Chapter 115: Not Interested
The three stood in silence as the portal pulsed behind them, bathing the fractured terrain in its otherworldly golden hue. Wind whistled through the hollow realm, cold and surreal, as if the Rift itself were holding its breath.
Inigo kept his face neutral. Calm. Measured. But behind his still eyes, a plan had begun forming the moment the Lady of Illusion declared her intentions. Switch sides? Walk freely after everything she’d done? No.
He gave her a long look.
"Well... you’re not wrong," he said finally, letting his voice soften. "My world was... different. Complicated. But amazing. I didn’t appreciate it until I lost it."
The Lady of Illusion tilted her head, almost studying the emotions behind his words. "It’s what makes you special. You’re tethered to a memory no one here can even comprehend. That alone gives you power."
Inigo gave a shallow nod. "Yeah. It does."
Lyra glanced at him, suspicious, but said nothing. She trusted him—enough to stay quiet.
The Lady smiled. "So... will you accept my proposal? If we’re to work together, we’ll need to cross into your realm. I can only hold the portal open for so long."
Inigo walked closer, boots clicking on the obsidian floor. "What happens when we get there?"
"I hide in plain sight," she said smoothly. "You show me your world, your systems, your structures. I learn. And eventually, I help recreate it here—without war."
That was the final lie she didn’t realize she told herself. There was no such peace in her.