Chapter 19: A Step into the Unknown

The weight of what Seraphine had just experienced still clung to her like a second skin. Her breath was unsteady, her muscles still tensed from the vision the Hollow One had shown her. The knowledge that had surged through her veins felt like molten metal, settling deep within her bones.

She sat in silence, her hands pressed against the cold stone floor of the chamber, grounding herself in reality. Elaris watched her with an expression of quiet understanding.

"You saw something, didn't you?" the scholar asked.

Seraphine exhaled, her fingers tightening into fists. "It was more than seeing," she admitted. "I… felt it. The ruins. The screams. The emptiness. It was as if I was there."

Elaris nodded, as if she had expected this. "The Hollow One does not communicate through words. It speaks through experiences. Fragments of the past, glimpses of what was or what could be."

Seraphine swallowed hard. "That man in the vision… the one who bore the same markings as me." She looked up at Elaris. "Who was he?"

The older woman hesitated before answering. "His name has been erased from history, just as yours will be if you do not control the power you now wield."

A chill ran through Seraphine's spine.

"You're saying I'll end up like him?"

"I am saying that every marked one walks a dangerous path," Elaris replied. "And very few have made it through without losing themselves."

The words settled heavily on Seraphine's chest, but she refused to let fear consume her. She had made her choice. She had asked for knowledge, and now she had it.

The question was what would she do with it?

Valen, who had been leaning against the stone wall with his arms crossed, finally spoke. "So, what's the next step?"

Elaris turned to him. "She must learn to wield it before it wields her."

Valen gave Seraphine a sideways glance. "You sure you want this?"

Seraphine met his gaze, her expression unwavering. "I don't think I have a choice anymore."

A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. "Fair enough."

Elaris extended her hand, gesturing toward another corridor that branched deeper into the underground sanctum. "Then let us begin."

The Ritual of Binding

Seraphine followed Elaris through the passageway, her footsteps echoing softly against the ancient stone floor. The deeper they went, the heavier the air became. It was charged with something power, perhaps, or something far older.

Finally, they arrived at a chamber that looked different from the others. The walls were lined with strange symbols, glowing faintly with an otherworldly light. A circular platform sat in the center, carved with the same swirling markings that ran along Seraphine's arm.

Elaris motioned for her to step forward. "Stand within the circle."

Seraphine hesitated only for a moment before doing as she was told. The moment she crossed the boundary, she felt a shift in the air as if the space around her had awakened.

Elaris positioned herself just outside the circle and raised her hands. "The power of the Hollow One is raw, unshaped. If left unchecked, it will consume you. This ritual will allow you to bind it to give it form, to make it your own."

Seraphine swallowed, feeling the energy pulse beneath her feet. "And if I fail?"

Elaris met her gaze. "Then it will take you."

A deep breath. A steadying exhale.

Seraphine nodded. "Let's do it."

Elaris began to chant in a language Seraphine didn't recognize. The symbols around the chamber pulsed in response, growing brighter with each word. The energy in the air thickened, pressing against Seraphine's skin like unseen hands.

Then…

Pain.

A searing heat shot through her veins, her body arching involuntarily as the power surged through her. The markings on her arm burned, the dark tendrils expanding, twisting, wrapping around her flesh like living shadows.

The whispers in her mind grew deafening.

You cannot control it.

You are not worthy.

Let go.

Seraphine clenched her teeth, refusing to give in. She had come too far. She would not be broken.

She forced herself to focus, to push back against the chaos threatening to consume her.

And then

She felt it.

A thread within the storm. A single, fragile strand of control buried within the overwhelming tide of power.

She reached for it.

The world around her exploded.

Darkness swallowed the chamber, and for a brief moment, she was nowhere caught between existence and oblivion.

Silence.

The energy around her stilled. The whispers faded into the background, distant but not gone.

She opened her eyes.

The markings on her arm had changed. No longer chaotic, no longer shifting. They had settled, forming intricate patterns of dark energy across her skin.

The power was still there. But now, it was hers.

Elaris exhaled, lowering her hands. "It is done."

Seraphine took an unsteady step forward, testing the sensation. The weight of the power was still present, but it no longer felt overwhelming.

She looked at Elaris. "What happens now?"

The older woman gave a small, knowing smile. "Now, you learn what it truly means to bear the mark."

A New Beginning

Seraphine returned to where Valen and Eliam were waiting. Valen studied her, his sharp eyes catching the difference immediately.

"You look different."

She flexed her fingers, feeling the energy hum beneath her skin. "I am different."

Eliam still looked wary. "Does that mean you have control now?"

Seraphine hesitated before answering. "Not completely. But I'm getting there."

Valen smirked. "Well, that's better than nothing."

Elaris stepped forward. "You have taken the first step, but the road ahead will not be easy. The Inquisition still hunts you. And now that you have begun to awaken your power, they will sense it."

Seraphine nodded. "Let them come."

The words surprised even herself, but she meant them.

She was done running.

She was done being afraid of what she had become.

Whatever awaited her whatever the Hollow One had planned she would face it head-on.

Because now, for the first time, she wasn't just surviving.

She was fighting back.

And she wasn't going to lose.