Yasmin opened the heavy wooden door, and the warm air of her kitchen instantly met the cold, shifting shadow of the night. Standing on her doorstep was a creature that didn't belong to the mortal world. Above his head, glowing faintly in the air, were ancient letters that spelled his true name: Nifibia.He looked exactly like the entity from her oldest visions—a shifting form of brilliant blue, with strange antennae, wings, and a dark, bird-like mask with piercing green eyes. Her heart skipped a beat. The moment she smelled his scent—a mixture of cold desert sand and ozone—her memories flashed violently. То тоThis wasn't a stranger. In a life three centuries ago, Nifibia had been her fiercest enemy, a powerful being who sought to steal her family's celestial magic."I have tracked the scent of the Echo Bloom across lifetimes, Yasmin," Nifibia spoke, his voice sounding like scraping stones, yet carrying a strange, familiar pain. He stepped into the warm kitchen, his blue form contrasting with the warm colors of her hearth. "Your angel ancestors hid the truth of my destiny in your spices. I have come to take it back."Yasmin didn't retreat. She looked at Nifibia and saw a hidden sorrow beneath his terrifying mask. She picked up her pestle, ready to face the shadow of her past.

Chapter 3: The Shadow from the Past