The glowing portal closed behind us with a dull thud, isolating us in a new secret chamber, lit only by the glow of the crystal. Its soft, almost hypnotic light pulsed slowly, like a heart beating in the darkness. The air was thick with a strange, palpable energy—an ancient, primordial force that seemed to both call to us and repel us. Every step I took seemed to echo in this sacred space, as if the place itself was waiting for us to make our choice.
Kane and I moved closer to the crystal. With each step, I felt the immense power it radiated, a force so pure it seemed capable of changing the world with a single breath. We were only a few meters away, yet something seemed to hold us back, an invisible presence weighing on us, as though the crystal itself was judging whether we were worthy to approach.
"We're here…" I whispered, my gaze fixed on the brilliant object in front of me. My hands trembled slightly, not from fear, but from excitement. This crystal was our last hope, our only chance to end the war, to save our clans, to survive. Yet, in this very moment, a part of me wondered if the sacrifice it would demand was truly worth it.
Kane stood beside me, his face serious. He, too, could feel the power of this place, but I could see in his eyes that he was struggling internally. He knew that everything we had been through, everything we had sacrificed, had led us to this moment. But he couldn't escape the question that tormented his mind: How far were we willing to go to obtain this power?
"Fiona," he said in a low, almost hesitant voice. "We've come a long way, but there's something you need to know. This crystal... it's not just power. It can also destroy everything, change everything, in ways we can't yet understand."
I slowly turned my head toward him, my gaze lost in the vastness of the moment. I knew. But it didn't change anything. "I know. But we have no other choice. If we let this power fall into the wrong hands, everything will be lost."
Kane bit his lower lip, his eyes still fixed on the crystal, his mind at war with itself. "And if the sacrifice we have to make to activate this power is too great, Fiona? What if what we believe to be good is actually a mirage?"
I took a deep breath, my eyes hardening with determination. "We can't go back. No matter what this crystal asks of us, we must be ready for anything. For us, for our clans… for the future."
The silence that followed was heavy with meaning. We were there, two warriors, faced with a decision that would change everything. Slowly, I reached out my hand toward the crystal, feeling its energy pulling me in irresistibly. The moment seemed suspended, as if the entire world was holding its breath.
Then, everything collapsed in a flash. A blast of light engulfed me, and a sharp pain shot through my chest. I forced myself not to retreat, not to scream, despite the sensation of my very being dissolving within me. It was as if the crystal was absorbing a part of my soul, a part of me I didn't even know existed.
I turned my gaze toward Kane. He, too, seemed to be struggling against the force of the crystal. His fists were clenched, his face etched with effort. "Fiona… this isn't right…" he murmured, his eyes blurring under the intensity of the light. But before he could finish his sentence, a heart-wrenching scream pierced the air. A deep cry, coming from the depths of the earth, seemed to tear apart the space around us.
It was the Guardian. Or rather, what he had become.
His body appeared, floating, immaterial, his eyes burning with rage. "You dared touch the crystal. You don't understand… You don't understand the consequences…"
I gritted my teeth, forcing myself to maintain contact with the crystal, despite the pain that consumed me. "We know exactly what we're doing."
But the Guardian's voice grew louder, resonating in every fiber of our being. "You will awaken what should not be awakened. The crystal is an ancient power, a force capable of ravaging the balance of this world. You must choose: sacrifice everything, or lose everything."
The light of the crystal became almost unbearable. I felt my legs buckle beneath me, but I could not stop now. The sacrifice had already begun, and there was no turning back.
Kane collapsed beside me, grabbing my shoulders, his gaze filled with confusion and pain. "Fiona, you can't…"
But I shook my head, resolute. "I have to do this, Kane. It's the only way to stop this war."
In a final act of will, I closed my eyes and fully touched the crystal. At that precise moment, the pain became unbearable. It felt as though my soul was being torn from my body. I felt every part of my being dissipating into the immensity of the light. But at the same time, something extraordinary happened. A gentle, soothing breath passed through me, and all the light seemed to concentrate in a single point, a point I knew was our only hope.
"I love you, Fiona," Kane whispered, before losing consciousness, his lips trembling in a final breath of hope.
And then, darkness consumed us.
---
The events that followed were confusing, almost impossible to understand immediately. The crystal had reacted to our touch, uniting our minds and souls in a different reality. But the price we had paid for this power risked leaving eternal marks.
We had sacrificed everything.