The symbols on the ancient control panel blurred before my eyes, shifting and rearranging in patterns that made my head throb. I stared at them, trying to make sense of the complex riddle before me, my fingers hovering uncertainly over the glowing characters.
"I don't understand," I whispered, frustration mounting. "There's some sequence, but I can't—"
"You're stalling," Damian snarled from behind me. His cold hand suddenly gripped the back of my neck, fingers digging painfully into my skin. "I won't be played for a fool, Princess."
I clenched my jaw, fighting against the urge to scream. "I'm not stalling. This is ancient magic—Selenia magic. It's not something I can just figure out instantly!"
He spun me around, his crimson eyes blazing with barely contained fury. "You opened the first door easily enough."
"That was different," I gasped as his grip tightened. "The symbols are more complex here. I need time to—"
His other hand shot out, wrapping around my throat and cutting off my words. He lifted me until my toes barely scraped the ground, my hands clawing desperately at his vise-like grip.
"Time is something we don't have," he hissed, his face inches from mine. "My patience wears thin, Seraphina."
Black spots danced before my eyes as my lungs screamed for air. The pressure behind my eyes built to an unbearable level, and just as the darkness began to close in, he released me. I collapsed to my knees, gasping and coughing.
"Try again," he ordered coldly. "And this time, make progress."
I drew in shuddering breaths, tears stinging my eyes. Beyond the massive circular doorway we'd come through, I knew Regina and Ronan remained unconscious, guarded by Damian's men. Their lives hung by a thread, dependent on my cooperation.
"I need..." I forced myself to my feet, swaying slightly. "I need the artifact. The one you showed me earlier."
His eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Why?"
"Because it's part of the key," I answered, voice hoarse from his assault. "Just like before. I can feel it."
After a moment of calculation, he reached into his coat and withdrew the small obsidian disc—the Blood Relic, as he had called it. He held it out, but as I reached for it, he pulled it back.
"No tricks," he warned, the threat in his voice unmistakable. "I'll know if you're deceiving me."
"No tricks," I echoed hollowly.
He placed the cold disc in my palm. The dried blood—my mother's blood—seemed to pulse faintly against my skin. I suppressed a shudder of revulsion and turned back to the control panel.
The symbols continued their hypnotic dance across the stone surface. I closed my eyes, trying to quiet my racing mind.
*Nana, please help me,* I called silently to my spirit guide. *I need your wisdom now.*
But no answer came. I was utterly alone.
Taking a deep breath, I placed the disc against the panel and drew my small knife. The blade glinted in the ethereal light as I pressed it against my palm, wincing as it bit into my flesh. Crimson droplets welled up, and I turned my hand, allowing my blood to drip onto the obsidian surface.
The effect was immediate. The dried blood within the etched symbols began to glow, pulsing in rhythm with my heartbeat. The disc grew warm in my hand, then hot—almost unbearably so.
I gasped as it began to transform, the flat circle reshaping itself before my eyes. The edges extended and sharpened, forming intricate teeth. Within seconds, what had been a simple disc was now an elaborate key.
"It's working," Damian breathed behind me, his voice tight with anticipation.
I stepped toward the massive door, studying its surface until I found what I was looking for—a keyhole that hadn't been visible before, now glowing with the same crimson light as the key in my hand.
My fingers trembled as I inserted the key. It slid in perfectly, as if it had been waiting for this moment for centuries. I hesitated, then turned it.
A deep rumbling sound filled the chamber as ancient mechanisms awakened. The door before us, impossibly massive and heavy, began to move. Light—blinding, golden light—spilled through the widening gap.
"At last," Damian whispered, his face illuminated by the radiance, transforming his handsome features into something almost reverent. Almost human.
The moment passed quickly. His hand clamped around my upper arm like an iron shackle. "Remember," he said, his voice cold once more, "your friends' lives depend on your continued cooperation."
He jerked his chin toward the soldiers waiting behind us. "If we don't return within the hour, kill them both."
"No!" I struggled against his grip, panic rising. "You can't—"
"I can and I will." His fingers dug painfully into my flesh. "Now move."
He dragged me forward, toward the blinding light. I tried to dig in my heels, but it was like resisting a hurricane.
"Wait! We don't know what's beyond that door!"
"That's precisely what we're here to find out," he replied, never slowing his pace.
The light enveloped us, warm and disorienting. For a moment, I couldn't see anything—just pure, golden brilliance surrounding us on all sides. Then, as my vision adjusted, I took a step forward.
And screamed.
I froze at the very edge of an abyss—a vast, yawning chasm that seemed to stretch endlessly into darkness. My foot had been mere inches from stepping into empty space. Only the fact that I'd hesitated had saved me from plummeting into that bottomless void.
Damian's grip on my arm tightened, the only thing keeping me from toppling over the edge as I swayed with vertigo.
"What is this place?" I whispered, staring into the darkness below.
Stretching before us was a narrow bridge—impossibly thin, with no handrails—spanning the chasm. It seemed to be made of the same golden light that had blinded us, solidified somehow into a pathway. On the far side, barely visible in the distance, stood another doorway.
"The true threshold," Damian answered, his voice oddly hushed. "The pathway to power."
I shook my head, backing away. "I can't cross that. It's too narrow—too dangerous."
His eyes flashed with anger. "You will cross it," he said, "or your friends die where they lie."
I looked again at the narrow bridge of light, then down into the endless darkness below. My heart hammered against my ribs, fear clawing at my throat.
"What happens if we fall?" I asked, already knowing the answer.
Damian's smile was cold and empty. "Let's not find out."