The Architects' trial had become a theater of war. Reality bent and shattered, folding battlefield over battlefield, as though the galaxy itself had been torn apart and stitched into a single arena. Oceans boiled next to deserts of glass. Cities collapsed into infinite skies. And through it all, the voice of the Seed whispered in Lyra's mind, pulling her closer to surrender.
Kaelen vs Seris
Kaelen fought like a man possessed. His phaseblade blazed, carving arcs of light through the drowned ruins. Seris Dhal met him strike for strike, his glaive dragging gravity itself with every swing. Buildings collapsed into whirlpools around them, drawn by the crushing pull of Seris's weapon.
"You cannot protect her," Seris said, his voice flat, unwavering. He pressed forward, relentless. "Every heartbeat you waste against me is another heartbeat closer to her death."
Kaelen's teeth clenched, his ribs burning with every breath. "You're wrong," he growled, forcing the glaive aside. "Because if I fall, she falls. And I'll burn this whole trial before I let that happen."
The clash detonated again, shockwaves bending the sea into towering spirals.
Lyra vs Herself
On the fractured platform above, Lyra's true enemy was not Kaelith nor Althira, but the storm inside her. The Seed's voices surged, each one seductive in its own way.
Embrace me, one whispered. Together we will burn the predators to ash.
Yield, another crooned. Your suffering ends if you simply surrender.
Each whisper was layered with the tones of Seris, Althira, Kaelith—the Seed reflecting their desires into her mind.
Lyra pressed her hands to her head, light spilling between her fingers. Her body was trembling, flickering, as if she was already vanishing. "No… I am not your vessel—I am me!"
The Seed pulsed violently, testing her defiance.
Althira vs Kaelith
Steel clashed against fire as Althira Venn danced around the molten titan. Her blade cut clean lines across his armor, sparks and lava spraying with each strike. But Kaelith was a storm of fury, his hammer crashing down with enough force to rupture the void itself.
"You think your tricks can wound me, shadow?" Kaelith bellowed, swinging wide. "I am eternal flame!"
"And flame can be smothered," Althira answered coolly, sliding past his strike. Her blade flashed, slicing across his throat. Lava spewed like blood, yet Kaelith only roared louder, his molten flesh knitting together in defiance.
Their battle tore the platform apart, fragments of stone and molten glass raining into the sea below. And at the center of it all knelt Lyra, barely clinging to herself as the world shattered around her.
Convergence
Kaelen slammed Seris back with a desperate strike, chest heaving. He looked up through the storm and saw Lyra collapsing to her knees, her glow dimming.
"LYRA!"
His cry carried through the chaos, reaching her ears—reaching her heart. For one heartbeat, the whispers inside her faltered. For one heartbeat, she remembered herself.
But Seris surged forward again, blade poised for the killing strike.
And at that same instant, Kaelith's hammer came down, Althira's blade slashed upward, and Lyra screamed as the Seed tore through her veins.
The trial was no longer about judgment.
It was about survival.
And survival demanded blood.