Chapter 85: THE PRICE OF POWER
Chapter 85: The Price of Power
The First Shadow’s smile froze Liana’s blood. It wasn’t looking at Celeste anymore. It was looking at her. "Finally," the old thing whispered without a mouth.
"The bloodline I’ve been waiting for." Celeste screamed as the Shadow’s tentacles wrapped around her dissolving form.
"What’s happening to me?" "You were never the goal, child," the First Shadow purred. "Just the key to open my prison. The Heart needed a willing carrier, someone desperate enough to break every rule." The truth hit Liana like lightning.
"You planned this. All of it." "Every forecast. Every trick of fate. Every moment that led you here." The Shadow’s attention made her skin crawl. "Your grandfather didn’t just seal me away, little wolf. She split her bloodline in two - one part to guard the lock, one part to finally open it."
"No," Liana backed away, but there was nowhere to go. "I won’t help you." "You already have." The Shadow motioned to Celeste, who was changing again. Her shadow form was hardening, transforming into something that hurt to look at.
"She opened the Heart. But opening isn’t the same as ruling." Celeste’s scream turned into something inhuman. Her body stretched like taffy, arms becoming tentacles of pure darkness. Her face split into three mouths, each one filled with teeth made of frozen shadow. "I can’t stop it!" she wailed through all three mouths.
"It’s eating me from the inside!" "That’s because you’re not strong enough," the First Shadow said lightly. "But she is." Lyra grabbed Liana’s arm. "Don’t listen! It’s trying to trick you!" "Am I?" The Shadow tilted its non-head. "Tell me, witch.
How long have you felt my whispers? How long have you thought your magic was your own?" Lyra’s face went white. "No. That’s impossible." "I’ve been feeding you power for decades.