Sarah's POV
He wasn't the man I had once called my husband. The man who had held me close on our wedding night, the man who had whispered promises of forever in my ear.
His inhuman eyes burned with an unnatural light, the veins beneath his skin pulsing like the veins of a demon. The rift's influence had left its mark on him, but it had also empowered him in ways I couldn't comprehend.
"Sarah," Eren's voice echoed, soft and sinister, carried on the wind. "You came back to me. I knew you would."
I could feel the connection between us—a bond that should have been broken after he died, severed by the collapse of the mansion and the rift. But it hadn't. Our marriage, our vows, had binded us together, and no matter how much I wanted to deny it, that link was still there, pulling at me like a tether I couldn't escape.
"No," I breathed, shaking my head. "You're not the man I loved. You're nothing but a shadow, a hollow echo of him."
Eren tilted his head, as if considering my words. Then, he smiled—a smile that was more animalistic than human, a smile that sent a chill through my bones. "The rift has made me something more, Sarah. It has given me the strength to become what I always should have been. And now, I will make you see that my wife."
My heart skipped a beat, the words cutting deeper than any knife. But there was no time to process the pain, no time to let the memories of our past love flood my mind. I had to stay focused, for Axel, for myself, for the world we fought to protect.
Axel's voice broke through the suffocating silence. "Stay back, Sarah," he ordered, his eyes never leaving Eren. "We'll finish this together. You don't have to face him alone."
I nodded, though doubt crept into my mind. "I'm ready," I said, my voice firmer than I felt.
Axel and I stepped forward in unison, our movements in sync as we advanced toward Eren. I could feel the power crackling in the air, the remnants of the rift's energy lingering like an electric charge. My grip tightened on the dagger as we closed the distance, the weight of the mission pressing down on me.
"You won't win," Eren said softly, almost sadly. "I was always destined for this."
"We'll see about that," Axel snarled, his jaw tight with fury. Without warning, he lunged, his body a blur of motion.
But Eren was faster. In a flash, he vanished from sight, reappearing behind Axel with inhuman speed. Axel spun, but before he could react, Eren's hand shot out, grabbing him by the throat. The air shimmered with dark energy as Eren squeezed, lifting Axel off the ground.
"Axel!" I shouted, my heart leaping into my throat. Without thinking, I darted forward, my dagger raised, aiming for Eren's side. But he was too quick—he twisted in a blur of motion, knocking the blade from my hand with a sweep of his arm. The dagger clattered to the ground, far out of reach.
"Foolish," Eren said, his voice dark and mocking. "You think this is enough to stop me? You think you can erase me from existence with a mere blade?"
My heart pounded in my chest as I fought to break free of the terror seizing my body. "We have to try," I managed to say, my voice shaking. "We can't let you win."
Eren's eyes glowed with a demonic light as he threw Axel aside, sending him crashing into the debris of the ruins. He turned his gaze back to me, his smile growing wider, more twisted. "You'll never be free of me, Sarah. And now, you will join me in this eternal darkness." he laughed mockingly.
My blood ran cold as he advanced, his steps slow and deliberate, his presence like a weight pressing down on my chest. "Stop!" I screamed, my voice breaking. "just leave Eren".
But Eren only laughe, the sound dark and echoing in the night. He reached out a hand, and before I could react, tendrils of dark energy shot toward me, binding me in place. I struggled against them, but the force was too great, the power too overwhelming.
Axel's voice rang out, desperate and furious. "Sarah!"
I heard him moving, but it was as though the world had slowed to a crawl. Eren's gaze shifted toward him, his eyes narrowing with malicious intent. He raised his hand, and the ground beneath Axel seemed to tremble. Before Axel could react, the earth cracked open beneath his feet, but he rolled to the side just in time, narrowly escaping the massive spike of stone that shot up where he had been standing.
He wasted no time, leaping toward Eren with renewed fury, his fists pounding into the air with a determined resolve. "You won't win this, Eren!" Axel shouted, throwing a punch that connected with Eren's jaw. Eren staggered back, but the blow seemed to do little more than anger him further.
Axel didn't hesitate, pressing the attack. He fought with everything he had, his movements fast and vicious. I could see the strain on his face, the toll the fight was taking on him, but he didn't falter. He wouldn't.
I strained against the dark energy that held me, my mind racing. I had to do something. I couldn't just stand here. I couldn't lose him. I couldn't lose everything.
With a burst of willpower, I managed to break free from Eren's hold, the tendrils of energy snapping as I gathered every ounce of strength I had left. I reached for the dagger, now lying on the ground a few feet away. It felt impossibly heavy in my hand, but I gripped it tightly, my breath ragged as I focused on the task ahead.
"Sarah!" Axel called, his voice sharp with urgency.
I turned to him, nodding. "I'm here."
Together, we advanced toward Eren again, but this time, the ground beneath us seemed to tremble as the Blackwood mansion's ruins began to shift. creaks and groans grew louder as the earth itself seemed to breathe with dark power. Stone rose from the ground, the broken pieces of the mansion fusing, its structure reforming with unnatural speed.
"No," I whispered, dread seeping into my bones. "Not again."
Eren's cruel laugh echoed through the night, and his eyes gleamed with triumph. "You see, Sarah? You cannot stop this. The mansion is mine. And with it, I will rise again."
The Blackwood mansion reformed, whole once more, its twisted, corrupted form looming over us like a monstrous beast.
Fuck....