Chapter 1: The Illusionist and the Cursed One
The city of Velmora had seen its fair share of magic—sleight-of-hand tricks in bustling markets, charmed coins that disappeared between fingers, fortune tellers spinning lies for silver.
But real magic?
That was rare. And feared.
Cassian Vance was one of the few true magicians left.
On stage, he was a spectacle—sleek black suit, silver rings, cards flicking between his fingers like they had a mind of their own. His performances left audiences breathless, unaware that beneath the glitz and charm, his magic was real.
But magic always came with a price.
And no one understood that better than Ezra Blackwell—the man Cassian had once loved, and the man he had lost to a terrible curse.
Chapter 2: A Shadow from the Past
Cassian had spent years trying to forget Ezra.
They had trained together in the Academy of Arcane Arts. They had spent nights perfecting spells, whispering dreams of performing together, of a future filled with wonders.
Then, one reckless night, Ezra touched a cursed artifact.
And just like that, he was gone.
The world believed he was dead.
But Cassian knew better.
And one fateful evening, as he finished his grand finale at the Royal Theatre, he saw a familiar figure in the crowd—cloaked in darkness, eyes filled with something hauntingly familiar.
Ezra.
Alive.
And utterly changed.
Chapter 3: The Curse Between Us
Ezra wasn’t the same man Cassian had loved.
His once-bright eyes were now filled with shadows, his presence laced with something dangerous, otherworldly. His magic—once wild and bright—had twisted into something darker.
“You should have let me die,” Ezra murmured when Cassian confronted him in the alleyway after the show.
Cassian clenched his fists. “Never.”
Ezra’s lips curled into a bitter smile. “Then you’re a fool.”
Cassian reached for him, but the moment his fingers brushed against Ezra’s skin, a sharp pain shot through him. Magic—cursed and venomous—coiled around Ezra like a second skin.
Ezra flinched. “Don’t touch me. The curse… it’s killing everything I love.”
Cassian’s breath hitched. “Then we’ll break it.”
Ezra shook his head. “You can’t save me.”
Cassian met his gaze, unwavering.
“Watch me.”
Chapter 4: The Final Trick
They spent nights searching for answers, for ancient spells lost to time.
Every time Cassian got too close, the curse lashed out—bruising his skin, reminding them both that Ezra was running out of time.
“I can feel it consuming me,” Ezra admitted one night, his voice barely a whisper. “Like I’m disappearing.”
Cassian cupped his face, ignoring the sting of magic between them.
“I won’t let you vanish,” he whispered. “Not again.”
And then he kissed him.
A desperate, reckless kiss—one that defied magic, time, and fate itself.
For a moment, Ezra melted into it.
Then the curse struck like lightning, sending Cassian crashing backward.
Ezra staggered, his hands shaking. “You can’t—”
Cassian wiped the blood from his lips. “I already did.”
And for the first time, the curse cracked.
Chapter 5: Love Stronger Than Magic
Breaking the curse required a sacrifice.
But Cassian didn’t hesitate.
“I’ll give up my magic,” he told the sorcerer who held the final key to breaking Ezra’s curse.
Ezra’s eyes widened in horror. “Cass, no.”
Cassian turned to him, smiling softly. “Magic was never the best thing that happened to me.”
Ezra’s throat tightened. “Then what was?”
Cassian stepped forward, cupping Ezra’s cheek, this time without pain, without fear.
“You.”
And with that, he whispered the incantation.
A surge of light. A violent gust of wind.
And then—silence.
The curse was gone.
Ezra stood before him, free.
And Cassian?
Cassian’s magic was no more.
But when Ezra pulled him into his arms, kissed him with a kind of love that no spell could ever match—
Cassian knew.
It had been worth everything.
Epilogue: The Greatest Illusion of All
The world lost a magician that day.
But Cassian didn’t miss his powers.
Because now, instead of chasing magic, he had the love he thought he lost.
And in the quiet moments, when Ezra held him close, whispered his name like a spell—
Cassian realized something.
Love had always been the greatest magic of all.
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