Chapter 1537
One by one, they descended, the stairs cool beneath their feet, the air growing denser and sweeter with each step. It smelled of memory. Of first breath and last moan.
Of promises made in the dark and kept in the light. The staircase twisted downward for what felt like forever, until finally, the space opened into a vast chamber unlike anything they had seen.
A circular cavern stretched before them, its walls covered in glowing runes, its floor soft with moss and low-growing flowers. At the center was another pool, smaller than the one before, and entirely black. Not like obsidian - but like absence. Like shadow.
Rose stepped forward, her eyes wide. "This is where it started."
Jude moved beside her, the pull of the place resonating in his bones. "This is the beginning."
They circled the pool, their reflections distorted in the surface. There was no light above, yet they all glowed faintly, casting rippling golden halos that shimmered across the cavern walls.
Lucy stood across from him, her voice soft. "What do we do?"
Rose answered, "We give it ourselves."
Sophie frowned. "That’s vague as hell."
But before anyone could respond, Zoey stepped into the pool.
She didn’t hesitate.