The explosion of light and shadow tore through the chamber, swallowing every sound, every breath. For a moment, there was nothing—only silence, as if the world itself had fallen still.
Then, slowly, the dust began to settle.
She stood in the center, her blade trembling in her grasp, its radiance flickering like a dying star. Blood streaked down her arm, and her knees threatened to buckle. Yet her eyes—her eyes still burned with defiance.
Across from her, the shadow reeled back. Parts of its form had been torn away, revealing cracks of nothingness beneath. For the first time, its laughter faltered. Its voice was no longer steady, but edged with fury.
"You dare wound me…? You, a fragment of light bound to flesh?"
Her breath shook, but she raised her blade again, even as her body cried for rest.
"I am more than a fragment. I am what you feared—proof that light and darkness can share one vessel."
The shadow shrieked, the chamber quaking as it lashed out, its body stretching into a storm of claws and tendrils. She braced herself, the last of her strength gathering—when suddenly—
CRACK—!
The wall behind them split open, and a rush of air howled through. Beyond the crumbling stone, she glimpsed something vast—an endless void, shifting between night and dawn.
The shadow froze, its gaze flickering toward the breach. Its voice dropped to a whisper, almost fearful.
"…So the Veil is breaking."
Her heart pounded, realization dawning. This battle was not just about her survival—it was tearing apart the barrier between worlds.
The light in her chest flared once more, though faint. She forced her body upright, whispering through ragged breaths:
"Then my fight… is only beginning."
The shadow's grin returned, sharper than before.
"Yes. And when the Veil falls… all will be consumed."
Their eyes locked again—one blazing with fragile hope, the other seething with eternal hunger—while the chamber shook under the weight of a truth too great for either to escape.