Sky lay there in the silence, trying to process everything. His heart was beating erratically, and he could feel the darkness within him calling out. His leg started to snap back into place, and he grunted while it did. He tried to push the thoughts away as he got up, but he knew the darkness would always be there, waiting for him. Finally, he collapsed into a ball, grasped his chest, and wept. He could hear his heart beating, and with every beat, he could feel his body's nature change. The darkness was slowly taking over, and he knew there was nothing he could do to stop it.
The surroundings warped, and the darkness enveloping the soul space receded into the octahedron.
"Sky..." A voice called out to him, "Are you okay...". Avis floated by Sky, nudging him with his soft body. Sky continued to tremble with fear, barely hearing Avis.
"It's going to be okay," Avis said, "I'm here for you".
Sky felt a warmth emanating from Avis, and it slowly calmed him down. He huddled close to Avis, burying his head in his fur.
"Thank you... Avis," Sky said between heaved breaths. "I... I can feel it changing me. My heart is infecting me, spreading uncontrollably..."
"I saw everything, Sky. I was a forced spectator. I couldn't move or even fight back..." Avis trailed off, obviously shaken up from what he had seen.
Sky lay there in silence, listening to the breeze around him. His soul space was back to normal, but it was slowly darkening. The black relic stopped expelling the ooze, slowing the infection, but it was still eating away at him.
After a while, Sky was able to get up and distract himself from his heart. Though the darkness infected him, his soul space still looked beautiful as it did the first time he was there.
"What is that?" Sky asked as he approached the relic.
"You don't recognise it? This is the same black octahedron you took into your soul space, except now you can clearly see the sides without the black ooze obstructing our vision." Avis said as he hovered around the relic.
"It's... beautiful." Sky said as he reached out to touch it, but as soon as his fingers made contact with the relic, he was blasted back by a powerful force. "What the-?!" He exclaimed as he wasn't just blown away but knocked out of his soul space entirely. What was awaiting him was a magnificent sight. The forest his physical body was in was no longer consumed by darkness but filled with light. The sky was a deep blue, and the sun shined brightly. He could see remnants of the darkness that spilt from the well, but the grass, trees, and animals all seemed unscathed.
"Amazing..." He whispered as he looked around in awe. It was then that he noticed somebody walking towards him.
"It's called the blessing of the forest." A soft feminine voice said from behind. Sky turned around to see a beautiful woman with long flowing brown hair and bright green eyes. She was wearing a white dress that flowed down to her feet.
"Who are you?" He asked as he cautiously looked at the woman.
"Someone you have met before, though you may remember me a little differently." The woman said with a regretful smile.
"The voice..." Sky muttered.
"Yes, I am the goddess of this forest, Goregora." She said as she looked at Sky, "Though, you don't look too surprised."
"W-Why are you here?"
"I am here to help you, Sky. I can... sense the price you have paid for freeing this forest from destruction." The Goddess said, looking saddened.
A whelm of emotions overtook Sky, but he managed to keep himself together. "I... did what I had to do."
"And I admire you for that. You have great courage. Not many people would be able to do what you have done."
The Goddess walked toward Sky and placed her hand on his cheek. "I'm sorry for what you have been through, but I promise it will all be over soon."
"What do you mean?" Sky asked, not being able to take his eyes off the Goddess.
"I can't tell you that just yet, but trust and receive this gift." The Goddess said as she placed her hand on Sky's forehead, and warmth spread through his consciousness, reaching out to his soul space. A thread of energy entered his soul space and started to spin around the octahedron. The colours of the octahedron began to swirl and mix until one of the faces glowed a deep green. The energy seeped into the octahedron, and the surface of the relic started to ripple. Suddenly, the face cracked, and vines grew out of the relic. The vines grew and wrapped themselves into the shape of the face, a new face. The face of the forest. Sky opened his eyes and felt a connection with the relic. He could feel the life force of the forest pulsing and subduing his demon heart. The darkness within him became stagnant, and he felt peace for the first time in the hours he fought tooth and nail for survival.
"Thank you," he spoke to the forest. The Goddess had already disappeared, leaving him alone with his thoughts. He looked at the relic within his soul space and felt a warmth emanating from it. He knew that as long as he had this, the darkness within him would slow to a halt, and he would be able to continue his new life.
Sky slowly opened his eyes, the events of what happened playing back in his mind like a movie. He couldn't believe what he had gone through in the past few days. Everything that he had experienced. Being released from the Darkness dimension to meeting the system and Avis. Surviving and learning with them side by side and then meeting Lily, who saved him from his foolish attempt at freeing the forest. All of it led to this moment. Right now, he was content. He has people he can call friends and a goal to strive for. Not just survival but a chance to make a difference in this world. He didn't know what the future held, but he was ready for it. For the first time, he felt like he belonged somewhere.
"Sky." Avis' voice called out to him, shaking him from his thoughts.
"Yes, Avis?"
"The relic did a weird thing..." Avis said as he looked at Sky, confused.
"You mean one of the faces cracked open, and vines started to grow out of it?" Sky asked with a smirk.
"Yeah, how did you know that?!" Avis said as he looked at Sky in disbelief.
"Ah~, it was nothing. Just some goddess who decided to help us after all." Sky said as he waved his hand dismissively.
"A goddess?!" Avis said as he looked at Sky in awe.
Sky smiled lightly and nodded his head. "I'll tell you all about it later, but for now, let's get out of here."