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My wings quake, tail scraping the marble. “Stop toying with me,” I snarl, though it lacks conviction. “Spare her, or kill me now.”

Her lips quirk in a faint smile. “Kaelith, always so dramatic. I have bigger plans than petty murder. You’re the key to stabilizing my brood fully, bridging gargoyle resilience with my chaos. We almost had that centuries ago, if not for your meddling. Now, we can rectify past mistakes.”

I recall the tragedy that erupted when she first tried to fuse chaos with gargoyle lifeforce. My soul recoils. “You turned them into mindless monsters,” I spit, voice trembling. “They were never free.”

She sighs. “Freedom is relative. Their bodies endured. They soared higher than normal gargoyles, unstoppable in war. We could have saved them from extinction, but you sealed me. Now that I’m awake, I’ll finish what I started—this time, with or without your cooperation.

” Her eyes gleam. “But I’m glad you chose me.

It spares me from ripping you to pieces. ”

Revulsion churns in my stomach. I didn’t choose you. I forced myself to yield for Sariah’s sake. A pang of longing hits me as I think of Sariah. She’s out there, probably devastated. All is lost, the phrase echoes. “What do you want from me?” I croak, voice hollow.

She smiles, brushing a tendril of magic across my runes.

The sensation makes me shudder. “Your power. It resonates with that little purna, but I can redirect it to strengthen my brood, to refine my chaos spells. In time, you’ll forget about your mortal fling.

Or maybe you won’t, but it won’t matter once you’re woven into my domain fully. ”

A wave of despair threatens to crush me.

I walked into this, hoping to spare Sariah from the illusions’ prophecy.

Now, I see how Nerezza plans to bend my synergy to her twisted aims, fueling further atrocities.

I have to resist. But each breath feels heavier, illusions pressing on my mind, making me question whether Sariah is truly safer if I remain here.

And if I fight back, what monstrous illusions might Nerezza unleash on Sariah?

Nerezza’s hand drifts to my chest, touching the place where my runes center. I recoil, but she grabs me with surprising force. My claws twitch, unsure whether to lash out. Would I break the illusions if I strike her? Is she even physically here, or is this another mental realm? My head spins.

She leans in, voice sweetly poisonous. “Take my power once more. Let me strip away your tether to that girl. Then we can channel your synergy fully. You won’t risk your heart, and she’ll live, hidden away from my wrath. Everyone wins.”

The illusions swirl, giving me a flash of Sariah safe somewhere far away, living a quiet life.

My heart clenches. She’d hate that, being forced to hide.

But the image of her brand blackening, becoming another Nyxari, also ravages my mind.

My will cracks further, the illusions gnawing at every vulnerability.

I sink to my knees in the illusory chamber, head bowed, wings drooping. Nerezza stands over me, dark magic shimmering around her like an unholy halo. My runes flicker with distress, tether screaming for Sariah. I left her behind. The shame and heartbreak are suffocating.

Through the chaos, I recall Sariah’s tears, her voice pleading for me to stay. The memory kindles a faint spark of resolve. She loves me. She trusts me not to yield. But the illusions conjure another echo of Sariah’s face, twisted with chaotic madness. Stop, I beg my mind. I can’t bear this.

Nerezza strokes my hair with mock tenderness. “Surrender,” she whispers, voice resonant with enthralling magic. “You have no path left but me.”

A hollow sob tears from my throat. For an instant, I want to let go, to numb the agony of this betrayal, to drift in illusions of the old days with Nerezza. What if it spares Sariah from any further danger? My tail slumps across the floor.

Yet that spark remains, dim but insistent: Sariah would never want me to abandon hope. She’d fight illusions tooth and nail. My brand, half a world away, might still anchor me if I can muster the strength. But how?

Nerezza’s illusions swirl anew, and I see a horrifying image of Sariah locked in stone, gargoyles devouring her. I cry out, tears trailing down my face. She must be safe. She must be. My entire being trembles with the desire to break free, to return to her. That flicker of defiance grows.

But the illusions remain relentless, feeding me fear after fear. I’m pinned in place, mind battered, the bond to Sariah muffled by Nerezza’s overshadowing presence. All is lost, the refrain echoes.

In the real world—wherever my body stands—Nerezza must be guiding me away from that clearing.

Sariah is left behind, presumably pounding at the barrier, sobbing my name.

My chest tightens with heartbreak, but the illusions show me that’s the only path to keep her safe.

The illusions have cracked my will. I let them.

Nerezza’s triumphant expression flickers with a moment of softness. She leans close, lips near my ear. “I never wanted to fight you, Kaelith. We were meant for greatness together, remember?”

My runes pulse with a conflicted ache. The memory of our shared dreams stirs.

My mind whirls with guilt and longing. She was once so radiant.

But I can’t forget the atrocities. I stare at the illusions’ shifting mosaic—Nerezza in her old gentle form, Nerezza unleashing chaos upon innocents, all interwoven with images of Sariah. My head hurts.

Tears burn my eyes. I can’t see a way out. The illusions have me in their thrall. My entire body slumps, wings half-petrified in despair. Sariah, forgive me, I think, letting the illusions carry me deeper into Nerezza’s realm.

In that final thought, I taste the metallic tang of heartbreak. The tether’s resonance dims to a faint echo, overshadowed by the swirling darkness. My soul feels tethered no longer to Sariah, but to a swirling void of illusions, courtesy of the woman who once claimed to love me. All is lost.

Darkness encloses me, illusions pressing in from every side.

My eyes close, tears sliding down my cheeks.

Nerezza’s illusions hold me captive, drawing me away from Sariah’s side with a twisted promise that this betrayal might save her from the fate I most fear.

But the cost is unimaginable. My heart twists in regret as I let the illusions lead me further. I have no more fight left.

Thus, I fall into Nerezza’s hands, leaving Sariah behind to face whatever nightmares remain, convinced my sacrifice might spare her from damnation. All is lost. And in the echoing chambers of illusions, Nerezza’s laughter reigns, triumphant over the last shred of hope I carried.