That night, the Gaia Castle was enveloped in an unsettling silence.
The wind dared not to stir, as if time itself was holding its breath, thickening the chilly air with palpable tension.
Iris stood at the edge of the balcony, her gaze fixed upon the vast, inky ocean sprawling beneath her, the waves dancing with an ethereal shimmer in the moonlight. Beyond the veil of floating white mist, the ominous silhouette of a leviathan began to emerge, a legendary creature from the depths of the ancient sea. All eyes of the realm were drawn to the figure of the Last Queen, the solitary guardian, unyielding and resolute as she prepared to confront the dark legend rising from the depths.
Fitran's footsteps whispered softly behind her, each sound seemingly shattering the profound stillness of the night. Clad not in armor nor the familiar battle cloak that usually adorned him, he stood bare—just a man, stripped of all except his skin and flesh, relinquishing even the right to be called human.
"I already knew," Iris said, her voice steady yet resolute, without turning to face him. "That you would ask for it back."
Fitran held his breath, the words frozen in his throat as he battled the conflicting emotions of hope and fear that waged war within him.
"Voidwright," he murmured, his voice raspy and filled with the weight of unfulfilled desires. "You wish to reclaim that title, even if just for a fleeting moment."
He nodded slowly, an unspoken acknowledgment of the truth that hung heavily in the air, realizing there was no point in hiding.
"To face the Leviathan... I must transform into a monster," he confessed, uncertainty lacing his voice like a shadow.
Iris turned slowly, her green eyes shimmering softly under the silver glow of the moonlight, beckoning Fitran to draw near as though inviting him into a dance of shadows and light.
"Not a monster, Fitran. But a mirror," she replied, her gentle voice slicing through the oppressive silence, piercing directly into the depths of his soul.
Stepping closer, her delicate fingers brushed against his cold, clammy face, offering a warmth he rarely felt—like the first rays of dawn on a frigid morning. "You have always been a mirror to the world. And now, you long to reflect that horror once more," she said, her gaze unyielding, full of unspoken truths.
Fitran felt a restless urge to retreat, to deny the weight of her words, yet his body remained frozen in place; deep down, he understood:
Iris had been mulling over this reality far longer than he had, harboring her own fears in the silence.
"But there is a cost," the Queen warned, her tone heavy with foreboding. "It's not just your magic that will be shared. But... us."
Fitran's mind was a tempest of confusion, enveloping his heart like a thick fog.
In that suffocating silence, Iris felt the burden of her despair settle upon her like a heavy shroud, cloaking her soul in darkness. Each fleeting second expanded the chasm between them, turning the outside world into an unfathomable void. They were ensnared in an intensifying atmosphere, a cocoon of tension. The very air quivered around them, rich with emotions caught in a delicate dance—an intricate laboratory of souls laden with cherished memories and buried hopes, swirling through the space like golden dust, lingering just out of reach.
As they drew nearer, the gentle glow from the Glyph cast a delicate light over Fitran's figure, which startled them both, sparking a cascade of shimmering reflections that flickered like golden tears flowing freely in the air. Each radiant beam symbolized not just hope but also the myriad sacrifices threaded through their tumultuous journey. This breathtaking metaphor twirled through the shadows, wrapping around them like a warm embrace, forging an unbreakable bond. In that luminous glow, Iris caught a glimpse of her own reflection, and in an instant, she was swept away by the memories of their winding love; each delightful moment shared between them resembled delicate silk threads woven intricately, binding their souls together with undeniable strength.
"Is this worth it, Fitran?" she pondered, the pain carving deep grooves into her heart's fabric. "Will I ultimately lose you, as we confront the dreadful horrors lurking at the end of this path?" In that fraught moment, her hopes clashed with the pain that loomed over her, merging into a cry steeped in profound emotions, tinged unmistakably with boundless love. "How can we endure separation when each joy and sorrow has intricately stitched us together into an invisible tapestry of our shared existence?"
As the atmosphere thickened with an almost palpable tension, the resonant sound of the ritual reverberated through the grand palace walls, casting an enchanting vibration that seemed to seep into the very core of their beings. Iris close her eyes for a moment, attuned to the steady rhythm of Fitran's heartbeat; a symphony of life that mirrored the rising desperation, their breaths intertwined as they stood on the precipice of hope, laced with doubt and shadowed by profound fear. In that fraught moment, they found themselves suspended between burning desire and the cruel specter of impending loss.
"You are my light," she whispered, her voice quivering in the haunting silence that enveloped them. "And in this radiant glow, I am willing to sacrifice everything for us."
"Voidwright is not merely an incantation; it is an ancient force that must be awakened, summoned from the very depths of existence itself."
"And that can only be accomplished... through a union that transcends ordinary magic, weaving together the very fabric of our souls."
She stepped closer, deliberately shedding her silver cloak with an elegant, enchanting flourish that echoed with purpose. As the fabric fell away, it revealed her form, adorned with ancient symbols shimmering faintly in the dim light—the Glyph of Connection, a mystical sigil that appeared only during the sacred ritual of soul unification. This was not an act born of love or pleasure, but rather a profound necessity, meant to forge a pathway home for the dormant power that lay buried in shadow.
"I will grant you the Void," she breathed, her voice laced with hopeful conviction.
"But in doing so, you will lose 'Ultimate'. And I... I will lose you, forever."
Fitran stood frozen, gripped by an overwhelming sense of helplessness—as though the very fabric of reality had contracted around him, rendering the presence of the divine insignificant.
"Iris…"
"No. Tonight, we are not Queen and Paladin. We are simply two beings on the precipice of destruction," she replied, her eyes reflecting the weight of their fate.
She guided him to the white altar at the heart of the chamber, now transformed into a trembling space of sacrifice. There were no elaborate ceremonies or rapturous witnesses; just the two of them, their souls intertwined, united for a destiny far older than love, and far more terrifying than magic.
As they came together, an all-encompassing silence enveloped the space around them. No words punctuated the air; only the soft, broken sobs and trembling breaths filled with fear and the gravity of their sacrifice reverberated through the stillness. The glyph etched on Iris's body glimmered with a delicate, twinkling light, reminiscent of a new star struggling for existence in a sky shrouded in darkness. With each passing moment, that luminous thread flowed between them like a river of molten gold, leaving behind a vibrant rainbow trail that infused the atmosphere with a surge of profound emotion. Within Fitran, the Void, long hidden, slowly unfurled itself—like a black eye awakening from a protracted slumber within the depths of his soul, scorched and illuminated by a brilliance previously unimaginable.
That night, the sky remained devoid of stars, a stark tapestry of obsidian stretched above them.
The world, caught in a breathless pause, bore witness to their audacity; two souls defying the boundaries of existence. As their connection blazed with intimate intensity, the very walls of the room began to tremble under the weight of their tumultuous emotions; gently vibrating as if attuned to the sacrifices woven into the fabric of their hearts. The atmosphere thickened like a fine mist settling after a torrential downpour, wrapping them in a cocoon of warmth laced with an indescribable ache.
In Iris's mind, anxiety swirled like an unstoppable storm, each thought crashing against the other: "What will remain of me? Will this sacrifice be worth the sorrow?" The weight of the moment bore down on her, revealing that when everything came to an end, she was not only forfeiting her pride but also relinquishing the dreams they had painstakingly built together, dreams now susceptible to destruction like a house ravaged by a tempest. Her emotions surged around her like relentless waves battering against the shore, shattering the fragile remnants of hope in an unyielding current of despair. As the tumult settled, Fitran lay in the quiet aftermath, his body trembling not from exhaustion, but from the bitter realization that he had lost half of himself. And Iris... she had given everything.
"Thank you," she whispered weakly, her voice barely carrying the weight of her gratitude.
The atmosphere in the room shifted dramatically; it was as if time itself had paused, encapsulating them in a melancholic silence. The soft luminescence from Glyph streamed through the space, casting flickering shadows that danced along the walls, telling a tale of a once-passionate love story now dimmed by the shadows of loss.
With a heavy heart, Iris gazed at the ceiling, silent tears streaming down her cheeks like glistening morning dew falling upon withered leaves, catching the light and blurring the lines between reality and dreams. Inside her, a tempest of darkness and unspoken sorrow intertwined with an overwhelming sense of loss surged forth. Memories of precious moments shared with Fitran cascaded through her mind; each recollection a vibrant thread weaving a tapestry of bittersweet reminiscence that now formed a painful part of her history.
"No..." she murmured, her voice trembling as she fought back sobs that threatened to break free like a dam on the verge of collapse. "It's not because I love you," she continued, her words laced with profound sadness, "but because there's no one left to bring you darkness as beautiful as this."
The room, once aglow with the warmth and vibrancy that Glyph had infused into it, now felt oppressively heavy, as if it were holding its breath in a deafening silence. Outside, the night unfurled like a dark shroud, deepening its embrace as if the vast sky itself could sense the sorrow that wrapped around their hearts. The stars, which had once twinkled like distant hopes, now seemed to hide away, leaving the heavens as a fragile, desolate canvas of obsidian. With each tick of the clock, the thick silence became a haunting witness to their sacrifices and despair, casting long shadows over a future that remained forever dimmed.
"I truly love him," Iris confessed, her voice breaking under the weight of her emotions, soft sobs echoing in the stillness of the night.