And at the center of it all stood Dario, his dark form outlined in silver from the blaze. His eyes were wide, horrified and awed all at once, as he staggered toward me through the storm.
“Elena,” he whispered, his voice raw, his face etched with something I could only call reverence.
The fire inside me reached its peak. My body trembled, fragile as glass, but I held on.
“For you,” I whispered to him, and the world dissolved into light, the walls of the chamber melting into a blinding sea oflight, and I felt myself drifting, weightless, free.
My body was burning, every nerve alight with pain and warmth, but I felt no fear, no regret.
Only a quiet, peaceful certainty that I had done what needed to be done.
But then, amid the blinding light, I felt a cool peace, a familiar presence anchoring me to the world I was leaving behind.
“Elena,” Dario’s voice, soft and filled with love, drew me back from the edge, grounding me, holding me close.
I opened my eyes, meeting his gaze, and I saw the depth of his love reflected in his dark, haunted eyes. He reached out, his hands trembling as he pulled me into his arms, holding me close, his touch gentle, reverent, as if he were afraid I might slip away.
But it was too late. Though I was no longer ablaze, I had tapped the wellspring of my phoenix powers.
My magic would soon consume me from the inside, and I would die.
“I’m here,” he whispered, his voice thick with emotion, his arms wrapping around me, pulling me close. “I’m not letting you go. Not now. Not ever.”
I looked up at him, my vision blurring as tears filled my eyes, and I felt a surge of love, a love so fierce, so consuming that it filled every corner of my being, binding me to him in a way that went beyond magic, beyond life and death.
Even if I were to die here, I knew I would still feel the same.
What came after death for a phoenix? No one knew. Would I still be Elena? Or would I be a different person, one who remembered nothing of the timeless, endless love that had inspired my sacrifice?
A tear slipped down my cheek, and Dario blotted it with trembling lips. “Stay with me, Elena,” he begged.
“Goodbye, Dario,” I whispered, my voice barely audible, but he heard me, his eyes softening, his hands cupping my face as hepressed his forehead against mine, his breath warm against my cold skin.
“No, stay with me,” he begged. “I love you, Elena,” he replied, his voice trembling with the weight of the words. “More than anything. More than I ever thought I could.” His eyes filled. “Please, don’t leave me. Not when I’ve just found you.”
Tears spilled from his eyes, and perhaps it was my failing vision, but I saw him glow, as if my power now lived in his veins, too.
His lips brushed against mine, a gentle, tender kiss that sent a shiver through me. I closed my eyes as I felt my heartbeat slow…
Chapter 22: Dario
The chamber fell silent, save for the faint crackling of ancient magic fading into the stones and the steady, agonizing rhythm of my heartbeat.
My pulse thundered in my ears as I gazed down at Elena, her body motionless on the cold stone floor, her light flickering as if the last remnants of a dying flame.
A cold, suffocating dread swept over me.
She had burned herself out to save me.
Forme, the creature of shadows.
I couldn’t comprehend it at first. My mind rejected what my eyes were showing me—Elena, my fire, my light, lying motionless on the cold stones. Her golden glow had dimmed to embers, as if the very essence of her had been stripped away and left hollow.
I gathered her in my arms, her weight frighteningly slight, her skin unnaturally cool. My heart hammered, frantic, demanding she breathe, demanding she rise.
“Elena.” Her name was all I could form, my throat choked with grief.
I brushed trembling fingers along her cheek, waiting for her to stir, for her lashes to flutter, for her warmth to come back to me. But she remained still.
