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Ensnared in the shadows
Last Updated:
2025-01-25 01:19:37
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Melissa’s POVI had the impression that I was weightless and floating in a sea of silver mist. Even though my body hurt, it felt distant, like a dim recollection. I looked about, attempting to figure out what was going on. The mist whirled around me, chilly and gentle but somehow reassuring."Where am I?" My voice echoed through the infinite emptiness as I whispered.In the distance, a soft light emerged, getting closer and stronger. As it got closer, I could see a figure glorious and glowing. Like the shine of the moon on a chilly, lonely night, her presence infused the room with warmth and sadness.The person said, "Melissa," in a quiet but firm voice. "At a crossroads, you are."My heart was racing as I gazed at her. "Who are you?"With piercing yet compassionate silver eyes, she answered, "I am the Moon Goddess." "Child, you have shown courage in your fight. However, your trip is far from over.I inhaled deeply as my thoughts raced. "What brings me here? What took place?With a hi
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Melissa’s POVWith my body weightless and my heart hurting, I drifted into an odd, quiet emptiness. Through the darkness, I sensed a faint sound, like Damon's voice echoing toward me. It pulled at me, making me feel both sad and hopeful."She is still here! His voice was thunderous.I could feel his resolve, his refusal to accept the impossible, even in this limitless emptiness.As though they reverberated into the emptiness where I was imprisoned, I could feel the vibrations of the pack's anxious conversation back in the real world. Damon's voice rose once more, ferocious and uncompromising."I'm not going to let her go! He yelled.I wanted to yell back, Damon, I'm here! Keep searching for me! However, the silence of this location drowned out my voice.Next was Liora's voice, which was composed but hesitant. "Damon, we have no idea how to get in touch with her, even if she is still alive. The Void is difficult to break free from.Damon said sharply, "That doesn't matter to me." "Some
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Melissa’s POVThe silence was unsettling, and the air was heavy. Even though I couldn't see what was going on, I could sense that something sinister and off was going on.Even though I hadn't returned to reality yet, I could sense Damon and the pack's fear because of my strong bond with them.Damon's voice echoed faintly in my head, "It's happening again." There was urgency in his voice. "The shadows have returned."I felt a chill go through me. Darkness? The creatures of the Void? I believed I had halted them.I could only observe from my position in the transitional area. The moonlight illuminated the tense faces of the pack as they gathered in the forest. I could see Damon was struggling to keep his composure as he stood in the middle, his broad shoulders squared."Everyone, stay close," Damon ordered. His voice was strong, but I knew him well enough to hear the fracture in his resolve.Kael, ever the dutiful Beta, stepped beside him. “They’re stronger this time,” he replied solemn
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Melissa’s POVThe earth underneath me trembled. Once full of stars, the sky had become a whirling mass of red and black. I had never seen anything like the full form of the Void, which loomed over us. It was a shapeless shadow that seemed to extend across the sky, a hideous, writhing monster with sharp teeth and flashing crimson eyes.Damon gripped my hand more tightly. "This thing is destruction, Melissa."I took a deep breath. Then we put an end to it. Together.Waves of darkness broke against the shield of our combined force as the Void shouted. With the help of our light, Damon and I managed to push back.Behind us, in formation, the pack channeled the force of the rite by raising their hands. The air was filled with golden symbols that glowed brighter as they infused us with their vitality.Even though he was tired, Eldric's voice was loud and clear. "Hey, Melissa! Make use of the power! Attack its very center!I concentrated as the energy rushed through me. In my palms, a golden
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Melissa’s POVFrom within Damon and me, a golden, bright light burst forth. It pushed the darkness aside as it rushed outward. The Void flinched for the first time.I gasped as I sensed our strength entwined, our spirits united. My brightness became Damon's, and his power became mine. We were invincible together.The Void screamed, its dark shape contorting. "Not possible! You can't disobey me!Damon grinned. "It appears that we just did."As the darkness faded, the pack behind us cheered, their spirits rising. Hope flashed for a minute.The Void, however, altered its strategy.Rather than attacking us, it turned to our fighters. The gang stumbled abruptly as a dark pulse sped across the air. Their eyes grew wide with agony.I let out a gasp. "What's going on?"Eldric clutched his skull and yelled. "Our link is being attacked by the Void! It is cutting off our relationship with one another!Damon's face grew serious. "No. It is attempting to separate us from the group.I felt the conn
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Melissa’s POVThe ground underneath us trembled with a thunderous roar. As the sky grew completely dark, I staggered, barely maintaining my equilibrium. Our planet was completely infiltrated by the Void.As they slithered across the terrain, shadowy tendrils ate everything in their path. Before the onslaught started, the trees withered, the air became dense with a suffocating gloom, and an unsettling hush descended upon the pack's area.First came the creatures. Monstrous, twisted forms sprang from the darkness, staring at us with luminous red eyes."Keep the pack safe!" Damon's voice echoed, firm and powerful.The beasts persisted despite the efforts of our troops. Growls, cries of agony, and claws slamming into teeth reverberated throughout the night. I made a feeble attempt to call forth my light.Panic rising, I muttered, "No... not now."I lifted my fists and pushed energy out. One of the things recoiled when a little flash of light touched it, but the exertion left me exhausted.
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Melissa’s POVThe heavy, oppressive darkness whirled about me. The golden glow of the Celestial Flame flickered like a candle in the wind as I held it tightly in my hands.The Void was different. It had developed shape and was no longer only a collection of shadows. A massive, purely dark figure with empty eyes blazing with insatiable desire loomed before me."Madela, you are nothing." The voice of the Void thundered like a tempest. "Every light bearer before you has been eaten by me. You'll tumble just like everyone else.I forced my fear down with a firm gulp. "How many you've taken doesn't matter to me. I am the one who ends it.The Void chuckled. "What a dumb girl. What has existed for all eternity cannot be stopped.The shadows surrounding us contorted into shrieking faces as it lifted its enormous arms—souls imprisoned in its never-ending hunger. My heart tightened. If I failed, would I end up like this?No.I lifted the Celestial Flame while clenching my teeth. The murky cloud
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Melissa’s POVI had the impression that the ground was neither solid nor airy. Above, the sky shifted between angry crimson and deep darkness, twisting in strange ways. Here, time seemed to be fractured, with seconds seeming to drag into hours.All around me, a chilly voice said."Hey Melissa, welcome home."I balled my fists up. "My home is not here."I experienced glimpses of a future in which I stood alone on a throne of darkness while the shadows grew darker and created shifting images. Everything around me was destroyed by fire.Additionally, II was the Void now.Staring back at me was a picture of my face, twisted in the gloom."Fate is beyond your control," the Void said.I gave a headshake. "This isn't real."The vision shifted. Damon was kneeling in front of me, broken. His previously vibrant eyes were now lifeless.The Void went on, "You will ruin everyone you care about." "It is unavoidable.""No!" With my light flashing, I yelled. "I decide my destiny!"I felt the darknes
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Melissa’s POVIn my palms, the relic pulsed, its illumination alternating between eerie darkness and golden light. From within came a whisper, a voice old and powerful."Child of light, you're looking for solutions. I am the truth.I took a deep breath. "Tell me."The world around me abruptly changed when the air changed. I found myself in a wide area of whirling shadows and dim light instead of the battlefield. The relic glowed like a fallen star, floating before me.Once more, the voice spoke. "I am more than just a tool of authority. I am a piece of the Void's very center that was left over from the first fight, which took place ages ago.I gasped. "A… a piece of the Void?""Yes. I was made as a test, a means of determining whether mankind was deserving of existence outside the realm of the Void.I gave a headshake. "That isn't rational. Why would something that may be utilized against the Void be left behind?"Because the cycle needs to finish. You must put me back in the core of
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Melissa’s POVI could still hear Damon's cry. I glanced at the place where the shadows had pulled him into the abyss, my hands shaking. Something inside of me stirred, even though my heart hurt and the pain was intolerable.A fire, no, a warmth, flared in my chest. My light wasn't the only one. Something deeper, something more powerful.Then from the item beside me came a hushed voice."The Celestial Flame is being reawakened by you."I let out a gasp. “The Celestial Flame?"The voice hummed quietly. “A power your ancestors never reached. A light that may burn away even the deepest darkness.”Like flickering flames, a golden radiance rose from my fingertips. It was fire, not just light. My veins throbbed with heat, more intense than I had ever experienced.I balled my fists up. "I will use this if it can help me defeat the Void."The voice faltered. "The Flame is not so easy to wield. You have to go through a soul trial to manage it.I scowled. "A trial?""You have to face your demons
