Chapter 49 (Part 02)
The chamber trembled like a living thing. Dust and shards of stone floated in the heavy air, suspended by an unseen pulse that vibrated through Alok's chains and into his bones. Jong hung bound in golden light, but the Wordsal magic still throbbed in his veins raw, volatile, unpredictable.
Alok's chest rose and fell sharply. Each breath synced with the pendant's pulse, the golden crystal on his chest glowing with an intensity that painted the stone walls in streaks of molten fire. Threads of energy coiled outward from the chains, wrapping around his arms like serpents alive with thought and purpose.
Then… the whisper came.
"Alok…"
Soft. Almost teasing. Not angry. Not kind. But it resonated deep within his soul, vibrating through the labyrinth itself. The pendant's golden light flared in response, wrapping around him like a protective shroud.
Alok narrowed his eyes. "Who's there? Show yourself!"
From the radiance emerged a projection, woven of shadows and molten light. Twin embers glowed where eyes should be molten gold that burned with intelligence, hunger, and amusement.
"Extera…" Alok breathed.
"Yes," the shadow replied, its voice curling around the air like a dark melody. "Did you think I had vanished? No, Alok. I've been waiting watching your every step. Waiting for you to grow… strong enough to face me."
The pendant's light flared violently, golden tendrils snaking along the chains. Alok felt it pulsing not just with power, but with awareness, almost like the labyrinth itself had bent its will to the trial.
"What do you want?" Alok demanded, voice steady, muscles tense. "Another trick? Another test?"
Extera's smirk deepened. "I want what I've always wanted… power. Freedom. Perhaps… a taste of revenge. That trinket you hold," the pendant pulsed, thrumming violently
"contains a fragment capable of elevating me beyond anything you can imagine."
Alok's jaw tightened. "You'll never take it. Not now. Not ever."
The shadow laughed, low and melodic, a sound that danced across stone and shadow alike. "Ah… that's why this is interesting. You are clever. Determined. Strong. But every will can bend… every chain has a breaking point. Every heart has a weakness."
A pulse surged from the pendant, golden energy spilling across the chamber. Jong twitched violently in his suspended cage, wings flaring erratically, scales shifting through impossible colors violet, gold, black burning with Wordsal corruption.
A single word rang out, ancient and devastating:
"Sedfxsooinko…"
It struck the chamber like a hammer of unseen weight. Golden-black energy spiraled through Jong, wrapping his claws, wings, and very essence. The Wordsal magic twisted, amplified, reshaping him into something feral and uncontrollable.
Jong's roar shattered the stillness, reverberating off the walls, sending sparks and dust raining like fire from a dying star.
Alok's chains reacted instinctively, coiling, snapping, shielding, but the rampage of Wordsal energy defied simple control. The chamber seemed to bend, the stone itself quivering as if sentient.
"Rihan," Alok shouted, eyes darting along the glyphs etched faintly into the labyrinth walls. "Look! The word… sedfxsooinko. Remember this word hmm..... it's Wordsal magic. It's… controlling him!"
Rihan's sword gleamed, eyes wide with awe. "The Word… here? In the walls too?"
Alok nodded. "Extera has amplified it. We need to sync with its rhythm… bend it to survive."
The chamber darkened further, shadows stretching unnaturally as Jong tore free, wings unfurling into a storm of molten light. Each step cracked stone beneath him; every claw carved arcs of destruction through the air.
"Brace yourselves," Alok growled, chains whipping into position. "We ride the Word now. Its chaos is ours to command."
Rihan's eyes burned with adrenaline. "I've faced monsters, Alok… but nothing like this."
Alok felt the labyrinth's heartbeat in his own, pendant and chains singing in resonance. He realized this was no longer a battle of strength. It was rhythm, timing, understanding… mastery.
Every heartbeat, every choice… every chain… shapes destiny itself.
The Wordsal had not yet ended. It had only begun.
And at that moment, Alok understood: the labyrinth had never been about victory or defeat. It had been about survival, growth… and facing a force that could twist fate itself.
The battle for control of Wordsal had begun.