Helios's breathing became erratic, fractured, as if the air itself refused to enter her lungs. Every inhale burned. Every exhale came out as a broken gasp. The gazes of those forms—without pupils, without faces, yet conscious—pierced her from every angle, drawing closer without moving, invading her without touching her. They did not need hands to suffocate her; their mere presence was enough.
The space was closing in.
Helios began to scream. At first, they were not coherent words, only torn sounds that ripped through her throat.
Then the plea took shape: that they pull her away from him, that they get her out of there, that they make that thing disappear… that vision… that. Her voice trembled, cracking on every syllable as if it were about to shatter along with her sanity.
She turned her face sharply to the side, refusing to look directly at what was tearing her apart from within. She knew that if she saw it one more time—if she allowed her eyes to truly recognize it—something inside her would finally collapse. Her pride, her logic, her control… all of it hung by an invisible thread.
The state she was in was deplorable. Helios, who always analyzed, who always understood, who always remained in control… was now an animal cornered by a threat she could not decipher. Nothing soothed her. Nothing grounded her. Not her power, not her pride, not her ancestral knowledge. Everything felt useless against that invisible pressure crushing her from within.
And the worst part was not the fear.
The worst part was the certainty that she was losing something deeper than her calm.
She was losing herself.
—Get me out… get me out of here!
Her voice was no longer a scream; it was a fracture. It shattered in the air like glass hitting the floor. Each repetition came out smaller, more desperate, as if the space itself were devouring the words before she could hold onto them.
—Get me out…!
It was not a command. It was not pride. It was pure terror.
The words stumbled between sobs, drowned by uncontrolled breathing that scraped at her throat. Her hands trembled, grasping at nothing, searching for a door that did not exist, a crack through which to escape the pressure compressing her from the inside.
—…out of here…
Seeing her condition, Luzbel decided to lift her and take her away from that place. She needed answers. She needed to know what Helios had seen in Morgan… what had broken her like this.
—I'll I'll get her out of here everyone stay here.
( Luzbel shouted and ordered seriously )
Luzbel took Helios into her arms, lifted her, and spread her wings, shooting out of the place at full speed. The air split violently around them.
Meanwhile, Morgan remained in shock.
He did not understand what had happened. Everyone around him was staring. They whispered among themselves, their voices low and constant like dull blades scraping together. They were not talking about what had happened… they were talking about what he had done to Professor Helios.
—what happened….
( Morgan said, completely confused )
Elsewhere, Luzbel carried Helios as far away from the training hall as she could. The moment Helios's feet touched the ground, she wrenched herself free and collapsed to her knees on the wet concrete. She tried to stand, but fell again. Her hands slipped.
Luzbel tried to approach and help her, but Helios lashed out wildly in desperation and fury.
—leave me leave me.
( Helios said angrily )
Rain had begun to fall. Cold drops. Relentless. Helios managed to pull herself up by leaning against a concrete pillar. She was trembling.
—what happened what did you see.
( Luzbel said, worried )
Helios slowly raised her gaze. Her eyes were unfocused. Haunted.
—what did I see? you want to know what I saw?
( Helios said, angry and still frightened )
A brief, broken laugh escaped her throat before her expression twisted into fury.
—I saw our end I saw our damn end.
( Helios said furiously )
Luzbel felt a knot tighten in her stomach.
—what do you mean our end what are you talking about.
( Luzbel said, trying to understand )
Helios lunged forward and grabbed Luzbel by the clothes, fists clenching the soaked fabric.
—what part of our end did you not understand you damn idiot that boy that thing is more than anyone can handle if what he has inside is unleashed we will all die ALL OF US!!!
( Helios screamed with a mixture of fear and rage )
The last words broke in her throat.
Helios shoved Luzbel away. Her head jerked sharply, her lips beginning to babble with a lucidity that bordered on madness.
—he has to know we have to inform His Majesty he must know immediately we're still in time to do something.
( Helios said desperately )
Luzbel tried once more to approach her, but Helios rejected her aggressively.
—don't touch me.
( Helios said violently )
The rain fell harder now, as if the sky itself were furious.
—yes yes yes we have to inform His Majesty quickly quickly.
Helios took a step forward, determined to leave. But her body stopped abruptly. Her muscles tensed. She could not move.
Her eyes widened in horror.
Luzbel walked slowly until she stood in front of her. The glow of her tattoo pierced through the rain like a luminous wound. Her expression was serious, unbreakable… and beneath the storm, terrifying.
—I don't know what you saw or what put you in this state but I can't let you go to His Majesty I'm sorry I can't.
The rain struck the ground.
And something heavier than water hung suspended between them.
End of chapter.
Next chapter: I'll handle it.