The room exploded into chaos.
Cassian's void magic surged through the air, crackling with violet lightning and shadowy flame. The stone walls shuddered under the pressure of his dark presence, ancient runes flaring violently before dissolving into dust. Natasha shielded Alison instinctively, stepping back as the relic in her hand flared with light, resisting the pull of Cassian's corrupted will.
"You were supposed to die in the Trial," Natasha said coldly. Her voice was low, every syllable honed with fury and disbelief.
Cassian smirked, his eyes glowing faintly with the void's signature darkness. "And yet here I am reborn in truth. The Trials are lies, Natasha. I have seen the other side. The real power. This relic doesn't belong to the weak."
"It doesn't belong to you either," Eldric growled, stepping forward. His sword, blessed by the Flame Archives, shimmered in response to the threat.
Cassian's gaze flickered to Eldric, then to the others Dren, wings half unfurled and smoldering; Ira, her stance steady, scarlet eyes burning; Alison, still weak but defiant behind Natasha.
He laughed.
"So this is your alliance? A tattered winged knight, a disgraced general, a cursed child, and a relic thief."
Natasha's grip tightened on the orb. "And we're still standing."
Cassian raised his hand, and the floor erupted beneath them.
---
Eldric charged, blade drawn, flames trailing in his wake. Cassian met him with a wave of his gauntleted hand, hurling wildfire like a crashing tsunami. Eldric countered with a pillar of burning light, the impact sending shockwaves through the chamber.
Dren launched into the air, using what little space remained beneath the collapsing ceiling. Arrows of light rained down from his bow, infused with ancestral power.
Ira darted around the fray, her daggers slicing through shadows. Each strike she landed forced Cassian to divert part of his energy, breaking his rhythm.
But it wasn't enough.
Cassian slammed his palm into the ground, shattering it like glass. The party was thrown back, skidding across the broken floor. Natasha gritted her teeth, using her body to shield the relic. She could feel it resisting calling to something deeper.
To her.
---
Time slowed.
Within the relic, Natasha found herself standing in a realm of light and memory. She could see fragments of every trial, every sacrifice, every loss. And then herself. Alone. Bleeding. Determined.
A voice echoed through the void.
"Are you willing to be more than chosen? Are you willing to be the bearer?"
She didn't hesitate.
"Yes. I will carry it. Even if it kills me."
The relic's light surged, pouring into her veins.
---
Outside, Cassian prepared to strike the final blow. Void energy swirled around him like a hurricane, consuming the light, twisting the world into a nightmare.
Then everything stopped.
A pulse of pure light exploded outward, engulfing the entire chamber.
Natasha floated at the epicenter, cloaked in silver flames. Her eyes glowed with celestial energy, the relic now fused to a bracer on her arm. Her presence silenced even Cassian's madness.
He stared. "Impossible."
"No," she said. "This is what it means to protect. Not to conquer. Not to destroy. To bear the weight no one else could."
Cassian roared, launching himself forward.
---
Their blades clashed light against void. Each strike was a war. Each dodge, a gamble. Alison watched from the edge, heart pounding, unsure if she was witnessing Natasha's rise or her end.
The ground fractured beneath them. The ceiling collapsed in chunks. Eldric, Dren, and Ira cleared debris, shielding Alison from the wreckage.
Cassian screamed, rage overtaking strategy. He hurled the full force of the void into a final strike.
Natasha answered with everything.
Their powers collided and silence fell.
When the dust settled, Cassian lay on the ground, unconscious, his body stripped of the void's corruption.
Natasha stood over him, knees trembling, blood on her lips. She didn't fall.
---
The chamber began to stabilize. Runes reformed. The air cleared.
Eldric approached Cassian and carefully retrieved the remnants of his armor. "He will face justice, in whatever form remains."
Dren placed a hand on Natasha's shoulder. "You did it. You chose to be more."
Natasha turned to Alison, who was already by her side. "Are you okay?"
Alison smiled, though tears welled in her eyes. "I am now."
---
But Peace is Fleeting...
As they prepared to leave, the relic bracer pulsed again.
This time, it revealed something new a vision of the skies above a forgotten continent. A shadowed fortress. An army stirring.
Ira exhaled sharply. "This wasn't the end."
Natasha nodded. Her voice was quiet, resolute.
"No. This was only the beginning."
The vision faded, but the cold it left behind was real.
Natasha stood still, her breathing ragged, her hand hovering over the ancient bracer on her wrist. The ethereal glow it had emitted just moments ago had dimmed to a faint pulse, like a heartbeat slowed by time. And yet, the images it had shown her were burned into her memory the fortress drenched in shadows, the sky torn apart by storm fire, and that colossal gate... yawning open like the mouth of something hungry and eternal.
No one spoke. No one needed to.
Eldric sheathed his sword with slow deliberation, as if returning it to its scabbard might calm the unease rippling through the group.
"That wasn't just a memory," Natasha finally said, her voice hoarse. "It was a warning."
"A prophecy," Ira murmured, eyes narrowed. "And not a subtle one."
Alison stepped closer to her, eyes sharp but concerned. "What exactly did you see?"
Natasha looked at him, the flickering torchlight dancing across his face. "A gate made of nothingness. Not metal or stone. Just... void. Locked away in a fortress twisted by dark energy. I felt it... something was trying to reach through."