The old cathedral had been abandoned for twenty years. Before that, it had been a temple to some forgotten deity. Now it was just stone and shadows and the ghosts of old prayers.
Marcus was waiting inside, as promised. No guards, no cultists—just him, standing in the center of the ruined nave beneath a collapsed ceiling that let moonlight stream through.
"You came," he said, sounding genuinely pleased. "I wasn't certain you would."
"We're not here to join you," Kaelen said immediately, Soulrender ready. "We're here for information. That's all."
"Information is how all conversions begin," Marcus replied. "But I'll accept your terms. You want to understand how I've maintained my sanity despite decades of corruption. Fair question. Let me show you."
He drew Hearteater, and immediately Kaelen felt the ambient shadow energy in the cathedral spike. Marcus was channeling serious power—the kind that should be adding Shadow Scars by the second.
"Watch carefully," Marcus said.
He performed a series of movements that looked almost like a dance—blade work combined with specific footwork, breathing patterns, and what appeared to be runic gestures. Shadow energy flowed through him, visible as dark currents beneath his skin.
But instead of sinking into his body and forming Scars, the energy... redirected. Flowed through him and out again, grounding into the stone floor.
"It's called the Corruption Cycle," Marcus explained while continuing the movements. "You channel shadow magic through your body but don't let it pool. Constant motion, constant flow, using yourself as a conduit rather than a container. The Scars still form—you can't avoid that—but they form much more slowly."
He stopped, sheathed Hearteater, and the energy dispersed.
"That's the basic technique," Marcus said. "There are more advanced variations, but the principle is the same. Don't fight the corruption—redirect it."
Lia stepped forward, her analytical mind already working. "That shouldn't be possible. Shadow corruption attaches to living tissue at a cellular level. You can't just 'flow it through' like water."
"You can if you understand the underlying mechanics," Marcus replied. "Shadow magic isn't actually magical at all—it's a form of energy that operates on frequencies similar to life force. When properly resonated, they can coexist without permanent bonding. It's physics, not mysticism."
"Then why isn't this common knowledge?" Kaelen demanded. "Why do all the histories say Forbidden Blade wielders go insane?"
"Because the technique is difficult to learn and easy to get wrong," Marcus said. "Most wielders try to master it under combat conditions, make mistakes, and die. The few who succeed typically keep the knowledge secret to maintain competitive advantage. I learned it from someone who learned it from someone else, passed down through generations of shadow mages."
He gestured to Kaelen. "Try it. Channel shadow energy without using Soulrender—just your own connection. I'll guide you through the movements."
Kaelen hesitated. This could be manipulation, could be a trick to make him vulnerable.
But Lia nodded slightly. *Try it. I'll watch for deception.*
Kaelen called up shadow energy from his own reserves, felt it gathering in his chest. Usually he'd channel it through Soulrender or use it for tendrils. This time, he just held it.
"Now move," Marcus instructed. "Step forward with your left foot, rotate your torso, extend your right arm. Not combat movements—energy movements. You're creating a current through your body."
Kaelen followed the instructions. It felt awkward, unnatural.
"Breathe," Marcus said. "Three counts in, hold for two, four counts out. Match the breathing to the movement. The rhythm is what creates the flow."
Kaelen tried to match the pattern. Breathe, move, channel. The shadow energy shifted, started to circulate rather than pool.
It worked.
Not perfectly—he could feel some energy still adhering to his tissue, still forming micro-Scars. But significantly less than usual. Maybe twenty percent of normal corruption rate.
"That's it," Marcus said. "You're getting it. Practice that pattern daily, and your Scar accumulation will slow dramatically. Add the advanced variations, and you can maintain indefinitely."
Kaelen stopped, letting the energy dissipate. His arm showed one new Shadow Scar where normally that much channeling would have produced three or four.
It was real. The technique actually worked.
"Why show me this?" Kaelen asked. "What do you gain?"
"Your trust," Marcus said simply. "I'm not your enemy, Kaelen. I'm someone trying to fix a broken system using the only tools available. Yes, I want to release the Shadow Lord. But not for destruction—for transformation. The Lord's return will tear down corrupt institutions and create space for better ones. People will die—that's inevitable during any major change—but fewer people than will die if we maintain the current trajectory."
"That's utilitarianism," Lia said. "Kill thousands to maybe save millions. Except you can't actually guarantee the outcome. What if releasing the Shadow Lord just causes endless destruction with no positive results?"
"Then we were wrong, and history will judge us accordingly," Marcus replied. "But maintaining the status quo guarantees endless suffering through institutional corruption, magical suppression, and cycles of warfare. I'm choosing the option with potential for improvement over guaranteed stagnation."
It was the same argument as before, but somehow more compelling when Marcus wasn't actively trying to kill them.
"Let me show you something else," Marcus said. He walked to a wall covered in old religious carvings and pressed a hidden mechanism. A section of wall slid aside, revealing a chamber beyond.
Kaelen and Lia exchanged glances but followed.
The hidden chamber was filled with research materials—books, journals, magical instruments, dozens of runic diagrams covering the walls. But what caught Kaelen's attention was the people.
Three individuals sat in meditation poses, all showing advanced Shadow Scars, all performing the energy-cycling technique Marcus had demonstrated. They looked calm, focused, completely in control despite corruption levels that should have driven them insane.
"These are some of my senior students," Marcus explained. "Each has wielded shadow magic for over a decade. Each maintains perfect mental clarity through proper technique. This is what I'm offering you—not corruption and madness, but mastery and control."
One of the students opened their eyes. A young woman, maybe twenty-five, with Scars covering her entire visible body.
"Master Marcus," she said, her voice perfectly steady. "Are these the new recruits?"
"Potentially," Marcus replied. "Kaelen, Lia—this is Elena. She's wielded a Forbidden Blade fragment for fourteen years."
Fourteen years. Kaelen had barely survived one month.
"It's real," Elena said, apparently reading his doubt. "The technique works. I should have lost my humanity a decade ago. Instead, I'm more myself than ever. No madness, no personality changes, no emotional flattening. Just power and control."
"And all it cost was joining a cult dedicated to releasing an ancient evil," Kaelen said.
"I joined a movement dedicated to positive change," Elena corrected. "We're not evil—we're pragmatic. Yes, the Shadow Lord's return will cause disruption. But that disruption creates opportunity for systematic improvement. You've seen how corrupt the current kingdoms are. Isn't change worth some cost?"
"Not if the cost is millions of innocent lives," Lia said.
"How many millions die under current systems?" another student asked. This one was older, maybe forty, with equally extensive Scarring. "Wars, poverty, magical accidents, persecution of shadow mages. The body count is already astronomical. We're just proposing a different distribution of suffering."
It was persuasive. Terrifyingly persuasive.
Because they weren't wrong about the current system's problems. Kaelen had seen the corruption, the inequality, the casual cruelty of kingdoms that claimed civilization.
But releasing the Shadow Lord wasn't the answer. Couldn't be the answer.
Could it?
"I can see you're conflicted," Marcus said gently. "That's good. Conflicted means you're thinking rather than just reacting. So here's my final offer: Stay. Study with us for one week. Learn the techniques, understand our goals, see our research. After that, make an informed decision about joining. If you still refuse, I'll let you leave. No ambush, no betrayal. You have my word."
"Your word," Kaelen repeated skeptically.
"Yes. My word." Marcus met his eyes directly. "I'm many things, Kaelen. Ruthless, willing to sacrifice for the greater good, arguably a terrorist by most definitions. But I'm not a liar. When I give my word, I keep it. Stay for one week, then choose freely."
It was a trap. Obviously a trap. A week of persuasion and indoctrination and carefully constructed arguments to break down their resistance.
But it was also an opportunity. To learn techniques they desperately needed. To understand Marcus's operation from the inside. To potentially find weaknesses they could exploit later.
"We need to discuss this privately," Kaelen said.
"Of course," Marcus replied. "Take your time. I'll be in the main cathedral when you decide."
He left them in the research chamber with the three meditating students.
Kaelen pulled Lia aside, spoke in the lowest whisper possible.
"This is insane," he said. "We can't actually stay."
"Can't we?" Lia whispered back. "Kaelen, I've analyzed his technique. It's real. The energy cycling actually works. We could solve our corruption problems."
"At the cost of joining his cult."
"He said we can leave after a week."
"He also said he'd let us live at the warehouse, then ambushed us," Kaelen reminded her. "He's not trustworthy."
"But the technique is real," Lia insisted. "I watched you perform it. Saw the reduction in Scar formation. This could save both our lives."
"If he teaches us the full technique," Kaelen said. "Which he won't do unless we actually commit to joining him."
"Then we pretend to commit," Lia suggested. "Learn what we can, then betray him and escape."
"You think he hasn't considered that? This is probably his plan—get us close, make us dependent on his teachings, slowly convert us for real."
"Maybe. Or maybe we're smart enough to resist." Lia looked at her darkened arms, at the echo-scars spreading toward permanent damage. "What choice do we have? We're dying. Both of us. If there's even a chance this works..."
She was right. They were dying.
But joining Marcus—even temporarily, even as deception—felt like crossing a line they couldn't uncross.
"One week," Kaelen said finally. "We stay for one week, learn everything we can, then make our decision. But we stay ready to fight our way out at any moment. And we don't—under any circumstances—participate in anything that helps him release the Shadow Lord. Information only. No action."
"Agreed," Lia said.
They returned to the main cathedral where Marcus waited.
"We'll stay," Kaelen said. "One week. Then we decide."
Marcus smiled. "Excellent. Your chambers are prepared—I was optimistic about your choice. Elena will show you to them and provide initial instruction schedules. Welcome to the Convergence Movement, Kaelen and Lia. I think you'll find it enlightening."
As Elena led them deeper into the cathedral complex, Kaelen caught Lia's eye.
*What have we done?* his expression asked.
*What we had to,* hers replied.
They were inside the enemy's stronghold now. Learning from the man trying to end the world.
Either they'd gain the knowledge to defeat him.
Or they'd become what they'd been fighting against.
Only time would tell which.