Kael stood over the altar, the Veilstone pulsing with energy in his hand. The world around him seemed to shift as if the very air had changed, the oppressive silence stretching like a thin veil between him and the vast, untamed world beyond the Vale. His heart hammered in his chest, but he could feel the power of the Veilstone coursing through him, its raw, ancient magic intertwining with the fire that burned within his veins.
The beast had been vanquished. The trials of the Vale were behind him. And now, the weight of the choice that lay ahead pressed down on his shoulders, heavier than any burden he had ever carried.
"Is it over?" Eryndra's voice broke through the haze, and Kael turned to see her and Thane standing a few paces behind him, their faces drawn and weary, their eyes watching him with a mixture of hope and apprehension.
Kael didn't answer immediately. He could feel the Veilstone's magic thrumming in his hand, its power calling to him, promising strength, knowledge, and dominion over the world. But he knew better than anyone that power was never without a cost. The voice of the beast still echoed in his mind, its words a reminder of what he had nearly succumbed to—the temptation to use the Veilstone to shape the world in his image, to undo the wrongs of the past.
"Kael," Thane's voice was gruff, but there was an unmistakable edge of concern in it. "What are you going to do with it?"
Kael's gaze dropped to the glowing stone in his hand. It was both beautiful and terrifying—its magic pulsing with the promise of unimaginable power, a power that could destroy or build, heal or wound. The temptation was there, lurking just beneath the surface, whispering to him in the quietest of moments.
"I have to destroy it," Kael said, the words tasting like ash on his tongue. "If I don't, if I keep it—"
"You'll be consumed," Eryndra finished for him, her voice soft but certain.
Kael nodded. "Yes. And worse than that, the world will be."
Thane's brow furrowed. "So you're just going to leave it here? What if it's the key to saving everyone? What if this power is meant to be used to stop the Pact, to stop the gods themselves?"
Kael's hand tightened around the stone, and the magic flared beneath his skin. "The gods don't need to be stopped," Kael said quietly, a deep sorrow in his voice. "They've already set things in motion. And if I keep this, if I try to use it, I'll be no better than them. I'll become just another tyrant who thinks he can control fate."
Eryndra's eyes softened with understanding, though she still seemed conflicted. "But if you destroy it... won't that leave us powerless? We don't even know what will happen once you let go of it."
"I have to try," Kael said, his voice firm with finality. "The Veilstone wasn't meant for any one person to wield. It's a force of the old world, a relic of power that should have never been brought back. Its magic is too dangerous for any of us to control."
Kael turned away from them, walking slowly toward the edge of the clearing. The Veilstone's light flickered like a dying flame in his hand. The Vale had already shown him what could happen if he allowed it to continue influencing him. The gods might have set the world on its course, but Kael knew that the true strength was in choosing his own path, even if it meant making the hardest sacrifice.
"I've made my choice," Kael whispered to the stone, his voice filled with both sorrow and resolve. "This ends here."
He raised the stone high, and the Veilstone pulsed violently in his hand, a searing light filling the clearing. The earth beneath him rumbled, and the wind howled like a storm. Kael could feel the ancient magic swirling around him, trying to tear at his will, trying to pull him back, to tempt him one last time.
But Kael's grip never wavered.
With a cry of defiance, he thrust the Veilstone into the altar, driving it deep into the heart of the stone. A blinding explosion of light engulfed him, searing through the air like a bolt of lightning. The ground cracked beneath his feet, and the sky above him seemed to split open, revealing the infinite void beyond.
Then, as suddenly as it had begun, the light faded.
The Vale fell silent.
Kael's body shook with the aftershocks, the power of the Veilstone still vibrating in his bones, but he knew it was done. The stone was no more. It had been consumed by the altar, its magic dispersed into the air, fading into the nothingness of the forgotten world. For a moment, Kael thought he had made a terrible mistake, but as the last traces of the magic slipped away, he felt something else—a sense of peace.
"Is it done?" Thane asked, his voice hoarse as he stepped toward Kael.
Kael nodded, though his legs felt unsteady. "Yes. It's over."
Eryndra stood beside him, her eyes filled with a mixture of relief and disbelief. "But at what cost? The gods won't just let us go. There are consequences for what we've done."
Kael's gaze lingered on the altar for a moment longer before he turned away. "There will be consequences. But for the first time in a long while, I feel like we might be able to face them."
---
The Return
With the Veilstone destroyed, the Vale seemed to calm. The mists began to recede, the oppressive atmosphere lifting as if a great weight had been removed from the land. The journey ahead was uncertain, but the trials of the Vale were over.
Kael turned to his companions, the burden he had carried for so long finally lightened. "We have one last thing to do," he said, his voice steady despite the exhaustion that clung to him. "We need to find a way to stop the Pact. And we need to warn the world."
Eryndra nodded, her expression hardening with determination. "The Pact won't be easy to break. But now we have the knowledge we need. And we have each other."
Thane cracked his knuckles with a grin. "Let's hope that's enough."
As they began to make their way back, Kael knew that the true battle was just beginning. But for the first time in what felt like an eternity, he felt the fire of hope burning within him, a flame that refused to be snuffed out.
They were ready for whatever came next. The fate of the world would not be determined by the gods, nor by the power of an ancient stone. It would be decided by their choices.
And Kael had made his.