Shadowbound Oath

Chapter 57: Shadowbound Oath

The temple was eerily silent, the kind of silence that sent chills down Celestine's spine. The only sound was the distant howl of the wind, carrying whispers of things unseen.

She gripped the edge of her cloak, trying to steady her breathing. They had come too far to turn back now.

Lucien's silver eyes flickered with unease as he scanned the darkened hall. "Something isn't right."

Draven was a step ahead, his stance rigid. "We're being watched."

Celestine already knew that. She could feel it—something brushing against the edges of her mind, something ancient and hungry.

Then, a deep, resonant voice echoed through the chamber.

"At last… you've come."

The torches flared to life, bathing the room in flickering golden light. From the darkness, a figure emerged—tall, imposing, draped in robes that shimmered like liquid shadow. His face was hidden behind an obsidian mask, only his piercing, glowing amber eyes visible.

The Oracle.

Celestine's fingers twitched at her side, magic pulsing through her veins. "You knew we would come."

The Oracle tilted his head, a ghost of a smirk playing at his lips. "Of course. Fate has already written this moment into the stars."

Draven scoffed. "Fate is just another cage."

The Oracle's gaze snapped to him, something dark flickering behind his eyes. "And yet, here you are, following the very path you claim to defy."

Lucien stepped forward, voice tight. "Enough riddles. What do you want from us?"

The Oracle extended a hand, and from the darkness, a golden sigil burned into existence, pulsing with raw energy. "Not what I want—what she must choose." His gaze locked onto Celestine.

A cold weight settled in her chest.

"Choose?" she echoed.

"The Shadowbound Oath." The Oracle's voice was like the toll of a distant bell. "Your fate is split between light and darkness. You cannot walk both paths forever."

The air thickened. A slow, creeping dread wrapped around her like a second skin.

She knew this moment would come.

She just wasn't ready for it.

Lucien's hand hovered near his sword. "She doesn't have to choose anything."

Draven's eyes darkened. "No. She does."

Celestine turned to him sharply. "Draven—"

"You can't keep running from this," he murmured, stepping closer. His gaze burned into hers, something raw and desperate hidden beneath the cool veneer. "If you don't make a choice… someone else will make it for you."

The Oracle raised his hands, and suddenly, the temple shifted. The walls trembled, the air cracked like breaking glass, and the golden sigil split into two halves—one bathed in silver light, the other in bleeding shadows.

Celestine felt her heart stop.

The choice wasn't just metaphorical.

It was real.

And the moment she touched either one—there would be no turning back.

Chapter 58: The Weight of Destiny

The air pulsed with an unnatural light, the golden sigil hanging before Celestine as if a heart ripped in two. Half pulsed in silver radiance so bright it warmed and defined. The other half oozed black strings of darkness that spoke secrets she could almost hear.

Her hands shook at her sides.

She felt Lucien's presence behind her, his unyielding, unmoving. "Celestine," he whispered, pleadingly, "you don't have to do this."

Draven, two steps away from her, took a sharp inhalation. "Yes, she does." His golden eyes seared into hers. "Destiny cannot be avoided."

The Oracle stood impassive, silent, his masked face unreadable. "One step ahead, Celestine, and the decision that you make will be irrevocable for all of eternity."

The temple walls came in around her.

She could hear her own breathing, the thud of her pulse against her ribcage.

Light. Rescue. A path that would lead her to safety, structure, and perhaps, peace.

Shadow. Strength. The unknown. A road fraught with danger, but the promise of freedom.

Her entire life, she had been told that fate was an unchangeable thing. That destiny had been written into the stars long before she was born.

But now…

Now she stood at the brink of a choice that no prophecy could make for her.

Lucien's hand floated, his fingers dancing over hers, a silent plea. "Celestine… please."

Draven's gaze never wavered. "Do what you were born to do."

The gravity of their words held her back like chains.

She had to scream.

She had to flee.

But above all—she had to decide for herself.

Celestine drew a deep breath, lifted her hand…

And stepped forward.

The instant her fingers made contact with the sigil, the world broke.

A strength unlike anything she had ever known tore through her body, burning through her veins like fire and ice. Light and darkness competed, swirling around her, struggling to dominate.

She breathed in sharply, dropping to her knees as the temple trembled beneath her.

Lucien screamed her name.

Draven burst forward, but the strength surged out, throwing him across the room.

The Oracle's voice thundered over the noise, his voice close to reverence.

It has begun."

Celestine barely caught his words before the world was black.