The silence that followed Elara's declaration was deafening.
Kieran's eyes widened, disbelief battling with the fragments of truth that had begun to fall into place. The shadows in the archive still lingered, crawling like oil across the stone floor, but they no longer moved with the same hunger. Something had shifted. The orb pulsed dimly in Elara's hand, still warm from the memory transfer.
"She was your sister?" Kieran asked, barely a whisper.
Elara nodded. Her knees threatened to buckle beneath the weight of what she now carried.
Seraphine hadn't just been her protector or her mentor. She had been blood.
"I saw everything," Elara murmured. "How she took me from the central facility. How she wiped her records. She hid me in the academy, changed my name, changed everything."
"And no one knew," Kieran said, his voice hollow. "Not even Headmaster Velcroft."
Elara looked at him then. "Especially not him."
As if summoned by the mention of his name, a gust of frigid wind swept through the archive. The torches dimmed.
From the shadows, a tall figure stepped forth. Draped in silver-lined robes, eyes like mercury, cold and calculating.
Velcroft.
"So," he said, voice echoing in unnatural layers, "you've awakened the memory core."
Kieran instinctively stepped in front of Elara. "She knows everything now. You can't hide it."
Velcroft's expression remained unreadable. "Hide? No, Kieran. I intended for her to find it eventually. The truth is a powerful weapon—but only in the hands of someone willing to wield it."
Elara's fingers tightened around the orb. "Why? Why cover it up? Why pretend Seraphine was a traitor when she was trying to protect us?"
A small smile curled Velcroft's lips. "Because heroes don't inspire fear. And fear, dear Elara, is what keeps order."
Kieran growled, but Elara raised a hand to stop him. She stepped forward.
"What was Project ECHO?" she asked.
Velcroft's gaze sharpened. "A convergence of memory and consciousness. The ability to resurrect not just the body, but the will. Your sister was the prototype. But she broke free. She carried something she wasn't meant to."
"Me."
"Precisely."
Elara felt the blood drain from her face.
Velcroft continued, almost kindly. "She was never supposed to escape. But she did. And now... you carry her rebellion."
Kieran's blade was out in a flash, glowing with runes of protection. "You won't touch her."
Velcroft laughed. "Touch her? No. I want to use her."
In an instant, the shadows surged, forming a circle around them. Velcroft lifted his hand, and from the air, a crimson sigil flared—one that matched the mark on Elara's back.
Pain flared through her spine. She collapsed to her knees.
"It's the blood contract," Kieran shouted. "He's activating it!"
Elara bit back a scream. The mark burned like fire, connecting her to something ancient, something vast.
But then—she heard a voice.
Seraphine.
Inside her mind, her sister's voice echoed: "Break the chain. Choose your path. You are not bound by blood. You are bound by will."
With a scream, Elara slammed the orb to the ground.
A shockwave rippled outward.
The shadows recoiled. Velcroft stumbled back, snarling. Kieran grabbed Elara, pulling her to her feet.
"We have to get out of here!"
But Elara
The candlelight flickered as the ancient parchment unraveled on the obsidian table, its red-stained edges whispering of forgotten promises. Elara stared at it, her pulse thudding in her ears. The script was written in blood—not metaphorical ink, but real, dried blood, curled into symbols that shimmered when touched by moonlight.
"This is it," Kieran murmured. "The Blood Contract. The bond that sealed the academy's fate… and yours."
Elara's fingers hovered over the parchment, hesitant. Her vision still reeled from the memories she had absorbed in the Archive. Seraphine—her sister—had protected her by forging this very contract. But she hadn't done it alone.
"Whose blood did she use?" Elara asked quietly.
Kieran's jaw tightened. "Yours."
The words sliced through the air like a knife. Elara froze.
"I was a child. I didn't—"
"You were chosen, Elara. You were always meant to inherit this power. She tried to shield you, but the contract bound you before you could decide."
The blood ink pulsed, responding to her presence. The ancient vow called to her, drawing out something ancient from her bones. Voices—soft, pleading, vengeful—rose in the corners of the room.
"She didn't just bind me," Elara said, voice trembling. "She sacrificed part of herself to keep me alive."
Kieran nodded slowly. "And now that she's gone, the contract is looking for a new bearer. It recognizes you as its heir."
Elara's hands trembled as she touched the edge of the parchment. A sudden rush of pain shot through her fingers. Symbols lit up, flaring red, and a gust of wind spiraled from the paper, swirling dust and magic in all directions.
She stumbled back, but the contract floated, hovering above the table, unraveling fully to reveal seven seals.
The Seven Dead Letters.
Each one marked with a sigil tied to an element—Memory, Truth, Pain, Blood, Fire, Shadow, and Will.
Kieran stepped closer. "These letters were created by Seraphine and the Council to bind a god."
Elara blinked. "A god?"
"Not just any. The one who tried to destroy the balance. The same entity that now whispers through Vellian's voice. Seraphine didn't just rewrite memories—she rewrote reality to trap him in a loop. This contract is what sealed him away."
"And now I have to maintain it?" Elara whispered.
"No," Kieran said darkly. "Now you have to decide if you want to break it."
The weight of his words hit like a storm. Break the contract—and the god might return, but so would truths long buried. Maintain it—and live as a pawn in a game she never agreed to play.
She looked at the first seal: Memory.
The sigil glowed gently under her gaze. A whisper crept into her ear.
"He betrayed you. Open your mind. Remember everything."
Flashes of her childhood returned—memories of the experiments, of her in a sterile pod, of Seraphine screaming, of the Council removing pieces of her identity. Names. Faces. Feelings. All buried.
Tears welled up in her eyes. "They took everything from me."
Kieran reached for her, but she pulled away. "No. I need to see this through."
The second seal: Truth.
This time the voice was her own—hollow, echoing. "You lied to yourself. You wanted to believe you were normal."
The pain of isolation. The fake memories they fed her. The false friends. The false peace.
She pressed her hand against the seal.
A light burst from the parchment. The ground cracked beneath them, revealing a hidden staircase spiraling down beneath the chamber. Another layer of the academy. Another secret.
"We're not done," Elara said, wiping her tears. "This contract wasn't just a seal. It's a map."
Kieran's eyes widened. "Then the remaining letters…"
"They're doors. Each one leads to a piece of the god's prison."
They descended into the darkness, the glowing sigils on the contract guiding their steps. As they moved deeper, the air grew thicker, tinged with a metallic scent. The walls shifted, alive with runes and shadows that moved when not watched.
At the base of the stairs stood a chamber with a silver pedestal. Upon it, a crystal dagger—its blade infused with red light—waited.
"The Dagger of Severance," Kieran whispered. "It's what Seraphine used to sever her bond to the entity. If you use it…"
"I can end this," Elara said, stepping forward.
But as she reached for the blade, a figure stepped from the shadows.
"Not so fast, sister."
Elara's heart stopped. She turned—eyes locking with a face nearly identical to hers. Pale skin, golden eyes, a cruel smirk.
"No…" she breathed.
Kieran moved instinctively in front of her. "Who are you?"
The woman tilted her head. "You really don't remember me, Elara? That hurts. But I guess when someone deletes your existence, it leaves a mark."
Elara's knees weakened. "Astra…"
Her twin.
The one she thought died in the first experiment.
Astra laughed coldly. "Seraphine chose you. She let me rot in the void. And now you think you deserve to carry this power?"
Elara's voice trembled. "You're alive…"
"I'm more than alive. I've seen the truth. That god you sealed away? He didn't corrupt us. We were his fragments. You and I—we are the cycle."
The dagger between them began to vibrate, sensing conflict.
Astra took a step forward. "Join me. Break the seals. Rewrite this broken world."
Elara stood frozen.
Kieran whispered, "Don't trust her. She's—"
"She's me," Elara said. "The part they erased."
Silence.
Then she reached for the dagger.