Without hesitation, Liora took a running start and leapt across the widening chasm.
The wind tore at her as she flew through the void, time stretching and bending around her. The gap yawned beneath her like an abyssal maw ready to swallow her whole.
She landed hard on the other side, barely keeping her balance as the stone cracked beneath her feet. Kaelen's eyes widened in surprise—not anger, not fear, but something softer… hope.
Holding the Severing Blade high, she charged toward the Heart—its crimson light pulsating violently as if aware of her intent. The air around it shimmered with raw, chaotic energy, threatening to tear her apart.
Kaelen reached out, his voice hoarse:
"Liora, no—"
But she ignored him. With every ounce of strength, she drove the dagger into the Heart.
A deafening explosion of light and shadow engulfed them. Pain seared through her veins, memories and voices flooding her mind. She saw Kaelen's past, his regrets, the Council's treachery—all mixed with the Abyss's hungry hunger.
The Heart shattered.
The pulse faded.
Kaelen collapsed to his knees, gasping as the abyssal light drained from his eyes. The shadows peeled away like broken chains, revealing the man she knew beneath—wounded, but free.
Liora knelt beside him, tears streaming down her face.
"It's over," she whispered.
For the first time in what felt like forever, Kaelen smiled—a real, human smile.
But in the distance, a new rumble echoed.
The Abyss was not so easily defeated.
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