The night air was thick with tension as Ada stood before the artifact, her fingers hovering over its surface. It pulsed faintly, almost like it was breathing—waiting for her decision.
"To embrace the power fully… or be consumed by it."
Idris's words echoed in her mind, refusing to let go.
Lena watched her from the other side of the room, her expression unreadable. "This is it, Ada," she said. "Once you make your choice, there's no going back."
Ada exhaled. "I know."
She thought about everything that had led her here—the secrets, the betrayals, the truth buried beneath years of silence. She had spent so long feeling like she had no control, like her fate had already been written.
But now? Now, she was the one deciding.
Her fingers finally brushed against the artifact, and a surge of energy rushed through her veins. She gasped as the room around her blurred, shifting into a world of shadows and light.
And then she saw him.
Idris Obadele stood before her, watching her with knowing eyes.
"You're ready," he said simply.
Ada's chest tightened. "Am I?"
He nodded. "Because you understand now. Power is not about control. It's about choice."
She stared at him, at the man who had sacrificed everything. "Then I choose."
She placed both hands firmly on the artifact. The energy that once threatened to consume her now bent to her will, surging through her body like fire and lightning. The power wasn't overtaking her—she was shaping it, molding it into something new.
The artifact cracked, then shattered into glowing embers that swirled around her, dissolving into her skin.
Ada gasped as knowledge filled her mind—generations of memories, lost spells, hidden truths. The legacy of the Obadele bloodline now lived within her.
Lena stepped forward, her eyes wide. "What did you do?"
Ada opened her palm, and a faint, golden light flickered in her fingertips.
"I ended it," she said. "No more sacrifices. No more artifacts. The power belongs to me now."
Lena's lips parted, but before she could speak, a sudden crash echoed from outside.
Ada turned sharply. The air felt different—charged with something dark, something watching.
Then, from the shadows, a deep, unfamiliar voice whispered—low and chilling:
"You think it's over?"
A wave of icy energy rushed through the room, and the lights flickered.
Ada's pulse pounded. She had broken the artifact, ended the cycle—so who was this?
The presence grew stronger, suffocating.
Lena grabbed Ada's wrist. "We need to move. Now."
But Ada didn't move. She clenched her fists, her newfound power humming beneath her skin.
For the first time, she wasn't afraid.
She turned toward the darkness, eyes glowing with determination.
"If you want a fight," she said, voice steady, "then come and get it."
The shadows lurched forward—
And everything went black.
The End!