I stood before the sealed archive, its impenetrable crystal surface reflecting my troubled expression back at me. The enormity of the choice pressed down on my shoulders like a physical weight. Complete understanding or self-preservation? Ultimate knowledge or continued existence as I knew it?
"Few have faced this choice," Morwen said softly beside me. "Fewer still have chosen wisely."
I turned away from the crystal barrier, seeking guidance in the eyes of my companions. Lord Rowan looked concerned, Magister Eldon apprehensive. But it was Lyra whose gaze I sought most desperately.
She stood a few paces back, her face a careful mask of neutrality. Yet in her eyes, I saw not judgment but understanding—a silent acknowledgment that this was my burden alone to carry, my decision alone to make.
"What would you do?" I asked her, my voice barely above a whisper.
