Elise stumbled back from the pedestal, her mind spinning with the weight of the truth. The room around her seemed to tilt, the walls closing in as if the very air were pressing down on her. The power was there, in the stone, in her veins. She could feel it, pulsing, alive, like a second heartbeat.
But it wasn't just the power that terrified her—it was what it would mean. The path she was on would lead to destruction, to death. She could feel it in the pit of her stomach, that sickening certainty that she would be the one to bring it all down. It had always been her. The key. The vessel. And now, she was faced with the most terrifying choice of all.
"Greg, I don't want this," Elise whispered, her voice trembling with fear and anger. "I don't want to be a part of this. I don't want to be the one to bring everything crashing down."
Greg's face softened for a moment, his expression pained. "You don't have a choice, Elise. This was always your destiny."
"No," Elise cried, her voice rising in desperation. "This is your destiny, Greg. You've been leading me here, pushing me toward it. I never asked for this! I never wanted this!"
Greg's expression darkened, his jaw tightening. "You think I wanted this? Do you think I wanted to be the one who had to guide you into this? I didn't have a choice either."
"But you lied to me!" Elise shouted, tears streaming down her face. "You made me believe I was in control. You made me believe I had a choice. You made me believe I was free!"
"You were free, Elise," Greg said quietly, his voice filled with regret. "But freedom comes at a cost. And sometimes, we have to pay that price."
Elise's heart was pounding in her chest, her breath coming in ragged gasps. She wanted to scream, to run, to escape from this reality that had been thrust upon her. But there was nowhere to go. The power was already inside her, already a part of her. She had no choice but to face it, to face what she had become.
"I'm sorry," Greg said, his voice barely a whisper. "But there's no way out."
And with those words, the final door to her fate closed, and Elise was left standing at the edge of the abyss, staring into the darkness, knowing that there was no turning back.