Chapter 28 — When Healing Stops
Avni noticed it while running, not because of pain, but because of the absence of it. The deep wound on her side from earlier, the one that had burned and throbbed as she screamed, had slowly closed over hours. The skin had pulled together, leaving only a faint mark. Her breathing was still heavy, her legs still moving on instinct, but the injury itself was gone. She remembered the small scratches from branches in the forest, the cuts from sharp plants, how they had disappeared after eating the crystal apple. This had to be the same thing. The relic and the apple were still working inside her body, fixing damage before it could break her down. But the relief did not last long, because even as her wound healed, the Worm King was still there, still chasing them without rest. Hours passed. Then more. The only reason they were still alive was not because they were stronger, but because the cave was broken and uneven, full of turns, slopes, and sudden drops. The Worm King was huge and fast, but it had to slow down at every obstacle. Avni understood something frightening then. If this cave were straight, if the path were clear, they would have been dead long ago. The relic was not saving them. It was only delaying death.
Time lost meaning inside the cave. Light never changed. Darkness stayed the same. They kept running until Avni felt like she had been moving forever. One full day passed, maybe more, and the cave did not end. Her legs moved without asking permission from her mind. Her body worked with strange efficiency, using almost no energy, wasting nothing, just like Gaurav had said earlier. But fear did not follow the same rules. Fear grew faster. Her thoughts became heavy, slow, repeating the same question again and again. How long can this last? At some point, Vansh turned his head while running and shouted toward Nitya, his voice tight and sharp.
"We cannot run like this our whole life. We have to do something."
The words hit Nitya harder than she expected. She already knew this, but hearing it out loud forced the truth into the open. Running was not a plan. It was avoidance. And avoidance always ended badly. Before she could answer, a sudden scream cut through the cave. Avni screamed as something slammed into her shoulder. She felt the impact before she felt the pain. Her body spun, crashed into stone, and rolled hard. A deep cut opened across her shoulder, warm blood soaking her clothes. Adrenaline exploded inside her. She pushed herself up and ran again, teeth clenched, telling herself it would heal like before. Seconds passed. Then more. The wound burned. The blood kept flowing. It did not close. Her heart sank.
"It's not healing," she gasped, half to herself.
The realization spread quickly through the group like poison. The power had limits. The healing was not endless. Whatever the crystal apple and relic had given them was fading, weakening with time. The Worm King had not slowed. They had. That was the first irreversible truth. They were no longer escaping danger. They were being hunted.
The cave split again ahead, the ground breaking into two different paths. Nitya did not hesitate, because hesitation would have killed them faster. She turned sharply and shouted for Vansh and Avni to take the narrower path on the right. The wider tunnel stretched ahead of her and Gaurav. She knew what she was doing. The narrow path would slow the Worm King. The wider one would not. She chose to draw it away. It was the right reason. Protect the injured. Give them a chance. But it was the wrong choice, and she felt that deep in her chest the moment she made it. Once the group split, there was no guarantee they would ever come back together.
Vansh looked at her, understanding clear in his eyes. He opened his mouth to argue, but Avni pulled him forward, fear and pain pushing her faster. They disappeared into the narrow tunnel. The sound of their footsteps faded. Nitya felt something tear inside her, something quiet but permanent. Leadership had always meant protecting others. Now it meant choosing who faced death first. Gaurav stayed close behind her, breathing harder now, his efficiency slipping. He could feel it. The relic was no longer carrying him the way it had before. His thoughts grew darker. He thought about the apple, about how easily they had accepted its gift, how quickly relief had replaced caution. Maybe this was the cost. Maybe the apple had not healed them freely. Maybe it had marked them.
The wider tunnel shook as the Worm King followed. Its hundreds of legs moved faster here, slamming into stone, closing the distance. Dust filled the air. The sound of it was everywhere, behind them, above them, inside their heads. Gaurav's lungs burned now. His body was still strong, still controlled, but not endless. He understood something he had avoided before. Power did not mean safety. It only changed how long you could suffer before breaking.
The tunnel ahead collapsed suddenly, broken stone blocking the path. Nitya and Gaurav skidded to a stop. There was nowhere left to run. The Worm King filled the space behind them, its red eyes burning brighter, its body pressing forward, sealing the tunnel with its presence. The cave felt smaller, tighter, like it was closing its hands around them. Nitya stood still. She did not look back at Gaurav. She did not need to. She already knew what he felt. Fear. Trust. Acceptance. This was the end of running. Whatever happened next would not be undone.
Nitya reached into her pocket and pulled out a small stick, slightly longer than a pen, smooth and dark, with a small switch at one end. She pressed it. The stick extended instantly, unfolding into a long poleaxe, its blade sharp and heavy, its weight familiar in her hands. She sat down on the ground, calm in a way that scared Gaurav more than panic ever could. The Worm King opened its mouth wide as it lunged forward, confident, unstoppable. Nitya moved at the last possible second. She drove the poleaxe straight into its mouth with everything she had. The weapon pierced deep, crushing through flesh and bone, tearing through its inner brain, and burst out from the upper skull. The Worm King thrashed violently, its body smashing against the tunnel walls, its roar shaking the cave. Minutes passed. Then silence. The massive body collapsed and slowly faded away, leaving behind a single white relic on the ground.
Nitya stood, breathing slowly, and picked up the relic. She removed her gloves and touched it with her bare hand. Power flooded her instantly, similar to before, but far stronger, more refined, more dangerous. Gaurav watched her in silence, fear and awe mixing in his chest. In that moment, he made a decision he would never say out loud. He would never fight against his sister. Not now. Not ever.
They walked back toward the cave entrance in silence. It took them almost three days. Time passed strangely. When they finally reached the entrance, Vansh and Avni were there, waiting, exhausted but alive. Nitya asked Avni about her wound.
"It hasn't healed much," Avni said quietly. "But it stopped bleeding. It's healing slowly."
They walked together toward the Horizon, talking about how they had killed the Vestige, pretending that words could make sense of what they had survived.
Inside the Horizon, far away from the cave, Aarav stepped out of the Threshold Trial Practice Chamber, his body shaking with exhaustion. He leaned against the wall, waiting for his score to appear. The machine took longer than usual. Finally, the number stopped at 20.9. Aarav smiled for a second. Then the smile faded. Only a 0.4 increase. Progress existed. But it was slow. And time, he knew now, was not patient.