The air had shifted—now filled with a deep, low hum that resonated in their chests, a reminder of an unseen force governing this place. After Melania touched the Seal of the Rift, the world around them seemed to hold its breath. The guardians, frozen in their combat stances, now resembled statues carved from glass, and the radiance that had once enveloped the hall began to dim.
“What now?” Elaine whispered, clutching her amulet. It still emitted a faint golden glow, as if even it had lost much of its power. “Are we even alive?”
Melania didn’t answer. Her gaze was fixed on the Seal in her hands. It no longer glowed with its cold light. Instead, its surface resembled living tissue, covered in fine threads weaving into intricate patterns. The movements were barely noticeable, but she felt something within her changing.
“Alive,” Aaren said curtly, wiping the blade of his sword clean from the shadowy, almost spectral blood of one of the guardians. “But not for long if we don’t figure out what to do next.”
Melania took a deeper breath, trying to calm her rising panic. Her mind now worked faster, as if the Seal had granted her some new clarity.
“The Seal doesn’t just open a path,” she said quietly, more to herself than the others. “It destroys the old to create something new.”
“Are you sure of that, or are you guessing?” Aaren’s voice was sharp, but it carried an undertone of unease.
“I feel it,” she replied, raising her gaze. “We can’t move forward unless we change something here, in this hall. This place holds more than just our actions. It tests whether we’re capable of changing ourselves.”
“Change ourselves?” Elaine stared at her in disbelief. “How do you imagine that? We’re already risking our lives! What else is there to change?”
Melania approached the center of the hall, where the walls seemed to breathe, releasing an invisible wave of force. She thought their shapes pulsed, shifting under the weight of the unseen laws of this place. She extended her hand toward the nearest wall, and in that instant, she was engulfed by a vision.
Scenes from her past appeared before her eyes. Her father, embracing her during her childhood, back when she didn’t know what responsibility meant. Her mother, crying as she watched Melania leave their home to seek the truth in the world. Then came other faces: those she had lost and those she had saved.
All these people were now a part of her, just as the Seal was. Her hand clenched involuntarily as she felt their voices whisper to her: “You must accept everything you are if you wish to create something new.”
“What do you see?” Aaren touched her shoulder, pulling Melania out of the vision. She turned to him, and he immediately understood that something significant had happened.
“We must accept ourselves as we are,” she said. “Otherwise, this labyrinth will consume us.”
“And if we don’t want to?” Elaine demanded again, her voice breaking under the strain. “I’m not sure I’m ready to face everything left in my past.”
“You must,” Melania said firmly. “This path demands sacrifices, but those sacrifices aren’t our past. They’re our fear of who we truly are.”
She held the Seal forward, and suddenly the light in the hall began to change. The darkness retreated, revealing massive doors made of pure light. But instead of peace, Melania felt something looking at them from the other side—something powerful and ancient, something that had been waiting for them.
“This is just the beginning,” she said, taking the first step toward the doors.
Behind her, Aaren and Elaine exchanged glances. Though fear lingered in their eyes, they followed her. Their journey into the heart of eternity continued.