She didn't remember screaming.
The wind stole her voice as she plunged into the abyss, chasing after Kaelith's flickering soul like a star falling through a black sky. Shadows tore at her clothes, her skin, her mind.
But she didn't stop.
She wouldn't lose him. Not again.
The further she fell, the more time distorted. Memories that weren't hers blurred past her eyes—bloody battles, childhood laughter, a kiss that never happened.
Kaelith's kiss.
It hadn't happened.
Yet.
And still… she ached for it like a ghost limb.
---
Scene Break – The Landing
The fall ended without warning.
She hit solid ground, her knees buckling. A dull throb raced up her spine, but she forced herself to rise.
Everything was different here.
The Abyss wasn't empty.
It was alive.
The sky was a dome of swirling smoke and veins of red lightning. The earth beneath her feet breathed like flesh, and massive roots twisted out from the ground like veins of an ancient being.
Kaelith lay in the center of it all—his body whole, but unmoving. The remnants of the soul-chain still glowed around his chest like a brand.
Seraphina stumbled toward him.
"Kaelith…" she whispered.
No response.
She knelt, her trembling hand hovering above his cheek.
"I came back for you."
Still, nothing.
And then—
> "You shouldn't have."
---
Scene Break – The Heart of Ruin
Kaelith's eyes flickered open.
But they weren't his eyes.
They glowed with ancient power, storm-gray with rings of fire. His voice, when it came, wasn't just his.
It was layered.
Something—someone—was speaking through him.
> "You broke the seal. You used the Heart. You opened the door."
She recoiled slightly.
"No. I saved him. I used it to save his life!"
Kaelith's body floated off the ground. Tendrils of shadow wrapped around his arms like armor.
> "You bound his soul to a relic born of chaos. Now he belongs to the Abyss."
"No—"
> "You want him back? Then fight fate again."
Seraphina's fingers sparked with raw light.
Her voice was barely a whisper.
"Gladly."
---
Final Scene – A Battle of Souls
The Abyss responded.
A pulse shook the realm, and the ground split open, revealing a mirror-like surface beneath. Seraphina saw herself—every version, every mistake, every choice that led her here.
Across from her, Kaelith hovered—half himself, half shadow.
"You have to fight me," he said, voice strained as if choking the other entity back. "Break the bond. Free me."
"I can't fight you—"
> "Then I'll be lost."
Seraphina raised her hands. Her magic glowed golden-red, a blend of fate and chaos.
He summoned a sword of shadow.
Their eyes locked.
And with a single breath—
They charged.