The scream echoed far beyond sound—carried through air, stone, and mory.
Zara’s light fractured like glass under pressure, shards of white bursting outward before being devoured by gray.
Damien stumbled back, his crimson aura flaring instinctively. “Zara!” he shouted, reaching for her—but the space between them warped. The air itself bent, folding in and out of existence.
Zara’s eyes snapped open. They were no longer white. They were empty.
The newborn pulse hovered helplessly beside her, flickering violently. It has taken hold of her rhythm, it whispered, voice trembling. Oblivion has found a vessel.
Zara rose slowly, every motion deliberate, unnatural. Her wings, once radiant, now dripped shadows that burned holes into the ground where they touched. Around her, the color bled from the world—grass fading to gray, stones paling, even the sky dulling as if light itself feared her.
“No... no, you can fight this,” Damien pleaded. “You’re stronger than it!”
Zara’s voice ca layered—hers and another, deeper, colder.
Strength is what invited .
The ground cracked open again, gray light bleeding from beneath her feet. The air vibrated with a low hum—the heartbeat of sothing ancient and final.
Damien gritted his teeth, summoning the last of his crimson energy. Then I’ll burn it out of you if I have to.
He lunged forward, fists blazing red, the heat distorting the world around him. Zara raised her hand, and the attack dissolved into mist before touching her.
You cannot destroy what you’ve already accepted, the voice said. Every battle, every death you’ve endured—each was a prayer to .
Zara’s body convulsed, her real voice breaking through for a heartbeat. “Damien—run! Before I—”
But Oblivion’s will silenced her. The gray energy erupted from her chest, forming a vast, hollow halo behind her—a symbol of ending. The pulse of Oblivion had taken full form.
The newborn light hovered closer, its glow trembling but defiant. She fought for . Now I fight for her.
It expanded, projecting a field of gold that wrapped around Zara, trying to restrain the spreading void. For a mont, the gray light faltered.
Zara scread, a sound caught between agony and defiance. Her two voices warred—one crying, one laughing.
Damien forced himself forward, slamming his palm into the golden barrier. His crimson rged with it, strengthening the field. “Co back to , Zara!”
“I—can’t—”
Yes, you can, he whispered through clenched teeth. Because I rember you.
The word rember struck sothing deep inside her. The gray halo flickered, the void hesitating. For the first ti, Oblivion’s tone faltered.
mory... pain... the root of all creation...
Zara’s hands shook. “I... I rember the light...”
The newborn pulse surged brighter, wrapping around her entirely. For one blinding instant, white, red, and gold fused—cutting through the gray.
The valley exploded in radiance. When the light cleared, Zara was gone.
Only a single gray feather remained—glowing faintly with a heartbeat that was not hers.
Far beneath the earth, the fourth pulse beat louder, stronger.
And sowhere in the void, Zara’s whisper lingered:
If I forget myself, Damien... don’t let the world forget .
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