The once-brilliant light of the artifact was gone, leaving the ancient temple courtyard shrouded in the dim glow of the fading daylight. The wind had quieted, and the snow-covered landscape felt eerily calm after the intensity of the battle. Serena lay on the cold ground, her body drained of energy, but a deep sense of relief washed over her. It was over—the artifact's power had been neutralized. It could no longer be used for harm.
Alexander knelt beside her, concern etched on his face.
"Serena, are you okay?"
His voice was soft, but urgent, as he gently helped her sit up.
Serena winced as she shifted, her muscles aching from the strain of channeling the artifact's energy. Her body felt weak, but the weight that had been pressing on her soul since she first discovered the artifact had lifted. For the first time in what felt like forever, she could breathe easily.
"I'm okay," she whispered, managing a faint smile.
"Just… exhausted."
Alexander's brow furrowed with worry as he scanned her face. "You pushed yourself too far," he said, his voice filled with a mixture of awe and concern.
"You did something incredible, but you need to rest."
Serena nodded, leaning against him for support. "I had to," she said softly.
"We couldn't let Damon have that kind of power."
They both glanced toward Damon, who was now unconscious, lying in the snow a few feet away. Alexander had subdued him during the final moments of the battle, and now he was motionless, his chest rising and falling slowly. The hatred and fury that had driven him to pursue the artifact was gone, at least for the moment. But Serena knew it was only a matter of time before he regained consciousness.
"What do we do with him?"
Serena asked, her voice barely audible.
"We can't let him go. He'll come after us again. He'll try to rebuild Vanguard."
Alexander's jaw clenched as he looked at Damon, clearly thinking through their options. "We can't leave him here. But we also can't kill him. That would make us no better than him." He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Maybe we can turn him over to the authorities—people who can keep him locked away where he can't hurt anyone."
Serena nodded, though the thought of Damon locked up somewhere didn't feel like a permanent solution. Still, it was better than letting him roam free. They had stopped him for now, but his ambition for power ran deep. Even without the artifact, Damon was a dangerous man.
"We'll have to tie him up, make sure he can't escape before we get him somewhere safe," Alexander continued. He looked around, eyeing the ruins of the temple. "I'll secure him. You should rest."
Serena hesitated for a moment but nodded. She knew Alexander was right—her body needed time to recover. As Alexander set to work, securing Damon with rope and checking the unconscious Vanguard agents scattered around the courtyard, Serena leaned back against the cold stone of the temple's wall.
The exhaustion hit her all at once. She hadn't realized how much the artifact had taken out of her, how much it had demanded of her mind, body, and spirit. It had connected with her on a level she hadn't understood until the very end, and now that its power was gone, the emptiness left behind felt… strange. For so long, she had been carrying the weight of the artifact's energy, and now she wasn't sure who she was without it.
The wind picked up slightly, brushing the loose strands of her hair across her face as she closed her eyes. Her mind wandered back through the events of the past few weeks—discovering the Codex, uncovering the map fragments, learning the truth about the artifact's power. It had been a whirlwind of danger, uncertainty, and fear. But it had also brought her and Alexander closer, forged a bond between them that nothing could break.
She felt Alexander's presence beside her before he spoke, his warm hand resting gently on her shoulder. "He's secure," he said quietly. "We'll figure out what to do with him once we get out of here."
Serena opened her eyes and looked up at him, offering a tired smile. "Thank you, Alex. For everything."
Alexander's expression softened, and he sat down beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "I should be thanking you," he said, his voice low. "You stopped him. You stopped Vanguard. None of this would've been possible without you."
Serena leaned into him, feeling the warmth of his embrace against the cold air. "I couldn't have done it without you either," she said softly. "You were there every step of the way. You believed in me when I didn't believe in myself."
They sat in silence for a moment, the weight of their journey settling over them. The ruins of the temple, once the source of such immense power, now felt empty and quiet, like a place forgotten by time. The snow continued to fall softly around them, but it felt peaceful rather than foreboding.
"What happens next?" Serena asked, her voice quiet as she stared out at the vast mountain landscape.
"What do we do now?"
Alexander was silent for a moment, his gaze thoughtful as he looked out at the horizon. "We go back to our lives," he said finally. "We move on. The artifact is neutralized, and Vanguard is broken. But we'll need to be careful. Damon might not be the last person to seek out this kind of power."
Serena nodded. The idea of returning to a normal life seemed almost impossible after everything they had been through. But there was a part of her that longed for it—for the quiet moments, the simple joys of living without the constant threat of danger.
"I think I'd like that," she said softly.
"A normal life."
Alexander chuckled, his arm tightening around her shoulders.
"After everything we've been through, normal sounds perfect."
Serena smiled, resting her head against his shoulder, feeling the comfort of his presence. For the first time in a long while, she allowed herself to relax, to let go of the fear and tension that had been her constant companions for so long.
But deep down, she knew that her journey wasn't over. The artifact might have been neutralized, but the world was still full of people like Damon—people who would stop at nothing to seize power. She and Alexander had faced one battle, but there would be others. And they would face those battles together.
"I'm just glad it's over," she whispered.
Alexander nodded, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
"Me too."
They stayed like that for a while, sitting in the cold, quiet ruins of the temple as the snow continued to fall around them. The storm had passed, but the world was still changing. The winds of power, once so dangerous, had quieted. And for now, at least, they had found peace.
As the light faded and the shadows of the mountains grew longer, Serena took a deep breath and stood, her legs still unsteady but her resolve stronger than ever. She looked at Alexander, who rose beside her, his eyes filled with warmth and understanding.
"Ready to go?" he asked.
Serena nodded, the weight of the past lifting from her shoulders as she glanced one last time at the temple behind them.
"Yeah," she said with a small smile.
"Let's go home."
And with that, they turned and walked away from the temple, leaving behind the ruins of the past and stepping into the unknown future—together.