think.”

Her hand slipped away, her eyes closing as the light faded from her face.

Thea sat frozen, her hands slick with blood, her sister’s lifeless body cradled in her arms. The forest seemed to close in around her, the shadows pressing against her skin. She screamed—a raw, guttural sound that echoed through the trees, carrying with it the weight of her grief and guilt.

---

Thea’s eyes snapped open, her chest heaving as the memory faded. She was back in her office, the distant hum of the city a stark reminder of the world she had built to escape the past. Her hands clenched into fists, her nails biting into her palms.

Her Chronos Cuff vibrated softly, pulling her back to the present. The holographic interface flickered to life, its cool blue light casting shadows across her face. A security alert. Another breach.

Her jaw tightened as she scanned the details. Restricted access levels. Data compromised. The implications were clear—someone was targeting her company, her fortress. And this time, the threat felt disturbingly familiar.

Thea rose from her chair, her movements sharp and deliberate. She wouldn’t let her past define her. She wouldn’t let her sister’s death be in vain. She had built her empire on control and precision, and she would defend it with everything she had.

But as she strode toward the door, her fingers brushing the scar on her wrist, the faint echo of Elise’s final words lingered in her mind.

*You’re stronger than you think.*