His Bind

Leloid knelt in the rubble, his breath staggered, The air around him shimmered, threads of dark energy binding him. His fingers twitched, whether in resistance or obedience, Kaelin couldn't tell.

Kaelin took a step forward, the shard still glowing in his grip. It was calling to him. The surge of power still lingered in his veins.

Eira spoke first, her voice low. "Kaelin… something's wrong."

Lyrex tilted her head, arms crossed as she leaned against a broken column. "Wrong? No, no. It's finally getting interesting."

The chains tightened. Leloid screamed.

Kaelin barely had time to react before Leloid's body jerked upward, lifted by an unseen force. His eyes turned pure black, and the air grew heavy, thick with an unknown presence.

A deep, distorted voice rumbled from Leloid's throat. "You cannot sever what has already been claimed." Kaelin's grip on the shard tightened. "Like hell I can't."

Leloid struck first. Faster. Stronger. His movements were unnatural, his blade cutting through the air like a space shuttle's eruption.

Kaelin barely dodged in time, drifting as Leloid's strike shattered the entire ground where he stood.

Eira flicked her hands, casting a binding spell—but the moment it touched Leloid, the energy snapped and recoiled violently, knocking her back.

Kaelin cursed. The Architect's hold was too strong. Lyres chuckled. "Oh, Kaelin, you're making this so fun to watch. Do you even realize what's happening?"

Kaelin ignored her. His eyes locked onto Leloid's for a brief second, an ounce of hesitation, That was all he needed.

He lunged forward, dodging Leloid's next attack by a hair's breadth. Not to strike. Not to destroy. But to reach. Kaelin grabbed Leloid's wrist, the shard still pulsing in his other hand, he shut his eyes, ready to take any incoming attack while focus on an imaginary abyss ahead him.

For a moment, everything went black. Then Kaelin was somewhere else.

A vast, endless void stretched before him, filled with swirling shadows. And in the center, Leloid knelt, bound by massive chains of dark energy.

He looked up, his face twisted in pain. "Kaelin… you shouldn't be here."

Kaelin stepped forward. "I'm not leaving you behind."

Before Leloid could speak, the shadows shifted. A presence loomed behind him, though its form was indistinct, its voice slithered into Kaelin's mind. "Foolish boy. This one is mine."

Kaelin's heart pounded. The void trembled around him, as if reality itself was rejecting his presence.

But he had come this far and he wasn't backing down, Behind Leloid was him, the Architect, the Devourer, Zha'thik.