Bride Of The Night

Chapter 10

### **Chapter 10: Beneath the Surface**

The night was thick with a silence that pressed against Lana like a weight, suffocating, yet strangely comforting. She had retreated to the abandoned mansion in the hills, a place that felt as empty and haunted as she did. The cold stone walls seemed to absorb the tension, leaving everything inside still and silent, save for the sound of her own thoughts crashing through her mind.

The hunger was there, gnawing at the edges of her consciousness, but something had shifted since that night in the forest. She could feel the pull of the power within her, that dark, endless well of strength and hunger, but for once it wasn't the only thing she could focus on. There was something else—the connection to Morpheus that was growing stronger by the day. It wasn't just a bond formed by his blood in her veins. It was deeper, more primal.

A sense of him, as if he were always just beyond her reach, his presence hovering in her mind like a shadow.

He had warned her that she would feel it. That the bond would become something undeniable, something she couldn't escape.

Lana paced through the dimly lit hallways, her footsteps echoing in the vast emptiness. She tried to push the thoughts of Morpheus, of her new life, away. The house had been quiet ever since she and Ian had returned from the forest. Emma had gone to attend to some matters—something that seemed important, though Lana didn't have the heart to ask what it was. She had wanted space. She had wanted time to think.

To figure out what she was supposed to be.

The hunger, always there, had started to feel more like a call to action. The first time she had tasted blood—taken it so violently—had been a shock. But now, it was different. She could feel her body shifting, craving that same rush, that euphoric high that came with feeding. It wasn't just about survival anymore. It was about *need*.

She could hear the pulse of the blood in her veins, the silent scream of every living thing around her. The noise was maddening. It made her teeth ache, her fangs itching beneath her gums. She could almost taste the sweetness of life in the air, could almost *feel* it, like an electric current crackling along her skin.

A faint movement from the corner of the room made her stop. Her gaze darted to the shadows, a predator's instinct kicking in, but it was only Ian.

"You've been pacing for hours," he said quietly, his voice barely more than a whisper.

Lana swallowed, trying to regain some semblance of control. "I can't... I can't stop thinking about it. About what I am. What I've become."

Ian was still, watching her with that calm, knowing expression. The same one he always wore when he was trying to understand her, or trying to help her understand herself. "You don't have to face it alone, Lana. Not ever."

The softness in his voice stung, cutting through the chaos in her mind. She had always known Ian was the steady one, the one who would be there, no matter how hard things got. But even his warmth couldn't soothe the rawness of the hunger inside of her, nor the terror that followed it.

"I don't know how to live like this," she whispered, more to herself than to Ian. "I'm not like you. I can't just... be this thing, this *creature*."

"You're not a monster," Ian replied, his tone gentle but firm. He stepped closer, his eyes never leaving hers. "You just need time to adjust. You've been thrown into this world, and it's going to take time to find your footing. But that doesn't mean you have to do it alone."

Lana wanted to believe him. She *desperately* wanted to believe him. But the truth was that the hunger was growing stronger, deeper. And with it, the connection to Morpheus was growing too. The way his presence slipped into her thoughts, the way she could feel him in the back of her mind, like an echo of something larger. It wasn't just a bond—it was a tether, and it was pulling her toward him.

"I can feel him," she said quietly, the words slipping out before she could stop them. "I can feel him... inside me."

Ian's eyes softened, and for the first time, there was a flicker of something akin to sympathy in them. "The bond," he murmured. "It's strong. Stronger than I thought it would be."

Lana closed her eyes, her head spinning. She didn't want to acknowledge it, but the truth was undeniable. *He* was always there. The hunger, the power—it all tied back to Morpheus.

"You can't fight it," Ian said gently. "Not yet. Not with everything that's still inside of you. The bond is part of who you are now. It will shape you, whether you like it or not."

"I don't want to be shaped by him," Lana replied, her voice trembling with a mixture of anger and fear. "I don't want to be a puppet to him."

"You're not a puppet, Lana," Ian said, his voice hardening just slightly. "You're more than that. But you have to understand that the bond goes both ways. It's not just about him shaping you. You can shape it too."

Lana turned to face him fully, her breath catching in her chest. "How? How do I control it? How do I stop it from controlling me?"

Ian didn't answer right away. He took a deep breath, as though choosing his words carefully. Then, finally, he spoke. "By accepting it. By understanding it. You're not just bound to Morpheus. You're bound to the power, the darkness that is now inside of you. You can either fight it—endlessly—or you can learn to live with it. You have to stop thinking of it as a curse and start thinking of it as a part of you."

Lana's chest tightened at his words. The truth was, she didn't know how to accept any of this. She didn't know how to live in this new reality where everything she thought she knew had been torn apart and replaced with something dark, something dangerous. The power inside her was like a beast, and no matter how hard she tried to fight it, she could feel it breaking free, clawing at the edges of her control.

"I'm afraid," she admitted, her voice barely audible.

"I know," Ian said softly, moving closer to her. He reached out, his hand resting on her arm in a gesture of comfort. "But you're not alone. And you're not weak. You just need to let yourself accept what's already inside of you."

Lana felt a shiver run through her at the thought. *Accept* it. It sounded so simple, but the weight of it crushed her. How could she ever accept this? How could she ever accept that the beast inside her, the bloodlust that defined everything she was now, would always be with her?

Before she could respond, a cold gust of wind swept through the room, extinguishing the few candles she had lit, and plunging the mansion into total darkness.

Lana froze. The presence in the room had shifted. She could feel it—heavy, suffocating.

"Morpheus," she whispered, her voice barely audible.

Ian's face hardened. "Stay close," he warned, his tone tense. "He's here."

The air thickened, and Lana felt the weight of Morpheus's gaze before she even saw him. He was standing in the doorway, tall and imposing, his presence filling the room like a dark storm cloud. His violet eyes gleamed in the darkness, and Lana felt herself drawn to him, unable to look away.

"You've been avoiding me," Morpheus said, his voice smooth, like honey, but with an underlying darkness that made Lana's pulse quicken.

Lana didn't answer. She didn't know what to say.

"Did you think you could run from the bond?" he continued, stepping into the room, his gaze never leaving her. "Did you think you could escape it?"

"I'm not running," Lana replied, her voice shaking. "But I can't just... *accept* it. Not yet."

Morpheus smiled, but it wasn't kind. "You will. In time."

The air in the room seemed to grow colder, and heavier with his presence.

"You've already begun the process," he continued, his tone deep and knowing. "The power within you is waking, Lana. And soon, you won't be able to control it anymore."

Lana's breath caught in her throat. She could feel the weight of his words sinking into her, settling deep in her chest.

The hunger was rising again. And this time, it felt unstoppable.

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