The silence after the battle was deafening.
Selene still felt the heat of the Celestial Flame coursing through her veins, her body thrumming with energy. The Shadow Hound was gone—erased—but Valerian's words lingered in her mind.
"That wasn't just a test. That was a warning."
Lucian wiped the black ichor from his blade, his silver eyes scanning the ruined chamber. "We need to move. Now."
Selene glanced at the cracks in the stone, the unnatural darkness still lingering where the Hound had emerged. The Abyss was not done with them.
And she could feel it.
Something else was coming.
The Messenger from the Abyss
They had barely made it out of the collapsing ruins when the sky darkened.
Selene stopped in her tracks, her golden fire flickering to life instinctively. Lucian stepped in front of her, his blade at the ready, while Valerian narrowed his eyes at the swirling storm forming above them.
Then, a figure descended from the sky.
Not walked. Descended.
They moved with a weightless grace, as if gravity itself bowed to their will.
Draped in flowing black robes, the figure's presence warped the very air around them. Their skin was a deep shade of onyx, and their eyes—those eyes—were pure silver, shimmering like twin stars in an empty void.
The three of them tensed.
The figure landed lightly, the force of their arrival making the earth tremble.
Selene had never seen them before, but she knew who they were.
A Herald of the Abyss.
A direct envoy of the forces she had just defied.
The Herald lifted their gaze, voice smooth as silk yet carrying the weight of countless souls lost to the Abyss.
"Selene of the Celestial Flame," they said.
Selene's fingers curled into fists. "I assume you're not here to congratulate me."
The Herald did not blink. Did not smile. Did not breathe.
"You have made a choice. The Abyss has taken notice."
Lucian shifted beside her, blade tilting slightly in warning. "She's made her decision. If you came here to demand her surrender, you're wasting your time."
The Herald's silver eyes shifted to him, gaze slow and deliberate.
"Lucian, Prince of the Forsaken," they murmured. "Ever the loyal protector."
Lucian stiffened.
Selene frowned. "What do you want?"
The Herald took a step closer. The air around them crackled, charged with an unnatural energy.
"The Abyss offers you one final chance, Celestial Flame."
Selene's heart pounded, but she kept her voice steady. "A chance for what?"
The Herald tilted their head slightly.
"To surrender yourself and the power you have stolen."
Valerian let out a sharp laugh. "Stolen? You think the Flame was yours to begin with?"
The Herald did not spare him a glance. Their gaze remained locked on Selene.
"If you refuse, the Abyss will no longer be merciful."
Selene exhaled slowly, feeling the weight of the choice pressing down on her. She already knew her answer—but something about the calm certainty in the Herald's voice sent a chill through her.
The Abyss had been testing her. But if she refused now…
They would no longer hold back.
Lucian's grip on his sword tightened, his stance shifting slightly. He was preparing for battle.
Selene held his gaze for a brief moment before turning back to the Herald.
Then, she spoke.
"I refuse."
The moment the words left her lips, the world shattered.
The Abyss Unleashed
The sky split open.
A sound like thousands of voices screaming at once erupted from the heavens, and the ground beneath them tore apart, revealing endless darkness beneath.
Lucian grabbed Selene's arm, pulling her back. "RUN—"
But it was too late.
The air rippled—and then, they came.
Shadow-beasts poured out of the cracks in reality, grotesque forms twisting and shifting, their bodies made of the same dark substance as the Hound. But these creatures were stronger. Faster. Hungrier.
Valerian cursed. "Selene, whatever you just did, you made it worse!"
Selene didn't have time to argue. They were already attacking.
One of the beasts lunged at her, its claws swiping through the air. Selene barely dodged, rolling across the broken ground and releasing a blast of golden fire.
The flames struck the creature—but this time, it screamed.
It wasn't absorbing her magic. It was burning.
Selene's heart pounded.I can kill them.
Lucian moved beside her, his sword a blur of silver as he cut through two creatures in a single strike. Valerian conjured dark spears, skewering another from behind.
But there were too many.
The Herald watched them with cold indifference, standing just beyond the chaos, untouched by the violence unfolding before them.
"You cannot fight the Abyss forever."
Selene's breath came fast, but she lifted her chin. "Then I'll die trying."
The Herald sighed. And then—they raised a hand.
A pulse of darkness erupted outward.
Lucian barely had time to move before the force slammed into them.
Selene felt herself being lifted off her feet, flung back like a ragdoll. She hit the ground hard, the impact knocking the air from her lungs.
She struggled to push herself up, her vision blurring—
And then—
She saw Lucian.
Pinned beneath a shadow-formed spear, blood trickling from his lip. His silver eyes wide with shock.
Her heart stopped.
"L-Lucian—"
He tried to move, but the spear held him down, tendrils of darkness wrapping around him. The shadows were draining him, feeding off his power.
Selene's fire flared violently. She scrambled to her feet, but before she could reach him, the Herald stepped forward.
"This is your last warning, Celestial Flame."
The Herald gestured toward Lucian.
"Surrender, and he lives."
Selene's chest tightened.
She looked at Lucian. At the pain in his eyes. At the silent plea in his gaze.
He shook his head, barely whispering—"Don't."
The Abyss had backed her into a corner.
If she refused now—Lucian would die.
Selene clenched her fists, fire flickering wildly around her.
She had made her choice once before.
Could she make it again—knowing the cost?
End of Chapter Forty-Four