The moon was low in the sky, casting an unhealthy light over the bleak landscape. Kaelen's form, a faint flicker amidst the great expanse, seemed to twist and shimmer as if reality itself was trying to tear him asunder. He was not really there anymore, yet his spirit lingered, desperate to warn the only one who might yet alter the course of this doomed world: his son, Elrian.
Kaelen's Spirit: (Voice echoing through the wind)
Elrian. Elrian, is it you?
ypsy bed, dropping beads of sweat down his face. He panted, his chest rising and falling with labored breath; then suddenly his wide eyes sprang open, as if pulled from the very roots of a bad nightmare. He could feel his father's presence-the energy that pulsed in him, ancient, cursed.
Elrian: (whispering, disoriented)
Father? Is that you?
Kaelen's Spirit (voice dark, full of sorrow):
It is, my son, though not in the way you remember. I have come to warn you.
Elrian sat up, his heart racing, his mind fumbling over the impossibility of the moment. He had never believed in such things, never thought the Rift would allow for such connections. And yet, here it was, his father's voice breaking through the silence of his thoughts.
Elrian: Staring into the dark void.
I don't understand. I thought you. I thought you were gone.
Kaelen's Spirit: whispering
I am gone, but the Rift allows for echoes. A fragment, an illusion of what has been, it is enough. Hear me out, Elrian: You are walking into darkness. The Rift-its power-it will consume you.
A cold shiver ran down Elrian's spine. The memories of the past, of his father's sacrifice, of his unfulfilled promises, flooded back to him.
Elrian (angry, confused):
But I have to! I can't stop now. The world is dying. I have to find a way to—
Kaelen's Spirit (cutting him off, his voice growing more intense):
You think you can wield its power? You think you can control it?
Kaelen's ghostly form quivered as if even the air around them coursed with the forbidden power of the Rift.
Kaelen's Spirit (with desperation seeping in):
It is only possible to control the Rift if the heart stays pure, Elrian. If your heart falters for one moment. it will consume you. You'll be part of it, a part of its unending cycle.
The wind howled around them, a wild and frantic sound that seemed to mirror Kaelen's words. Elrian's chest tightened as the weight of his father's warning pressed down on him. But deep within, a fierce flame burned, one that could not be extinguished.
Elrian: (shouting, defiant)
I cannot turn back now. The world will fall apart if I do nothing! I will not let it die. Not again.
The words hung heavy with the weight of his determination.
Kaelen's Spirit soft, almost mournful:
I know your pain, Elrian. I know the weight of your soul. Yet, there are forces in motion far beyond our understanding-far beyond the understanding of even the Rift. You must turn back; it is the only way to save what remains.
He looked down at his shaking hands, his fists clenched in frustration. He wanted to believe his father, wanted to trust him, but something inside him twisted. Was his father really trying to warn him out of love, or was this the very manipulation that the Rift had used to bring him to this moment?
Then, from afar, a cry cut through the air, and it was a voice he knew.
Adria's Voice (from afar):
Elrian! Elrian, come back to me!
Elrian's heart clutched, and the weight of Adria's call made him stumble. His mother—his mentor—his guide; she was the last person who truly understood him. Yet, she had been chasing him, trying to stop him every step of the way. The Rift was inescapable, yet she still clung to hope, believing there was another way.
But there was no other way.
Elrian: (gritting his teeth cold and unyielding)
I am beyond return. The choice is mine alone. I am the Rift now. This world is in the hands of the Rift. And none-nobody-throws me back.
The ghostly appearance of Kaelen revealed-a faint whisper, rich in regret.
You shall not rise unlike I did fall.
And with that, Kaelen's spirit finally began to dissolve into the blackness of the world beyond, leaving Elrian to stand alone amidst a heavy air, his heart weighing upon the choice he had made, even as it had been full of conviction.
She stood at the brink of the desolate cliff, her gaze fixed on the horizon, knowing beyond it, El'rian still would go on his way to the Rift. She could feel his resolve, the weight of it, even from this distance.
Her mind was storming, but one thing was for certain: She couldn't let him go through it alone.
Her hand tightened on the hilt of her sword, its metal cold against her skin. She could almost hear the voices of the fallen, of those who once were like her-once full of hope, full of purpose. But now, as the winds howled around her, all that was left was the knowledge of what was at stake.
If I lose him. I lose everything.
And with that thought, she started down into the darkness, her footsteps sure and unwavering.
Elrian stood on the cusp, the Rift before him-a chasm of blackness that seemed to pull at him with every breath he took. The air hummed with its presence, a low, incessant thrumming that seemed to call him closer. He had felt its power before, but now standing at the edge, it was different. It felt like a beast, something alive and breathing, ready to devour him.
Elrian to himself in a whisper, shaking with his voice:
Is this what you wanted, Father?
His mind was a battlefield, tugged between saving the world and this looming dread, being used in whatever twisted game the Rift had planned for him. Echoes of Kaelen's words still echoed through his head. He batted them aside. He'd had his choice. There was no backing down now.
His hands grasped tight onto the cold, weathered stone of the cliff as the wind reached a more audible howl. The Rift burst with energy as it pulsed visibly. Taking one great gulp of air in, El'rian moved forth, heart running, body quaking in the weight that was upon him. He had gone to such an end, he would turn back for none.
Meanwhile, far behind him, the journey of Adria was not without its perils. The way to the Rift was fraught with shadows whispering and twisting at the edges of her consciousness. Yet, she went forward, her mind set on one goal: bring him back.
Her sword was out, shimmering in the lousy light. She had fought monsters, men, even her own fear, but this-this was another thing altogether. This was her son, a piece of her flesh, and she couldn't let him go back into the darkness.
Adria is between labored breaths and struggles across treacherous landscape:
Elrian… Come back. Just please.
Her voice broke as she spoke, the weight of her love colliding with desperation against the stark cold truth that might not, after all, save him. All along, she had believed love could overcome everything. This time, though, it was the opposite: the shifting of the world beyond their control.
El'rian stood in front of the Rift, his eyes wide with a mix of terror and wonder. From it emitted an intoxicating, maddeningly attractive power-one that screamed for him to take it, make it his, his alone. And in the bottom of his stomach, the waiting darkness stirred. That wasn't the thing he was truly terrified of-the power of the Rift-but the corruption which came with that power.
Elrian (softly to himself):
How long can I stay pure? How long before the Rift twists me like it did my father?
As he neared the edge, the earth beneath him buckled and heaved as the Rift stirred with malignant energy. The whispers began-so soft, like the rustling of wings far away. But soon they grew louder, more insistent.
Rift's Voice (low, seductive):
El'rian… You are the one to wield us. The world needs you… Come… Claim your birthright.
Seductive. Terrifying. The voice was an entreaty, soft and silken to his very soul-an appeal for him to be all he was created to be, to rise to a design ordained for him long before birth. The world. his world. It had forever been preyed upon by the forces that coursed, unnoticed and unimaginable, against its shores. But he, now, stood at its wheel. To rewrite its face was within his power now.
El'rian: My voice trembles, but I am firm. I won't turn out to be what you want me to be. I won't be another puppet for the Rift.
The earth cracked beneath him, and the energy of the Rift surged, as if angry with his defiance. Elrian's body shook, his eyesight hazing over as the too-intense power tugged at him. He could feel his heart racing, a cold sweat welling on his brow. The Rift was testing him, pushing him to his limits.
But in that moment, something inside of him snapped-a realization. This power, he thought, it will consume me just like it did my father, just like it has consumed so many others before me. The truth was clear now: the Rift didn't care about purity. It didn't care about anything but domination.
Adria, miles from the Rift, had already sensed the shift. She knew her son was close, could feel the tremors in the earth beneath her feet, the shift in the air. She could feel his struggle, his fear, and his resolve. But she also knew the Rift was something far greater than either of them had anticipated.
Adria: (clenching her fists, her voice dark)
Whatever it may cost, I will be bringing you back, Elrian.
The words sounded resolute, but the seeds of doubt had already eaten into her. What if she was too late? What if she couldn't get to him in time?
Back at the Rift, the whispers grew louder, more insistent, almost maddening. Elrian could feel his resolve weakening, could feel the dark power of the Rift trying to slip past the cracks in his soul. He stumbled back, his hands shaking, his breath ragged.
Rift's Voice (mocking):
You cannot resist us. No one has ever resisted us.
But Elrian had long stopped listening. He had a plan, some final desperate attempt to break free from the Rift's grasp. He closed his eyes, hands clenched at his sides, and he whispered the words that had been passed down to him through generations-words that were supposed to snuff the linking of man to the Rift.
Elrian (whispering through clenched teeth):
I am not your pawn. I am not your king. I am my own fate.
Time stood still around him. The Rift churned in its rage, power surging against him in a wave. Yet Elrian would not yield; his heart pounded in his chest, the truth of his words cutting through the darkness.
Elrian: screaming, his voice filled with raw defiance.
I am the one who chooses my path! Not you. Never you!
And with that, the Rift exploded in a burst of raw energy, a blinding light that consumed everything around it. Elrian fell to his knees, the power of the Rift overwhelming him, but his heart remained unbroken, his will unshaken.
Far away, Adria felt the surge of energy as the Rift's rage reached its crescendo. She knew that her son had made his choice and could only pray that it was the right one.