The air in the shadowed chamber felt thick with ancient power, heavy as if the walls themselves were alive and watching. Aurora's breath came fast, her heart pounding like a desperate drum in her chest. Before her, the demon Asriel regarded her with a smile that promised ruin.
"Your soul or his," Asriel repeated, voice smooth and cold. "Choose wisely."
Aurora's mind raced. To give up her soul—the very essence of who she was—felt impossible. But leaving Elias trapped here, broken and fading, was a torment she could not bear.
Her gaze flickered to Elias, who lay huddled inside the cage of shadows. His once warm eyes now glowed with a dim, fiery ember, filled with pain and something darker—something that frightened her deeply.
"Is there… no other way?" Aurora's voice barely trembled as she spoke.
Asriel's smile deepened. "There is always another way, but it comes with even darker consequences. Few have dared to tread it."
Before Aurora could press further, the chamber walls seemed to ripple, and a new figure stepped forward from the shadows—a man, but not like any mortal she had seen. His skin was pale, almost translucent, and his eyes shimmered like molten silver. His black cloak billowed as if caught in a phantom wind.
"I am Malachai," the figure said softly, voice both alluring and chilling. "The Gatekeeper between worlds."
Lucien stepped beside Aurora, his hand tightening on her shoulder. "He's not just a messenger. Malachai controls what passes between the living and the damned. Deal with him carefully."
Malachai's gaze fixed on Aurora, piercing as if looking straight into her soul. "You have crossed thresholds forbidden. You seek a rescue that many have failed to accomplish."
Aurora straightened, summoning every ounce of courage. "I don't care about the risks. I will bring Elias back."
Malachai's smile was slow and cruel. "Then listen well, mortal. The pact you seek to make is not just a trade of souls. It is a binding curse that will twist your fate—and the fate of all who follow."
He gestured to a black mirror standing in the corner of the chamber, framed in rusted iron and crackling with dark energy.
"Look into the mirror," Malachai said. "See what your sacrifice will truly cost."
Aurora hesitated but moved toward the mirror, her reflection wavering and distorting like smoke. Then the image changed—it showed her walking through a bleak landscape, her eyes hollow, her hands stained with blood she could not wash away.
She gasped, stumbling back. "Is that… me?"
Malachai's voice was a whisper. "The pact will grant your wish. But it will consume your light, turning love into obsession, and passion into eternal torment."
Lucien's expression was grim. "There are ways to break such curses, but none come without danger."
Aurora's thoughts swirled. She wanted to save Elias—not lose herself in the process.
"What must I do?" she asked, voice steady despite the fear curling in her stomach.
Malachai's eyes glittered like stars. "First, you must prove your resolve by passing through the Trial of the Damned."
Lucien stepped forward. "The Trial is a gauntlet of despair. It tests your mind, heart, and soul. Only those pure in purpose—and strong in will—survive."
Aurora swallowed hard. "Then I'll face it."
Malachai extended a slender hand. "Very well. Step forward, and your journey continues."
The chamber dissolved into darkness as Aurora took Malachai's hand, feeling a cold shock pulse through her veins.
Suddenly, she was standing alone in a vast, desolate plain under a sky swirling with storm clouds.
Around her, the air shimmered with restless whispers and ghostly faces that flickered in and out of sight.
A voice echoed—a cruel, mocking tone that echoed from nowhere and everywhere.
"Why do you seek to save a soul already lost? Is love worth your destruction?"
Aurora's hands clenched into fists. "Because love is all I have left."
The voice laughed—a sound like cracking ice.
"Prove it."
The ground beneath her shifted, and Aurora was transported into memories—her most cherished moments with Elias, twisted and darkened.
She saw him laughing by a river, but his eyes suddenly bled black tears.
She reached out to touch him, but her hands passed through his ghostly form.
Then the memories turned darker—visions of loss, despair, and loneliness. Faces she knew morphed into grotesque masks that whispered lies, telling her to give up, to let go.
Aurora fought back tears, forcing herself to breathe, to stand tall.
"No," she said firmly. "I will not surrender."
The shadows around her writhed in anger, then suddenly parted, revealing a glowing path.
Lucien's voice came softly in her mind: "Keep faith. The Trial feeds on fear—resist it, and you will survive."
Following the path, Aurora arrived at a towering gate of black iron.
Etched into the gate was a phrase in an ancient tongue:
"Only the heart that does not waver may pass."
Her breath caught as the gate began to creak open.
Inside was a small chamber bathed in silver light. At the center, a pool of water shimmered like liquid glass.
Malachai appeared beside her.
"Drink from the pool, and you will gain clarity—the strength to face what lies ahead. But beware, the water reveals truth, even when it is painful."
Aurora knelt and dipped her fingers into the pool. The water was icy cold, sending a shock through her body.
She drank.
Visions flooded her mind—visions of Elias, but not as she remembered. She saw the truth of his curse: the demon had woven itself into his very soul, binding him to darkness. She saw her own reflection, marred by shadows, a soul at risk of being consumed.
Tears streamed down her face.
Malachai's voice was gentle. "Now you see. To save Elias, you must be willing to face the darkness in both of you."
Emerging from the pool, Aurora felt changed—more fragile but also more resolute.
"Take me to him," she said.
Lucien led her back through twisting corridors of shadow and flame until they reached the chamber where Elias remained imprisoned.
But as Aurora approached, the cage of shadows pulsed with dark energy.
Elias stirred, his eyes flickering between pain and recognition.
"Aurora…" he whispered, voice ragged. "You shouldn't have come."
She reached for his hand, but the shadows hissed, recoiling.
The demon Asriel appeared once more, his grin wider, more menacing.
"Your resolve is impressive, mortal," he sneered. "But this is only the beginning. The curse feeds on your love, twisting it into chains."
Aurora clenched her jaw. "I will break those chains."
Asriel's eyes gleamed. "Then prepare for the final bargain. The pact is sealed only when the last price is paid."
Aurora's heart hammered. She had crossed into hell itself, faced horrors unimaginable, and now stood at the edge of a choice that would bind her forever.
Would she surrender her soul to save Elias, or watch the man she loved fade into eternal darkness?
The weight of the pact pressed down like a thousand storms.
Lucien whispered, "You are not alone. But time is short."
Aurora looked into Elias's eyes—so filled with sorrow, hope, and love.
She took a steady breath.
"I'm ready."