Journal Entry
Day 20 of Exile.
The Riftwood took more out of me than I expected. The Void Shard was worth it, but the cost was steep. The Void Cult isn't just watching from the shadows—they're guarding the shards, actively hunting anyone who dares to challenge their claim.
Ileira is still following me. I can't tell if she's here out of curiosity, guilt, or something else. She doesn't trust the Void, but she hasn't tried to stop me since our last fight. Maybe she's waiting for the right moment.
Or maybe she's realizing that her sect isn't as pure as she thought.
---
Present Action: First-Person Narration
The fire crackled softly in the clearing, the only sound breaking the heavy silence of the Voidscar Wastes. Ileira sat across from me, her crimson Flame Sect robes standing out starkly against the gray, lifeless terrain.
She hadn't said much since we'd set up camp, but her gaze rarely left me. I could feel the weight of her questions, her judgment, but I didn't care to indulge her.
"You're going to get yourself killed," she said finally, her voice breaking the quiet.
I didn't look up from the Void Shard in my hand, its faint violet glow casting shifting shadows across my face. "Maybe," I said. "But not today."
"You're not invincible, Caldrin," she pressed. "The Void Cult is already hunting you. The Flame Sect won't stop until they've burned every trace of Void Qi from this land. And yet here you are, sitting in the middle of nowhere, acting like none of it matters."
"It matters," I said, setting the shard down and meeting her gaze. "But worrying about them doesn't make me stronger. This does." I gestured to the shard.
Her eyes narrowed. "And when it kills you? What then?"
I shrugged. "Then I'll die knowing I didn't waste my life following someone else's rules."
---
The Rift's Effect on Ileira
She looked away, her expression tightening. I could see the cracks in her armor—small, but growing.
"Why are you still here, Ileira?" I asked, leaning back against the log behind me. "If you think I'm walking into my own grave, why not leave?"
She hesitated, her hands tightening into fists. "Because someone has to stop you before you destroy yourself."
"And yet, you haven't tried," I said, smirking faintly. "Why is that?"
Her silence stretched for a moment before she finally spoke. "Because... I'm starting to think you're not entirely wrong."
That caught me off guard. I raised an eyebrow, studying her carefully. "You're questioning the Flame Sect?"
"I'm questioning a lot of things," she admitted, her voice quieter now. "I've spent my entire life following their teachings, believing that Void Qi was pure corruption. But then I see you—someone who wields it without losing himself. It doesn't make sense."
"Maybe your sect doesn't have all the answers," I said.
Her gaze sharpened. "And maybe neither do you."
---
An Ambush in the Night
The conversation was cut short by a sudden noise—a faint rustling in the distance, barely audible over the crackle of the fire.
I was on my feet in an instant, my dagger in hand. Ileira stood as well, her twin blades flashing in the firelight.
"Void Cult?" she whispered, her voice tense.
"Maybe," I said, scanning the shadows beyond the clearing. "Or something worse."
The rustling grew louder, closer, and then the first creature emerged.
It was a Void-touched hound, its body gaunt and covered in pulsating violet veins. Its glowing eyes locked onto us, and it let out a guttural growl that echoed through the clearing.
Two more followed, their movements unnaturally fast as they circled the fire.
"Three of them," Ileira said, her voice steady.
"I see them," I replied, channeling Void Qi into my legs.
The first hound lunged, and I activated Voidstep, reappearing behind it just as its jaws snapped shut where I'd been. I swung my dagger, enhanced with Spatial Severance, and slashed through its side. The creature yelped, collapsing into a pool of black mist that quickly dissipated.
Ileira was already moving, her blades cutting through the second hound in a flurry of precise strikes. Flames erupted along the edges of her weapons, the heat scorching the ground as she drove the creature back.
The third hound came straight for me, its claws aiming for my chest. I raised a Void Shield, the barrier absorbing the impact, but the force pushed me back a step.
"Caldrin!" Ileira called, finishing off her opponent and turning toward me.
"I've got it," I said, gritting my teeth as I focused on the hound.
Channeling Void Qi, I extended my hand, forming the threads of a Void Net that fell over the creature. It thrashed wildly, but the bindings held.
With a flick of my wrist, I summoned a Void Spear and hurled it toward the trapped hound, the weapon striking its core. The creature dissolved into mist, and the clearing fell silent once more.
---
A Fragile Alliance
I lowered my hands, my breathing ragged as the strain of using multiple techniques caught up with me. Ileira sheathed her blades, her expression unreadable as she turned to face me.
"You're pushing yourself too hard," she said. "That much Void Qi usage will kill you."
"I'm fine," I said, though the faint buzz in my head told a different story.
"You're not," she snapped. "And if you keep fighting like this, you won't make it to the Rift, let alone survive what's waiting there."
I met her gaze, my voice calm. "Then why are you still here?"
She hesitated, and for the first time, I saw a flicker of uncertainty in her eyes. "Because if you're right... if the Void can be controlled... then maybe everything I've been taught is a lie."
The weight of her words hung in the air, heavy and unspoken.
"Then stay," I said. "Help me prove it."
She didn't answer, but she didn't leave either.
---
Journal Entry (That Night)
Ileira isn't an enemy anymore. Not entirely. She's still skeptical, still tied to the Flame Sect's teachings, but I can see the doubt growing in her. Maybe she'll leave. Maybe she'll stay. Either way, I won't slow down for her.
The Rift is calling, and the Void's power is still mine to claim.