Sometime Around 3 A.M. – The Dreamworld

The walls weren’t real.

They pulsed like breathing shadows—bones of a place that shouldn’t exist. A hallway stretched endlessly forward, lined with mirrors that didn’t reflect Maya at all. Instead, they showed versions of her—glowing, broken, monstrous, divine.

She didn’t know where she was.

Only that she wasn’t alone.

Her bare feet made no sound on the marble floor. A single torch burned black flame ahead, dancing like it knew she was watching.

Then came the whisper.

Not from around her—from within her.

> “You were supposed to stay dead.”

Maya turned.

The woman standing behind her looked nothing like the legends. No horns. No claws. Just beauty so sharp it cut, wrapped in crimson silk, her lips curved in cruel amusement.

Lilith.

Her voice could drip honey or venom without changing tone. “But he pulled you back. Jack. Touched your soul like a child digging in forbidden dirt.”

Maya’s fists curled. “What do you want?”

Lilith stepped closer. Her eyes flickered like fire behind glass. “To see what you are.”

Maya didn’t flinch. “I’m not yours.”

“Not yet.” A tilt of the head. “But you feel me, don’t you? In your blood. In your breath. In your dreams. You were born in fire, girl. Brought back by chaos. You can’t carry that light without a shadow.”

Something in the walls groaned.

Lilith's form shimmered like smoke. “He made you radiant. But balance is tricky. And I… I am the cost.”

She raised a hand.

Maya felt herself choke—not physically, but as if her lungs forgot how to work. Like gravity had vanished from her bones.

Then—

> “Maya!”

A voice—Jack’s voice—echoed from somewhere far away.

Lilith smiled faintly, as if amused. “Tell your sweet little god to prepare himself. Because when the scales tip again, it won’t be Heaven or Hell that wins.”

She leaned in close enough to whisper in Maya’s ear.

> “It’ll be you.”

And then the dream shattered like glass.

---

The Bunker – Maya’s Room – Moments Later

She woke up gasping.

The sheets were tangled around her legs, her skin slick with sweat. The lamp on her nightstand flickered. No—it flared, white light bursting before shorting out entirely.

Then she realized: the door was already open.

Jack stood in the doorway, barefoot in pajama pants and a hoodie, eyes wide. “I felt it,” he said softly.

Maya was still breathing hard. “She was in my head.”

He was by her side in an instant, kneeling next to the bed. His hand hovered before touching her cheek. “Lilith?”

She nodded. “She said… I was born in fire. That you made me radiant. That she’s the cost.”

Jack’s jaw clenched, pain flickering behind his golden gaze. “It’s my fault.”

“No,” Maya said, grabbing his wrist, grounding them both. “You brought me back. You saved me.”

He looked like he wanted to say something else. Maybe everything else. But he didn’t.

Not yet.

Castiel appeared in the hallway behind them, his expression grave.

“I think we need to talk,” he said.

---

Library – A Little Later

Candles lit the space now, their soft glow gentler than the bunker’s harsh overhead lights.

Maya sat with a thick blanket wrapped around her shoulders, hair still messy from sleep. Jack was beside her on the couch, and Castiel paced nearby.

“She’s older than we thought,” Cas began. “Lilith isn’t just a demon. She was the first. Created in rebellion, buried in wrath. Sealed away by divine order—not just Heaven, but balance itself. When Jack resurrected you, he didn’t just defy nature…”

“…He cracked the seal,” Maya finished, voice quiet.

Castiel nodded.

Jack leaned forward, elbows on knees. “Can we stop her?”

Maya watched him.

He always tried to sound strong. Always tried to protect her. But there was something under the surface now—raw fear.

For her.

“I don’t think she wants to destroy me,” Maya said. “Not yet. She wants to… turn me. Prove that I’m no different.”

“She’s wrong,” Jack whispered.

Maya gave him a faint smile. “We need to prove that.”

---

Training Room – An Hour Later

They’d cleared out a space in one of the bunker’s unused rooms.

The lights flickered with energy as Maya stood in the center, barefoot on the concrete, eyes closed. Jack stood across from her, palms out.

“Okay,” he said gently. “Focus on something small. Something you love.”

Maya thought of chocolate.

Of her cats.

Of her sister’s awful karaoke singing.

Then—Jack’s laugh.

His ridiculous sweater collection.

The way his hand fit against the small of her back.

Her fingers tingled.

A soft pulse of light sparked from her skin—silver and gold and warm.

Jack stepped closer, grinning. “You’re doing it.”

Maya opened her eyes and laughed. “That wasn’t awful.”

“You’ll get better.”

“Will you train me forever?”

His smile faltered—turning soft, reverent. “If you’ll let me.”

She looked up at him.

They were only inches apart now. No magic pulsing. No chaos. Just warmth.

“I’m scared, Jack,” she whispered.

He touched her cheek, brushing hair behind her ear. “So am I.”

And then she kissed him.

There was no rush this time. No frenzy.

Just lips meeting like they’d been waiting forever.

The light came after.

At first, it was faint. A shimmer between them. But then it surged—rising like a tide.

Jack held her tighter, but they were already lifting. Floating several inches off the floor, wrapped in golden light.

Maya gasped into his mouth, pulling back just enough to speak. “We’re—!”

“Yeah,” Jack breathed, laughing softly. “You’re glowing again.”

Her hands trembled against his chest. “This is new.”

“Kind of amazing,” he said.

“Kind of dangerous,” she added.

Their foreheads rested together.

Then, without warning—
A vision slammed into Maya’s mind.

Flashes of flame. A barren landscape. A throne of bones. And Lilith, waiting with a crown of blood and smoke.

> “Choose carefully, little goddess,” her voice echoed in the dark.

> “Because next time… I won’t wait.”

Maya collapsed into Jack’s arms as the vision ended, gasping for air.

He caught her easily, cradling her like she weighed nothing. “What happened?!”

She shook her head. “She’s coming. Soon.”

Jack looked down at her, fear and determination warring in his eyes.

“She’ll have to go through me first."