Kaelen stood at the edge of the bridge, the void yawning beneath him.
His silhouette was the same—broad shoulders, the familiar curve of his jaw—but there was something off. His shadow was longer than it should be, writhing faintly, as if it had a life of its own.
"You came," he repeated, his voice calm… too calm.
"I had to," Liora said, stepping forward. Her legs trembled, not from fear, but from the weight of everything she had endured. "To bring you back."
He laughed, soft and bitter.
"Back? There is no 'back' for me. The moment I touched the Heart of the Abyss, that life was over."
Liora's hand tightened around the Severing Blade. "Then why? Why take it? Was it to run away from me? From us?"
Kaelen turned his head just enough for her to see his eyes—glowing faintly with the abyssal light, but still, somewhere deep inside, human.
"I took it," he said slowly, "to save you from something you didn't even know was coming."
She froze.
"What are you talking about?"
"The Council," he said, voice low. "They weren't protecting the world from the Abyss… they were feeding it. Every war, every famine, every 'natural' disaster—they offered souls to it in exchange for power. You were next."
Liora's stomach dropped. "That's impossible. Aric—"
"Aric doesn't know. Or maybe he does, and he's just better at lying than I am." Kaelen stepped closer, shadows curling around his boots. "I took the Heart because it's the only thing that can kill the Abyss. But it's killing me too."
She shook her head, refusing to believe. "Then let me help you. We can destroy it together."
His smile was almost sad. "No, Liora. If you come closer, it'll choose you instead. And I'd rather burn than watch that happen."
The bridge groaned under them, cracks forming in the stone as the void roared below.
Kaelen's eyes flicked to her one last time.
> "If you truly love me… you'll turn back."
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