The mountain trembled as if the very bones of the earth were rejecting the storm that raged above it. Shadows churned like waves in a black sea, each one carrying whispers that clawed at the mind. The wind was thick with ash, and the air itself stank of iron and sorrow.
Iris clung to Luna's hand as the storm pressed against them, her sketchbook—worn and water-stained—clutched to her chest. Selene walked ahead, her silver hair snapping in the gale, every step driven by a determination that was equal parts courage and guilt.
"This is it," Selene shouted over the storm. "Seraphine's heart… it's at the center of this. If we don't reach her now, she'll consume herself completely."
A wraith dove from the swirling dark, its claws glowing faintly blue. Luna swung her blade in a perfect arc, cutting it apart. Shadows splintered like glass, vanishing into mist. She turned to Iris immediately, her eyes wide, her chest heaving.
"Stay close. Don't let go of me, Iris."
"I won't," Iris whispered, though her voice was lost in the storm. Her fingers tightened around Luna's, drawing strength from the warmth of her skin.
For a brief second, they locked eyes. Despite the chaos, there was a calm in Luna's gaze that steadied Iris's racing heart.
And then the storm howled louder.
A voice slipped through the whirlwind, low, aching, broken.
"Selene… my Selene… why did you leave me?"
Selene stumbled as if the voice had pierced her ribs. She clutched at her chest and fell to her knees. Luna moved to help, but Selene raised a trembling hand.
"No… don't. This is mine to face."
The ground cracked beneath them, splitting into jagged chasms. From the fissures rose visions—not wraiths this time, but fragments of memory.
Iris gasped as she saw two women standing hand in hand, beneath a night sky blooming with moons. One was Selene, her youthful face softened with hope. The other—radiant, fierce, and fragile all at once—was Seraphine, before darkness devoured her.
They were laughing. They were in love.
And then the vision twisted. The laughter broke into screams. Fire. Chains. Betrayal. Seraphine dragged into the void while Selene watched, helpless.
Iris reached instinctively for Luna's arm. Luna's jaw tightened, but her eyes softened with sympathy as she watched Selene fall apart before them.
"Seraphine!" Selene cried, her voice cracking. "I didn't abandon you—I was torn away! I searched for you across centuries!"
The storm howled louder, drowning her words.
Seraphine appeared then, not as a phantom but in the flesh—tall, draped in black veils that rippled like smoke. Her eyes glowed like molten silver, but streaks of humanity still flickered there, faint and fleeting.
Her voice was silk and sorrow.
"You say you searched. Yet you live. And I—" her hand rose, fingers trembling "—I died in every shadow I walked through. Alone."
Selene took a step forward. "Then let me stand with you now. Let me bear the weight you've carried."
But the storm surged, pushing Selene back. Seraphine's eyes slid toward Iris and Luna, her voice cutting like ice.
"And what of them? Mortal lovers in a game too cruel for mortals. Do you think your fragile bond can survive what's coming?"
Her gaze pinned Iris, sharp as a blade. "Tell me, little artist—do you believe she won't leave you, as I was left?"
Iris's heart seized. Old fears stirred—memories of being ordinary, breakable, unworthy. She looked at Luna, who was already staring back at her.
Luna dropped her sword just long enough to cup Iris's face in both hands. "Don't listen to her. Iris, I swear on everything I am—I will never leave you. Not even death could take me from you."
The shadows pressed closer. Luna kissed her, right there amidst the storm, slow but fierce, sealing her words with the heat of her lips. Iris felt the truth burn through her doubts. When they broke apart, her breath was trembling but steady.
"I believe you," Iris whispered. Then louder, facing Seraphine: "I believe in her. In us."
The storm shuddered, as if shaken.
Selene cried out. "Seraphine, do you see? Love can endure! Even when the world breaks, it can heal!"
But Seraphine's face twisted, torn between longing and fury. Shadows erupted from her body, lashing toward them in serpentine whips.
"Then prove it!" she roared.
Wraiths poured from the storm in numbers greater than before. Luna snatched her sword, spinning Iris behind her. Selene lifted her staff, her light clashing with Seraphine's dark.
Iris's sketchbook tumbled from her arms, pages tearing in the wind. She scrambled to grab them, then froze as she saw the drawings shimmer with strange light. Every memory she'd drawn—every kiss, every moment with Luna—was glowing.
Her hands shook. "They're real," she breathed. "They're strong enough to fight this."
A whip of shadow darted for Luna. Iris didn't think—she hurled the glowing sketch in her hand forward. The page dissolved into light, and for an instant, a shield of radiant sketches—stars, roses, and Luna's smile—blazed into existence, blocking the attack.
Luna looked back at her in shock. "Iris—you—"
"I can fight too," Iris whispered, trembling but resolute. "With what I've made. With what we are."
Luna's heart swelled with pride, with love so sharp it nearly hurt. She surged forward, blade flashing, Iris at her back like a second pulse.
The storm was no longer just a battle—it was a dance of light and shadow, of steel and art, of love and despair.
Selene's voice broke through the chaos as she battled Seraphine directly. "I never stopped loving you! I never will! But this darkness is killing you, Sera. Please—come back to me!"
Seraphine faltered, her strikes slowing. For a heartbeat, her veil slipped, revealing a face streaked with tears.
Then a wraith lunged for Iris. Luna turned too slow—
"Iris!"
Selene spun, blasting it apart, but the attack grazed Iris's arm. Blood welled. Iris cried out, stumbling. Luna caught her instantly, fury igniting in her chest.
Seraphine froze, her eyes locking on the sight—the mortal girl bleeding, the knight cradling her with desperate devotion.
Something in her broke.
She screamed, the storm shattering outward in a wave of force that threw everyone to the ground. Wraiths disintegrated mid-air.
When the dust cleared, Seraphine was kneeling, her veils torn, her face bare. She looked at Selene, her voice ragged.
"Why does their love burn so bright, when ours was torn to ash?"
Selene crawled to her, tears streaming freely. She cupped Seraphine's face, heedless of the darkness still writhing under her skin.
"Because it never truly died," Selene whispered. "Yours and mine—it's still here. It's not too late."
Seraphine shook her head, but the fight had left her. Her body trembled, shadows slipping away like smoke in the wind.
Iris leaned against Luna, weak but steady, whispering, "She's choosing."
Luna kissed her temple, whispering back, "So are we. Every moment."
The three women—Selene, Iris, Luna—watched as Seraphine trembled on the edge of surrender or destruction. The mountain groaned, the storm screaming around them.
Seraphine closed her eyes, whispering a final line—half prayer, half confession:
"Then let love be the end of me… or my salvation."
The storm convulsed, swallowing her form in a blinding light.
And when it cleared, only silence remained.