Cel gasped - a desperate, rattling inhale that should have drowned in blood.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ13QAId56et
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU4uF1GEnJ6
But his lungs filled cleanly. No wet gurgle. No spike tearing through muscle and bone with each breath.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFZjrrxdUSk
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlpJSXa0IWf
His eyes snapped open.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxGohNhI1Et
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡllNy13vwNt
Swirling mist. Silver moonlight washing over broken ground.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR8vROPsthw
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnvbdCRpFvJ
His soul's landscape.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf61OCvQdwy
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUlwr6SiL4F
The realization hit a second later, followed immediately by his hands - flying to his chest, fingers scrabbling across skin that should have been torn open, searching for the wound that had killed him.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw75sGDrd2L
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡojKhjQXtDU
Nothing.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF9LShwg935
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfi4VNco1vy
The burns covering his arms - gone. The cuts from crystal edges - gone. Even the impaled hand he'd used to anchor himself through the furnace heat had healed completely, leaving no trace it had ever been destroyed.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡngpeqnq5Yh
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQx0H2liXyo
But the memory remained sharp as the crystals themselves.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8VZt4akAgW
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1ZVdbcVXrR
His fingers curled against his chest, nails digging into unblemished skin hard enough to hurt - just to feel something real, something that proved this wasn't another illusion.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNJXyyPFLQm
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCYgcVNT5ca
His breath slowed. Steadied.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHxWTFK2DPj
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdoTmpjnuts
'Over. It's over.'166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKrkflSfIQx
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYjO3dzoRQy
The thought felt hollow. Distant. Wrong, somehow - too simple for what he'd just endured.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDTSluucPtz
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOE4QJNWuIZ
He'd survived.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYcE1lSPlVv
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDEFk59YHFx
Cel's gaze drifted upward to the moon hanging full and radiant above him. Its pale light cast everything in shades of silver and shadow, gentle and honest. No warmth trying to fill the cracks in him. No promises. Just light that showed things as they were.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsdc9SUGM0r
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv6wJhbwBdg
He let himself breathe. Just breathe. No running. No fighting. No creature hunting him through impossible terrain. 166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4WkXKoCsMB
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHMPPEgzyVt
Slowly, carefully, he lowered himself down until he lay flat against the cracked earth, moon filling his vision.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFcFEkLQTLk
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG4WLTYgTpX
Just him and the quiet.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbjVKKdl6l5
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUmIhSEwONn
Minutes passed - or maybe hours. Time felt strange here, unreliable. 166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBhFwPmbu2Y
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrNmrmPFw5O
Eventually, Cel rolled onto his side, then slowly pushed himself up.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVBw5Mf7Z5F
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMaY1c2elhW
His gaze swept across the space around him.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdyWB50XqLB
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE8jH0Wh2Rq
Before, this place had been nothing but endless fog - thick and suffocating, swallowing everything beyond a few paces. An empty void with no features, no landmarks. Just him and the distant moon, suspended in formless gray.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW3OoEcNGiw
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEZc3SzcLwz
Now, the mist had thinned.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhCWdLqsJaS
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHqFM76ejDP
Dry, cracked earth stretched beneath him, split by deep fissures that webbed across the ground like old scars. Jagged stones jutted up at irregular intervals.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ01x8VOGNBK
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡawi7n1iYTD
Ruins.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaUAtJPps33
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXo8QcBdTMk
Not the ancient structures from the trial, but something personal. Something carved into the foundation of who he was.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPtTXsAdz1i
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9BCQqvZBOi
Cel's fingers traced along a crack in the stone near his feet. The edges were rough, uneven - violence frozen in rock.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQfvGcHiB56
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoiJbsVi8S3
Between the fractures, small flowers with bluish-white petals bloomed, reaching toward the moonlight from the deepest cracks.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡajX1fmd0xx
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHcD3RJiwQd
He stared at them for a long moment.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOHccjJ3vT4
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE0ppwto6BW
The mist shifted.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMAF3CFVSrc
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ06cjsI59hy
Cel's head snapped up, body tensing before his mind caught up. But the presence was familiar - graceful footsteps, unhurried and light.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg1NmQhzrIh
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAyqKH465Aw
Selina emerged from the mist - white robes trailing through the thinned veil like she was stepping through a curtain. Her silver mask that covered the upper half of her face caught the moonlight, reflecting it in pale crescents. Below, her serene smile held the same quiet warmth it always had.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPldmiMy7AF
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ04ETIYm1dg
Cel's shoulders dropped slightly. Some tension he hadn't named eased at the sight of her.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgKvvUsCdEf
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuqj5NLUp1G
She stopped a few paces away, hands folded at her waist, regarding him with that calm smile. What remained of the mist curled around her hem like a cat seeking attention.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAUXOnYVJ64
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo3uFPW56Md
"Congratulations, Chosen One." 166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ45qFAD1Wyr
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqMh1O1BZYI
Cel flinched.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnoxZGHMcAo
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiFGLsTgULG
Not from the words themselves, but from hearing them - truly hearing them. Clear. Crisp. Every beautiful syllable distinct. 166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpoMJmcJ2Qd
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe7TCfNfwVN
His hand flew to his ear. The silence that had wrapped around him since the crystal shriek, the thick cotton that had muffled everything into nothing… was gone too.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH5VZpxl7NL
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTbqLNLkLan
"You have completed the trial." Her voice carried the same gentle certainty as always, like stating the moon would rise tonight.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCiknMsMNEB
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl4VsoEF8Pt
No fanfare. No celebration. Just acknowledgment - as if surviving that nightmare was expected.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbc3APea1CY
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY3ofvjq0ES
Cel nodded slowly, processing the words. His hand moved absently to his chest - where the spike had been.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTEfZG5fPP4
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGjnEvPCgSZ
"I did." The words came out flat.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFGERIBWC78
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU7pPadDlqK
Silence stretched between them.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtBmamTjibJ
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLgal48FCSq
Cel pushed himself to his feet slowly - movements careful, deliberate, like he wasn't quite sure his body would obey. 166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD3OvuB3dta
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7x6wakC12b
His eyes swept across the landscape without focus.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFYWJv2W75v
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNO0nzKSzpe
Selina tilted her head slightly, as if reading something in his stillness. "You seem troubled, Chosen One."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiy3oo5nQPg
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ71ztvnklph
His jaw clenched.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtCxPn7UkLz
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7F4Xqwd6Gv
"Troubled?" His hands curled at his sides. "Lets see.”166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Ghjemscwq
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxSll4BQPhi
"Four suns tried to cook me alive. The crystals' hum made me deaf. My own reflection tried to break my mind. That sphere spent the entire time guiding me exactly where it wanted me. And then that thing with the fairy-like appearance impaled me on a crystal spike."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpCnweqykFY
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdM61CQk2Ms
His breath came harder.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuufPVy52zp
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYffrifxQPl
"So yeah. I'm a little troubled."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4FBhzUNeti
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHCoFfP8VPU
Selina stood perfectly still, hands folded, the mist curling around her robes like it was content just to be near her.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD9l1BEK3aG
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFYOa0WjSb4
"What was even the point?" The words came out sharp as broken glass. "Other Chosen don't go through this. They get their blessing the moment they turn sixteen and enter their soul."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdZlALppyRw
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSGaueL4f4T
He kicked a small stone, sending it skittering across cracked earth.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYVzRAIOyzs
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡazN1CJ4ONc
"But not me. No—I get a trial. I get dragged through nightmare after nightmare just to prove I'm worthy of the weakest Goddess of all."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVeWdEg7ZiQ
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3wzxKiGFR6
He turned away from Selina, staring at the broken landscape.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjKHlKIu4Ei
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4YaWee3YUW
“What the hell was it for? To break me down? Bleed me dry? Tear open every wound just to show me something I already knew?"166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKZ460tqfym
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtSrRzHNRuS
"I already knew my father hated me," he continued. "That he thought I was worthless. That I'd never be enough."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ1I1ctIDOg
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5vvSueKRHg
His nails dug crescents into his palms.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9bysVCEBXH
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9aHm4QoLcF
"I already knew my mother wouldn't save me. That she'd just stand there and do nothing while he beat me half to death."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc7LPaaHQI2
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfn6bgtsOYE
The flowers rustled softly in a breeze that shouldn't exist here.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡurhUS6IC3E
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXDMnls7zv8
"I knew my sister was too young to understand. That all she could do was cry." His breath hitched. "And my brother…"166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHH0vzFmiJb
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXVjI2bBReB
"...I knew he wouldn't do anything either."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0RgcvL38XF
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ752XX4rL7c
Cel's eyes stayed fixed on the cracked ground beneath his feet, watching a thin fissure split the stone like frozen lightning.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj740RlMRWd
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTFwuGRmxl4
"I knew they abandoned me long before they actually left me to die."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh1SEKaJG9r
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3GaeYMzjHH
The truth of it sat heavy in his chest - solid, undeniable. The trial hadn't revealed anything new. It had just forced him to feel it all again. To relive it.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDhruqc7Wkt
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4iN7kyfm1r
Selina remained silent. Not uncomfortable. Not pitying. Just... present.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡziwCR0bV6h
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr4PGk7Vv74
The mist shifted around them both. Minutes passed.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH7XngyuCUg
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQAOobet330
Eventually she moved closer, her steps barely disturbing the silence. She stopped a few paces away, close enough that he could see the slight rise and fall of her breathing beneath those pristine robes.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡohg93qsyHk
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVoo6vpegxf
"You have returned." Simple. Matter-of-fact. "But you are not the same as before."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvnz6cy2fR2
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsxFBXEutkH
Cel let out a sharp breath through his nose. "Am I?"166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4HUJx8PHxl
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU7q7Lsfo7m
His arms crossed over his chest, fingers digging into his skin. The anger was still there, coiling tight beneath his ribs, hot and sharp. But something about it felt different now. Less wild. Less desperate.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBpdKV3zL2K
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKNfFLTevNq
More... controlled.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqroWFxrzH7
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6VV8TglWlF
His gaze drifted to the cracked earth.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ZFrO5ZJ7p
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb8jgNr1OKP
"I thought..." He stopped. Started again. "I thought if I survived, I'd feel different. Stronger, maybe. Or at least... certain about something."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG8QZGtXDwZ
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUuZby1TMkw
His jaw worked.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ35fJmZJPXV
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjpdiaDVxuy
"But I just feel tired."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpKmtx3m2Lb
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJf9fy0aax8
Selina remained silent, patient as moonlight.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLgf4eGZdQ9
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfDjnixmrzp
Cel's fingers loosened slightly against his arms. His shoulders dropped.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI5k6uo3zdW
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfIzSpq97EJ
"I don't know what I'm supposed to do with this," he said finally, voice quiet.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvDJNSNjP19
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4u4q4v4FA8
Selina's hands shifted slightly at her waist. "Perhaps that is something you must discover on your own, Chosen One."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡToAVrO02Dn
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmS7DF0XCP1
"Maybe." He paused. "Or maybe there was no lesson. Maybe it was just pain for pain's sake."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtRyg8HhJpO
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5IyXEAN0wO
"Do you believe that?" Her serene smile widened.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWbAJh7OiVJ
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjzZNSgGiWJ
The question hung in the air between them.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn8jom5IhBL
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvonNFUt9tz
Cel didn't answer immediately. The mist curled between them, patient as Selina herself.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7rUzLznlZP
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq08GVKogwu
"...No," he admitted quietly. "I don't."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkEHhSE0Ssy
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhXmUqW42By
Because if he did - if he truly believed his suffering meant nothing - then what was the point of surviving it?166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlNtnQPEf9J
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo5WLBG1hhX
His gaze lifted to the moon hanging full and radiant above them. Its pale light washed over everything, gentle and honest.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmDFYab0pc3
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXdrS68YJqT
"I'm still angry," he said, and the words came easier than expected. "At my family. At the cultists. At everyone who saw what was happening and looked away."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhKnMWtxGIQ
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwzkwVfxGtp
Selina remained perfectly still, listening.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyYNZoeNKog
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7PxHD5eC2q
"But I'm here." His voice steadied. "I survived. And that has to mean something."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcLokLmEMab
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6fX205Gfrt
"It does," Selina said softly. "More than you may yet realize."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkHm6zvCWmy
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbpyaShafbk
Cel’s gaze found one of the flowers growing from a crack in the stone. Small. Delicate. The kind of thing that should never survive in a place like this.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgciJKSEwUK
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUpcJusWARE
But it did anyway.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡupNw8EYC22
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU1jqE68hc1
"What happens now?" he asked.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0jsPc2BNPR
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPp9dMnovMF
Selina's lips curved - barely perceptible, but genuine.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡncGOsnXDZ4
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ZTsWEpkuf
"Now, Chosen One, you receive what you have earned."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGN7pe4RkCC
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfPzy4B1qTU
She gestured toward the moon.166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYouLSsbYbb
166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdiPKXKLLR3
"The Moon Goddess's blessing."166Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEfdohqmGIC
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