The library's secret chamber now felt like a prison to Morgana. The truth, instead of freeing her, had chained her to a past of deceit and a fury that threatened to consume her. Merlin, the man she had loved and admired, the wizard who had guided her to Camelot, was the architect of her pain, the thief of her destiny. Dracula, the supposed Punisher, her silent accomplice.
"I can't stay here," Morgana murmured, feeling the dark, real magic seething beneath her skin. It wasn't the borrowed Chaos magic that had corrupted Eleonora, but something innate, ancient, tied to her Pendragon lineage, now twisted by decades of suppression and the bitterness of discovery. Shadows danced in the corners of her vision, whispering promises of power and revenge.
Ignoring Merlin's pleas and Dracula's watchful gaze, Morgana turned and left the chamber. Her stride was firm, regal, each movement imbued with a new and dangerous authority. She strode through the halls of Umbria, indifferent to the stares of students and teachers. She no longer belonged here, to that world of domesticated magic and rules imposed by those who had betrayed her.
She needed an ally. Someone who understood her rage, who shared her contempt for the order established by Merlin and his followers. Someone powerful enough to help her reclaim what had been stolen from her. And there was only one option: Eleonora, or as she now called herself, Nyx, the Queen of Eternal Night.
Focusing her newly awakened magic, Morgana tore at the fabric of reality, opening an unstable portal that smelled of sulfur and darkness. She didn't know exactly where it would lead, but she felt the call of a power similar to her own, a dark resonance from the depths of the earth. She stepped through the portal without hesitation.
She emerged into the vast cavern of the subterranean kingdom. The air was heavy, charged with the energy of Chaos and the oppressive presence of Poimandres. Facing her, on the obsidian throne of the sixteenth castle, sat Nyx, her Moon Elf form corrupted, her red eyes glowing with cold intelligence. At her feet, Eldrin and the enslaved elves stared at her with hollow eyes. Poimandres, a silhouette of shadow and fire, coiled around the throne.
Nyx raised an eyebrow at Morgana. "And who are you, who dares to barge into my kingdom?" she asked, her voice soft but with a steely edge.
"I am Morgana Le Fay," Morgana replied, her voice resonating with a power that rattled the air. "Rightful heir to Camelot, betrayed and stripped by Merlin."
Nyx smiled, a smile devoid of warmth. "I've heard of you. The wayward student, the unstable sorceress. What brings you to my domain, Morgana? Do you seek refuge from your former masters?"
"I seek an alliance," Morgana said, approaching the throne. "Merlin didn't just steal my throne and suppress my magic. He manipulated my life, my destiny, even my heart."
Nyx's red eyes narrowed. "My heart?"
"Yes," Morgana said, and for a moment, the fury on her face was replaced by genuine pain. "There was a man... Lancelot. The noblest knight in Camelot. I loved him, or thought I did. But Merlin had already woven his web. He manipulated Arthur into marrying Guinevere—a political union, nothing more. But Lancelot, loyal Lancelot, fell in love with the forbidden queen."
Morgana clenched her fists. "Merlin orchestrated it all. He created that sham marriage, knowing it would destroy Lancelot, Guinevere, Arthur... and me. He cast me aside, ignored, while the man I could have loved was consumed by an impossible passion, all because of Merlin's machinations to ensure the reign of his puppet king."
"He plays god," Morgana continued, her voice thick with venom. "He manipulates lives, rewrites destinies, all in the name of a supposed 'greater good.' He used us all, Eleonora. You, me, Arthur, Lancelot, Guinevere... we are pawns on his grand chessboard."
Nyx listened intently, a spark of interest in her red eyes. Morgana's story, the mixture of wounded ambition and broken heart, resonated with her own experience of betrayal and manipulation. Poimandres hissed softly, as if approving of Morgana's words.
"And now," Morgana said, regaining her regal composure, "Merlin prepares to use the Keys of Solomon. He believes he can harness a power he barely understands—a power that could destroy us all."
"The Keys..." Nyx murmured. "Dangerous knowledge, indeed."
"You and I, Nyx," Morgana said, looking directly at the Dark Queen, "are more powerful than Merlin ever imagined. He underestimated us. He feared us. Together, we can destroy him. We can destroy Umbria. We can reclaim the power that is ours."
Morgana extended a hand, her fingers surrounded by dancing shadows. "Join me, Queen of the Eternal Night. Let us combine my royal blood and ancient magic with your mastery of
Chaos and the power of Poimandres. Together, we will be unstoppable. We will rule not only this underground realm, but also the surface world. We will create a new order, an order where we will dictate the rules."
Nyx looked at Morgana's outstretched hand, then at Poimandres, who nodded almost imperceptibly. A slow, calculating smile touched Nyx's lips.
"An interesting offer, Morgana Le Fay," she said. "An alliance forged in betrayal and revenge. I like it."
Nyx took Morgana's hand. A dark pact was sealed in the depths of the earth. Two of the most powerful sorceresses in history, consumed by darkness and ambition, united against a common enemy.
The threat to Umbria and the world had just multiplied exponentially. The Queen of Eternal Night and the Rightful Queen of Camelot, backed by a Primordial Dragon and an army of corrupted elves, were preparing to unleash a storm the likes of which had never been seen before. Morgana's reflection had ended, replaced by cold resolve and an unquenchable thirst for power.