King stood frozen, the shard trembling in his hand as the weight of Valjean's words settled over him like a suffocating cloud. His heart ached at the thought of leaving her behind, but the idea of destroying everything—the world, their future, all life as they knew it—was a burden too heavy to bear.
The ground beneath his feet continued to crack, the rift's energy growing more unstable with each passing second. Shadows flickered at the edges of his vision, the figures of the rift drawing closer, their presence thick with malice. But King couldn't focus on them. His entire being was focused on Valjean, suspended in the nexus, slowly being pulled further from him.
Her eyes, though distant, still held that flicker of recognition, that spark of humanity that kept him rooted in place. She was fighting—he knew it. But was her fight enough? Could he truly save her without dooming everything?
"Please," her voice came again, softer now, strained by the rift's grip. "You have to let me go, King."
King's mind raced. He couldn't accept that this was it, that there was no other way. There had to be a path he hadn't seen, a way to save her and stop the rift without destroying everything they had fought for. But no matter how hard he searched his mind, the answer remained elusive.
The shard in his hand flared with heat, and for a moment, it pulsed with a brilliant light, cutting through the darkness. The figures in the shadows recoiled, hissing as they retreated momentarily. King glanced down at the shard, its glow intensifying as if urging him to make a decision.
Suddenly, a voice echoed in his mind—not Valjean's, but something deeper, something ancient and powerful.
"The choice is yours, child of light. Destroy the rift, and all shall fall. Or let it live, and risk losing what you hold dear."
King's breath caught in his throat. The voice was not from the rift, nor from any of the beings within it. It was something beyond, something that had been watching from the beginning. He had felt its presence before, faintly, in the darkest moments of his journey, but now it was clear.
The shard was speaking to him.
"This power can end the rift," the voice continued, "but it comes with a price. The rift and the one who is bound to it are linked. Sever one, and you sever the other."
King's grip tightened around the shard, the reality of the situation hitting him like a hammer. If he used the shard to destroy the rift, Valjean would be lost forever, consumed by the very force that held her captive. But if he didn't, the rift would continue to grow, threatening not only their world but countless others.
His gaze locked on Valjean, her face contorted in pain as the nexus tightened its grip around her. She was slipping further into the darkness, her form becoming more indistinct with every second that passed. And yet, despite everything, she still managed to look at him with those eyes—those eyes that had always seen him, truly seen him, even when no one else did.
"I believe in you," Valjean whispered, her voice so faint it was almost drowned out by the chaos around them. "But I'm not afraid to fall."
King felt a lump rise in his throat. She had accepted her fate. She had always been the brave one, always willing to face the unknown with a fierce determination he had admired. But now it was his turn to be brave.
He had to choose.
The shard pulsed again, its light growing brighter, and the rift responded with a violent surge of energy, pushing against him with all its might. King stumbled, the ground beneath him splitting wider, but he didn't let go of the shard. His mind was racing, heart pounding as the decision loomed over him like a stormcloud.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, his voice breaking.
With a deep breath, King raised the shard, its brilliant light casting long shadows over the twisted landscape. The rift howled in response, its energy swirling faster, more violently, as if it knew what was coming.
"No," Valjean whispered, her voice filled with sorrow, though her eyes softened as if she understood.
King hesitated one last time, his mind screaming at him to stop, to find another way, but his heart knew there was no alternative. He had to end this—for Valjean, for their world, for everything that existed beyond the rift.
Tears welled in his eyes as he gripped the shard with both hands, its searing heat burning his skin, and with a final cry, he plunged it into the heart of the nexus.
The world erupted in light.
A deafening roar filled the air as the rift's energy exploded outward, the ground shaking violently beneath King's feet. The shadows screamed, writhing and twisting as the rift began to collapse in on itself, its dark tendrils retracting, pulling away from Valjean's form.
The cocoon around her shattered, and for a moment, King thought he saw her smile—a soft, peaceful smile that made his heart ache. But as the light consumed the rift, Valjean's figure began to fade, her body dissolving into the swirling energy.
"Valjean!" King shouted, reaching out for her, but his voice was lost in the roar of the collapsing rift.
The light grew blinding, and in the final moments before everything disappeared, King saw her eyes—those same, kind eyes that had always been there for him. They met his, one last time, and then she was gone.
The Collapse
When the light finally dimmed, King found himself lying on the cracked ground, the shard cold and lifeless in his hand. The rift was gone. The twisted landscape had faded, leaving behind only a vast, empty expanse.
King pushed himself to his feet, his body aching, his heart heavier than it had ever been. The rift was gone. The danger had passed.
But so had Valjean.
He stood in the silence, his eyes scanning the horizon for any sign of her, but there was nothing. Only the wind, whispering through the emptiness.
King clenched his fists, the weight of his decision crashing down on him. He had saved the world, but in doing so, he had lost the person who meant the most to him.
And now, he was alone.