The blood ocean lapped at Lucien's body, its metallic scent filling his nostrils as he struggled to stay afloat.
Each breath sent shards of pain through his chest where at least three ribs had cracked on impact.
His right shoulder hung at an unnatural angle, dislocated and useless. Blood - both his own and that of the crimson sea - filled his mouth with its coppery taste.
Above him, Tezcatlipoca hovered like a malevolent god, obsidian mirrors embedded in his jaguar-headed form reflecting Lucien's broken body from a thousand angles.
Elena dangled from his grip, suspended by her hair, tears streaming down her face as she whimpered in pain.
"Did you think yourself the Honoured of the Heavens and Earth, boy? Did you think you could take on the gods, because of your psychic gift?" Tezcatlipoca's voice rumbled like distant thunder. "How... disappointing."
Lucien tried to summon the Force, to gather his power for another attack, but his concentration slipped away like water through fingers.
The overuse of Force lightning had burned through his muscles, leaving them trembling and weak. His head throbbed from the impact with the blood ocean, vision blurring around the edges.
One by one, the other gods rose from the crimson depths, their divine forms bearing the marks of Lucien's earlier assault.
Sekhmet's golden fur still smoked where lightning had struck, patches burned away to reveal raw flesh beneath.
Kali's four arms hung at odd angles, blue skin blistered and peeling.
Apophis's serpentine scales flaked away in patches, golden ichor seeping from countless wounds.
Hecate's triple faces were raw and burned, her black flames diminished to flickering embers.
Despite their injuries, they surrounded Tezcatlipoca in a circle of power, their eyes fixed on Lucien with cold hatred.
In the distance, Vader battled against an endless tide of blood demons. His lightsaber carved crimson arcs through their liquid forms, but for each one he destroyed, three more rose to take its place.
The dark figure was gradually being overwhelmed, pushed farther away by the sheer number of attackers.
'I can't win this,' Lucien thought, his consciousness beginning to slip. 'Maybe death isn't so bad. What's the point of fighting anymore?'
The thought was seductive in its simplicity. Just let go. Stop struggling. Accept the inevitable.
'But... where would I go? Heaven? Hell? Or would I become one of these monsters?'
As the thought formed, he felt something grab his legs beneath the blood. Looking down, Lucien saw hands - familiar hands - pulling at him.
Dean's face emerged from the crimson depths, features contorted in a demonic grin, eyes black and soulless.
Beside him, John's hollow-eyed visage stared accusingly.
Sam's fingers had elongated into claws that dug into Lucien's flesh.
Trevor's mouth was filled with needle-like teeth, snapping hungrily.
And Katherine... her beautiful face melted away to reveal something evil and terrible beneath.
Lucien's heart raced with primal fear - until Elena's scream cut through his hallucination.
Tezcatlipoca had tightened his grip on her hair, causing her to cry out in renewed agony. The sound triggered something deep within Lucien - rage, protectiveness, a determination that burned through his exhaustion like wildfire.
'No. Not like this.'
With a roar of defiance, Lucien kicked violently at the hallucinations, channeling what little Force energy he could muster into a powerful push that launched him from the blood ocean.
Blood streamed from his clothes as he rose, his dislocated shoulder screaming in protest as he forced his body to obey his will.
Tezcatlipoca watched with evident amusement as Lucien hovered unsteadily before him, swaying slightly in the air.
"What drives you to such futile resistance, little sacrifice?" the jaguar-headed god asked, head tilting in curiosity. "Is it merely the animal instinct for survival that all prey share?"
Lucien spat blood from his mouth, a crimson arc that dissipated before reaching the god. "A bit of that," he managed through gritted teeth, "a bit of this, and a whole lot of hatred for sons of bitches like you."
Tezcatlipoca's laughter echoed across the realm, the sound both beautiful and terrible. "Such spirit! It will make your breaking all the more satisfying."
Without warning, the god hurled Elena toward the distant giant hand. She screamed as she flew through the air, arms and legs flailing helplessly.
"ELENA!" Lucien cried, his body instinctively turning to pursue her.
The momentary distraction was all Tezcatlipoca needed. The god materialized before Lucien with insane speed, driving his knee into the boy's abdomen with great force.
The impact folded Lucien in half, air exploding from his lungs in a violent exhale as blood sprayed from his mouth.
Before he could recover, Tezcatlipoca seized him by the throat, holding him at arm's length.
"You will learn respect," the god growled, squeezing just enough to restrict Lucien's breathing without cutting it off completely. "You are nothing. Less than nothing. A brief flicker in the eternal darkness."
Despite the pain, despite the growing darkness at the edges of his vision, Lucien refused to submit.
He clawed at the god's arm with his good hand, kicked at his torso, attempted to channel Force lightning with his remaining strength. The energy sputtered weakly around his fingertips, barely enough to singe Tezcatlipoca's fur.
The god's eyes narrowed, frustration building as Lucien continued to struggle. "Why won't you accept your place? Your defeat is inevitable!"
With a surge of desperate strength, Lucien swung his legs up, planting his feet against Tezcatlipoca's chest for leverage. He pushed with everything he had left, simultaneously twisting to break the god's grip on his throat.
The maneuver worked - partially. Lucien broke free, but his awkward landing sent fresh waves of agony through his dislocated shoulder. He stumbled, barely maintaining his hover above the blood ocean.
Tezcatlipoca was on him again in an instant, fists and claws raining down in a flurry of strikes.
Lucien blocked what he could, the Force providing just enough enhancement to his reflexes to avoid the most devastating blows. But he was weakening rapidly, each movement slower than the last.
In a final, desperate move, Lucien gathered the last dregs of his strength and lunged forward, driving his fist directly into Tezcatlipoca's face. The punch connected with surprising force, snapping the god's head back.
For a moment, silence fell across the mirror realm. Even the distant sounds of battle seemed to fade as Tezcatlipoca slowly turned his gaze back to Lucien, golden eyes blazing with cold fury.
"You dare," the god whispered, the quiet more terrifying than any roar. "You dare strike a god?"
Before Lucien could react, Tezcatlipoca seized his left wrist in an iron grip. With deliberate slowness, the god raised Lucien's hand to his jaguar muzzle, examining it as one might a curious insect.
"This hand," Tezcatlipoca mused, "that dared to touch divinity... It offends me."
Lucien realized what was about to happen a split second before it did. He tried to pull away, but his strength was gone, his body betraying him in his moment of greatest need.
Tezcatlipoca's jaws opened wide, revealing rows of gleaming teeth. Then they snapped shut around Lucien's left hand.
The pain was beyond anything Lucien had ever experienced - a white-hot explosion that consumed his entire being.
He felt bones crunch, tendons tear, flesh rend as the god's teeth severed his hand at the wrist. A primal scream tore from his throat, echoing across the mirror realm as blood fountained from the stump.
Tezcatlipoca chewed deliberately, swallowing Lucien's hand with evident satisfaction. "Now you are truly marked as sacrifice," he said, blood dripping from his muzzle. "In every way."
------------------------
Katherine's hand remained buried in Skögul's chest, the Valkyrie's emerald armor cracked and blood pouring from the wound.
Despite her imminent death, Skögul began to laugh - a wet, gurgling sound that nonetheless carried triumphant malice.
"You've won nothing," the Valkyrie choked out, emerald eyes still gleaming with defiance. "This is far from over. With my failure... Dracula will come himself." Blood bubbled from her lips as she continued, "He'll burn this continent to ash to claim the boy."
"Let him try," Katherine snarled, twisting her hand before withdrawing it from Skögul's chest.
The Valkyrie's body collapsed to the ground, emerald light fading from her eyes. Katherine staggered back, her own body trembling with exhaustion.
She fell to her knees beside the corpse, wings hanging limply from her back, blood still streaming from numerous wounds that refused to heal properly.
Suddenly, a sharp pain lanced through her chest. Katherine gasped, eyes widening with horrified realization.
Through their blood bond and the contract, she could sense Lucien's life force weakening dramatically - flickering like a candle in a strong wind.
She turned toward Mystic Falls, attempting to stand but stumbling from fatigue.
Her rational mind assessed the situation with cold clarity: she was too weak to help, the overwhelming darkness enveloping the town was beyond anything she'd faced in centuries, and intervention would likely result in her death.
The logical choice was clear - flee, abandon Lucien, escape the continent before Dracula arrived.
It was what she'd always done.
Survival at any cost. It was how she'd lived for five hundred years.
Yet as she considered leaving, an unexpected ache gripped her chest - far more intense than her physical injuries.
A hysterical laugh bubbled up from her throat, growing in volume until it echoed through the night.
"Five hundred years," she said aloud to herself, voice cracking. "Five centuries of running, and I choose now to make a stand? For a kid?" She laughed again, the sound edged with something like wonder. "I truly have lost my mind."
Images of Lucien flashed through her mind - his intelligence, his kindness despite his circumstances, the way his presence made everything around him feel brighter and safer.
For the first time in centuries, Katherine had felt... at peace.
Protected. Not because Lucien actively shielded her from harm, but because his very existence promised something better than eternal running.
"I meant it," she muttered, speaking to the night air. "I meant my promise to open my heart to him." Her hand pressed against her chest, feeling the unfamiliar ache there.
She stood there for a long moment in silence, the winding passing by her, causing her hair to move freely in the breeze, just... thinking.
"Love... I promised to open my heart, and well... It seems this is what I get for it."
Suddenly, Katherine reached for Skögul's divine sword, still embedded in the ground where it had fallen. The weapon hummed with power as her fingers closed around the hilt, recognizing her as its new wielder by right of combat.
"Hold on, little god," she whispered, dragging herself toward Mystic Falls. "I'm coming."
-----------------------
Elena hurtled through the air, wind whipping past her as she flew toward the giant hand. Terror gripped her heart, certain death awaiting at the end of her trajectory.
Then, inexplicably, her fall slowed. Her body gently descended to the palm of the giant hand, landing with barely a sound.
Standing before her was her father, Grayson Gilbert, still locked in visible struggle with the skeletal form of Ah Puch.
Veins bulged in his neck, face contorted with effort as he fought against the possession. The skeletal shadow flickered and wavered, sometimes merging with Grayson's form, sometimes appearing as a separate entity looming behind him.
"Dad!" Elena cried, scrambling to her feet and running toward him.
"Elena, no!" Grayson gasped, raising a trembling hand to ward her off. "Run! Get away from me! I can't... I can't hold him much longer."
"I'm not leaving you!" Elena reached him, grabbing his outstretched hand. Tears streamed down her face as she looked into his tortured eyes. "Fight him, Dad! You can do it!"
"He's too strong," Grayson moaned, his body shuddering with the effort of resistance. "I've been fighting him for so long... I'm tired, Elena. So tired."
"Please Dad!" Elena begged, clutching his hand tighter. "I need you! I love you! You have to keep fighting! I'm scared! I don't know what to do, please Daddy!"
After a long moment of silence that only Elena's sobs broke, something... shifted in Grayson's expression - the tension easing, his features softening.
Tears welled in his eyes as they focused on her face with recognition.
"Elena," he whispered, his voice his own again, the shadow disappearing.
Relief flooded through her. "Dad! You did it! You fought him off!"
Grayson's lips curved into a smile, his hand reaching up to touch her cheek tenderly. "My beautiful daughter," he murmured.
Then pain exploded in Elena's abdomen - sharp, burning agony that stole her breath. She looked down in shock to see her father's other hand holding a bone dagger, now buried to the hilt in her stomach.
Grayson's smile widened, transforming into something cruel and alien. His eyes darkened, the last traces of humanity draining away as Ah Puch took complete control.
"Was my performance convincing?" the god asked, using Grayson's voice but inflecting it with malice. "Your father is still in here, watching everything. It took considerable persuasion, but he eventually... saw the benefits of our arrangement."
"Daddy?" Elena whispered, her voice small and broken as she collapsed, blood spreading across her dress. Her hand reached up toward him, fingers trembling.
Ah Puch looked down at her with cold amusement. "The sacrifice requires what you love most," he explained casually. "Your father chose power over you. In the end, he was too weak to resist they all are. After all, what is one daughter? We can always start again. Make other kids."
Lucien suddenly crashed onto the giant hand, Tezcatlipoca landing atop him with crushing force. The god's knee pressed between his shoulder blades, grinding his face against the surface. Blood poured from the stump of his left wrist, forming a growing puddle beneath him.
With his head turned sideways, Lucien had a clear view of Elena lying just feet away, blood spreading from the wound in her abdomen. Her eyes met his, filled with pain and fading awareness.
"ELENA!" he screamed, struggling despite his grievous injuries. The effort sent fresh waves of agony through his body, but he didn't care. Nothing mattered except reaching her - saving the innocent little girl he had fought so long for.
Tezcatlipoca increased the pressure, forcing Lucien's face harder against the hand's surface. "Watch, little sacrifice," the god commanded, voice thick with satisfaction. "Watch as she dies. The ritual nears completion."
The four other gods landed in a circle around them, their laughter mingling with Lucien's desperate cries. He could feel Elena's life force weakening by the second, slipping away like water through cupped hands.
With her remaining strength, Elena turned her head toward him. "I'm sorry... Lucien," she whispered, tears mixing with blood on her pale face. "This is... my fault. I'm so... sorry..."
Her eyes lost focus, glazing over as her final breath left her body. Lucien felt the exact moment her life extinguished, a candle snuffed out in a dark room.
Something broke inside him then - something fundamental and irreplaceable. Tears streamed down his face as he went limp beneath Tezcatlipoca's weight, the will to fight draining from him like blood from his severed wrist.
The giant hand began to move, fingers slowly curling inward as if grasping for the bloated red sun above. The mirror realm trembled with growing power, the ritual reaching its culmination.
"The sacrifice is complete," Tezcatlipoca declared, triumph resonating in every syllable. "Our ascension begins."
Then the impossible happened.
The blood-red sun above the mirror realm suddenly fractured, cracks spreading across its surface like spiderwebs on glass. The gods looked up in confusion as the sun shattered completely, fragments dissolving into the sickly yellow sky.
From the broken sun, a figure descended - wings spread wide, sword clutched in bloodied hands. Katherine Pierce plummeted toward them like an avenging angel, her face a mask of determined fury.
"GET AWAY FROM HIM!" she screamed, the divine sword in her hands glowing with emerald fire.
Tezcatlipoca had just enough time to look up before Katherine struck, driving Skögul's blade deep into his chest. Golden ichor sprayed from the wound, splattering across Katherine's face and arms.
The god roared in pain and rage, his jaws snapping reflexively. They closed around Katherine's wrist with crushing force, bones shattering beneath his teeth.
She screamed but didn't hesitate, using her momentum to kick Tezcatlipoca away from Lucien with enough force to dislodge the god from his position.
Despite her own grievous injury, Katherine immediately scooped up both Lucien and Elena's body with her one good arm. Her wings beat frantically as she rose into the air, carrying her double burden.
The gods moved to pursue, but Tezcatlipoca halted them with a raised hand, golden ichor still streaming from the wound in his chest.
"Let them go," he commanded, his voice carrying an undercurrent of dark amusement despite his pain.
As Katherine fled with her precious cargo, Tezcatlipoca's began laughing.
His laughter followed them - a sound that seemed to come from everywhere at once.
"You bear our mark, boy!" the god called after them. "Branded as sacrifice, cursed until death! Monsters will never let you know peace!"
Katherine pushed herself to her limits, wings straining as she carried Lucien and Elena through the mirror realm.
The boundary between worlds appeared ahead - a shimmering distortion in reality that promised escape.
With a final surge of effort, Katherine broke through.
---------------------------
(Author note: Hello everyone! I hope you all liked the chapter!
Do tell me how you found it.
So... Elena is... dead?
Is she really? If so, is it... permanent?
(Honestly those who read my comments and have read my wording of Elena's appearance for the first couple times in this fic already know the answer to that.)
Find out next time in- oh wrong thing.
Find out in the coming chapter.
I hope to see you all later,
Bye!)