CHAPTER 33

THE FINAL DESCANT

The Abyss Stirs

The very fabric of the Astral Plane trembled. The celestial glow that once flickered in the distance had been snuffed out, swallowed by the monstrous presence of the Void born.

Lyra's breathing was ragged, her vision blurred as she struggled to her feet. The weight of what she had done crushed her. She had freed Eryx—but in doing so, she had unleashed the darkness.

A deep, abyssal growl vibrated through the air.

The Void born stretched its newly formed limbs, tendrils of pure void rippling through space. Its many eyes gleamed, mouths splitting open as if tasting the essence of a world about to break.

"You cannot undo what has begun, Star born."

Lyra flinched. That name again.

Beside her, Eryx had risen. No longer chained, his body now pulsed with raw celestial power—but his expression was unreadable.

"Eryx…" Lyra whispered, unsure.

He didn't answer.

Instead, he turned to face the Void born.

Kael and Alden stood ready beside her. Weapons drawn. Faces set.

Selene clutched her staff, her voice shaking as she uttered a single question.

"Do we fight… or do we run?"

Eryx slowly exhaled; his silver eyes darkened, unreadable.

"We don't run," he murmured.

"We end this."

The Stars Cry Out

Kael was the first to strike. His blade sang through the air, slicing toward the Void Born's shifting form. But the attack never connected—the creature's shadowy mass split apart, tendrils moving like liquid night.

A shockwave burst outward, sending Kael crashing into the air. Alden barely had time to throw his shield up before he too was flung backward.

Lyra lifted her blade, its celestial steel pulsing in her grip.

She dashed forward, channeling the power surging inside her, bringing her sword down in a glowing arc—

CLASH!

The moment the blade met the Void Born's form, it screamed.

Not in pain.

But in recognition.

The darkness shrank away from the celestial steel, but only momentarily.

And then—the Void born laughed.

A hollow, fractured voice.

"You are the key… and the lock."

"Your blood is the answer."

The words sent a terrible realization slamming into Lyra's chest.

This battle wasn't about winning.

It was about her.

Selene gasped, suddenly clutching her chest. "It's her. Lyra—don't you see? The prophecy…"

Eryx's expression darkened. "No."

But Lyra knew.

It was all there—the visions, the warnings, the celestial mark.

She wasn't meant to defeat the Void born.

She was meant to be the sacrifice to seal it away.

Alden's voice was sharp. "Lyra, don't even think about it."

"I don't have a choice," she whispered.

Kael, panting, bleeding, glared at Eryx. "You knew, didn't you?"

Eryx's jaw tightened. He didn't deny it.

Kael surged forward, grabbing Eryx by the collar. "You lied to us! To her!"

Eryx's hands curled into fists. His silver eyes flickered—before turning pitch black.

Lyra barely had time to react before Eryx drove his hand forward.

Straight through Kael's chest.

 The Breaking Point

Kael gasped, eyes wide.

Blood spilled from his lips as Eryx ripped his hand away, leaving behind a deep, glowing wound.

"No!" Lyra screamed.

She caught Kael as he collapsed, his weight heavy in her arms. His breathing was ragged, his grip weak.

"Why…?" he rasped.

Eryx's expression remained cold.

"The Void born cannot be stopped by mortals," he said simply. "Only by a Star born."

Lyra trembled. "You…"

Alden raised his sword, fury burning in his eyes. "You betrayed us."

Selene staggered back, her magic trembling in her grip. "You—you're just like them."

Eryx did not react.

He merely turned to Lyra, his eyes flashing with something unreadable.

"You are the only one who can stop this, Lyra."

The Void born towered behind them, growing stronger with every moment wasted.

The sky fractured, stars fell, and the Astral Plane itself began to collapse.

Lyra felt it—the power surging in her veins, calling for her to act.

Eryx extended his hand. "Come with me."

Alden's voice was broken. "Lyra, don't. We can find another way."

Kael, barely conscious, whispered, "Don't trust him."

Every instinct screamed at her.

But the truth was clear.

If she did nothing, the world would end.

She closed her eyes.

And then—she made her choice.

The Birth of a Star

The air around Lyra shimmered, crackling with raw celestial energy as she stepped forward. Each step felt like an eternity. Her heart pounded against her ribs; her breath shallow.

Alden's voice was hoarse with desperation. "Lyra, don't!" He struggled against Selene's grip, trying to reach her.

Selene's face was pale, her violet eyes glistening with unshed tears. "This is the only way, isn't it?"

Kael, lying wounded on the ground, reached out weakly. "Lyra… you don't have to do this."

But she did.

The universe had already chosen her fate.

The celestial mark on her skin burned. It pulsed with a radiance so bright that the void itself recoiled. The energy flowed through her, wrapping around her body like an unseen force, lifting her slightly off the ground.

And yet—it was Eryx's eyes that held her still.

Cold. Piercing. Familiar.

He extended his hand toward her, his expression unreadable. A silent promise.

Lyra hesitated—only for a moment.

Then, with a deep breath, she placed her hand in his.

A blinding burst of light exploded outward, engulfing everything in celestial fire. The ground trembled, and the very fabric of the realm seemed to shift.

The Void born let out a terrible, inhuman shriek as if sensing the inevitable.

Lyra felt herself unraveling.

Her body—her soul—was shifting, expanding, merging with something greater. The celestial power within her surged, burning hotter than ever before. Her pulse no longer belonged to her alone—it throbbed in time with the cosmos itself.

She felt the pull of the stars, the weight of creation.

And then—pain.

A sharp, sudden agony—

Lyra gasped.

She looked down.

And saw the dagger buried deep in her chest.

The Death That Was Foretold

Eryx held the dagger firmly, his grip unwavering.

His silver eyes, once so full of mystery, now held only finality.

Lyra staggered backward, her breath catching in her throat. The celestial energy within her flickered, struggling against the wound.

Alden's voice shattered the silence. "NO!"

Kael's strangled gasp was barely audible. Selene screamed.

Lyra's knees gave out, and she collapsed onto the fractured ground, blood spilling from her chest in delicate streams of gold and crimson. Her lifeblood—celestial and mortal intertwined.

Eryx crouched beside her, his fingers brushing against her cheek.

"You were always meant for this, Lyra."

Her vision blurred. Her pulse slowed.

She tried to speak, but the words refused to come.

Was this how it was supposed to end?

The Void born shrieked in pain, its form distorting as the rift between worlds began to close. The dark tendrils thrashed, but the more Lyra's blood soaked into the ground, the weaker it became.

Her sacrifice was working.

But at what cost?

The warmth of Eryx's hand against her skin was a cruel contrast to the pain searing through her chest.

He had guided her here.

Led her. Lied to her.

And yet—his eyes held something almost… mournful.

Lyra tried to lift a hand—maybe to fight, maybe to reach for him—but her fingers barely twitched.

She was fading.

Alden broke free from Selene's grasp and lunged at Eryx, sword raised. "I'LL KILL YOU!"

Eryx stepped back, dodging the attack effortlessly.

Kael, despite his injuries, dragged himself toward Lyra, his bloodied fingers trembling as he reached for her. "Hold on—Lyra, hold on!"

Her body felt weightless.

The stars whispered to her, calling her home.

And as her vision faded, Eryx leaned in one last time.

His lips brushed against her ear.

"Goodnight, Star born."

Then—darkness.

Silence.

Then, the ground trembled as if the very fabric of existence had been shattered.

Lyra's body lay still, her chest rising and falling in shallow, uneven breaths. The celestial glow around her dimmed, flickering like a dying flame.

The Void born let out one final, earsplitting scream.

Its enormous, chaotic form began to dissolve, pulled back into the collapsing rift. The tendrils shrank, the darkness breaking apart, sucked back into the void as if it had never existed.

The stars above realigned.

The universe healed itself.

And then—it was over.

The battle had been won.

But at the cost of the one who saved them.

Alden fell to his knees beside Lyra's body, his hands shaking violently. His breath came in ragged gasps, his sword slipping from his fingers.

Kael, barely able to move, crawled to her side, his face twisted in agony.

Selene clutched her staff, her whole-body trembling.

None of them spoke.

Because there were no words.

The world had been saved.

But Lyra was gone.

And then—a flicker.

A single shimmer of light pulsed from her chest.

Selene's eyes widened. "She's…"

The mark on Lyra's forearm flared to life one last time.

The air shifted.

And suddenly, Lyra's body vanished.

The only thing left behind—was stardust.