Adrian POV
Pain radiated from my shoulder as I pushed myself upright. The force of that entity's power had been like nothing I'd ever felt before, yet Valeria's focus remained sharp, her silver eyes glowing with an intensity that could silence gods.
She knelt beside me, her hand gripping mine, her touch both a comfort and a warning. The Trial had begun, and whatever was coming next would test us both in ways neither of us could predict.
"We need a plan," I said, breaking the silence. My voice was rough, but my mind was already racing. "That thing didn't just come here to scare us. It's setting the stage."
Valeria's gaze flicked to the window, where the horizon was now bathed in a fiery red. Her jaw tightened. "The first Trial will come with the sunrise."
I followed her gaze. The city below was waking, but up here, in the penthouse that had become our fortress, time felt like it had slowed to a crawl. "What does it want from you, Valeria?"
She stood, her figure silhouetted against the growing light. "To break me," she said simply. "To force me to confront the parts of myself I've hidden—even from you."
Her words hit me harder than I expected. Valeria, for all her power and control, had always seemed untouchable, a force of nature that bent the world to her will. But now, I saw the cracks. And I knew the Trial wouldn't stop until it shattered her completely.
"Then we'll face it head-on," I said, standing beside her despite the ache in my body. "Whatever it throws at you, we'll fight it together."
Her eyes softened for a moment, but there was still a distance there, a wall she wouldn't let me cross. "Adrian, this isn't your fight. The Trial is tied to my power, my curse. You can't shield me from it."
I stepped closer, refusing to back down. "Maybe not. But I'm not going to stand by and watch you face this alone. If it's your darkness, then I'll stand in the shadows with you."
A flicker of emotion crossed her face—something between gratitude and sorrow. She opened her mouth to respond, but before she could, the temperature in the room plummeted again.
The first light of dawn had fully broken.
The floor beneath us trembled as the room darkened, shadows creeping in from every corner. This time, it wasn't just one figure. Shapes began to form—dozens of them. Each one twisted and grotesque, their faces masks of agony and rage.
Valeria's power flared instinctively, the silver glow around her intensifying. "They're here."
I moved to her side, drawing the blade I had kept hidden in my coat. It was no ordinary weapon; Valeria had ensured I was equipped with something that could stand against the supernatural. Still, the odds were stacked against us.
The figures circled, their hollow eyes fixed on Valeria. One stepped forward, its form more solid than the others. Its voice was a guttural growl, echoing in the enclosed space.
"The Celestial must choose," it hissed. "Confront the past or be consumed by it."
Valeria's hands clenched into fists. "I've spent lifetimes burying the past. You think dragging it into the light will break me?" Her voice was steady, but I could feel the undercurrent of fear she was trying to suppress.
The creature laughed, a sound like bones snapping. "The past is not buried, Celestial. It festers. And now, it rises."
Without warning, the shadows surged forward, and suddenly, we were no longer in the penthouse.
The air was thick with humidity, and the scent of salt and decay filled my lungs. We stood on the edge of a cliff, the ocean below churning violently against jagged rocks. The sky was dark, storm clouds swirling overhead, but this wasn't any ordinary storm. The water below glowed with an unnatural light, as if the sea itself was alive.
Valeria's expression shifted. This place—wherever we were—meant something to her.
"Where are we?" I asked, scanning the horizon.
She didn't answer immediately. Her eyes were fixed on the ocean, her body tense. "This is where it all began," she said finally, her voice barely audible. "The day I made my choice."
Before I could press her further, the water below erupted. A massive form emerged from the depths, its body composed of writhing tendrils of water and light. Its face was indistinct, a swirling mass of energy, but its presence was undeniable.
Valeria took a step forward, her power surging once more. "Leviathan," she whispered, her tone laced with both reverence and dread.
The creature spoke, its voice a deep rumble that shook the ground beneath us. "You cannot run from the past, Valeria. The choices you made, the lives you took—they are your burden to bear."
Adrian's grip on his blade tightened, his knuckles white. "And what happens if she faces it?"
The Leviathan's glowing eyes locked onto him. "She will find the truth. But the truth demands sacrifice."
Valeria's breath hitched, and for the first time since I'd known her, she looked truly vulnerable. "What sacrifice?"
The Leviathan didn't answer with words. Instead, it raised one massive arm, and the ocean below surged upward, forming a massive wave that loomed over us like a wall of judgment.
"Valeria!" I shouted, but she didn't move.
She stood there, staring up at the wave, her silver light flickering like a dying flame.
The wave crashed down, and the world went black....