Chapter 341: The Pulse Of The Altar
[Music recommendation: The Whale - "Safe Return" (music from the Original Score) | extended version]
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"The moment we have been waiting for is here and now!" As soon as Selene’s voice thundered through the air, another woman stepped forward. She climbed several steps before bowing and raising her hands, which held a plate containing an ancient, black dagger with a serpent’s open mouth as its hilt.
It was Clair, back in her old form with red hair and hazel eyes.
Glancing at her, a cruel smirk formed on Selene’s face. "Ah, my loyal subject. You did well. I will personally ask Lord Azrath to reward you for all your contributions." With that, she picked up the dagger from the plate.
Clair bowed and smirked. "Thank you, milady." Her gaze then fell on Evelyn, who was writhing in pain. A cruel smile formed on her face, as if she were elated to see her in such a broken condition.
"Now, take your positions and let us begin. It is time!" Selene prompted the assembly.
Soon, each of them extended their hands, and darkstones pulsed beneath the palms of everyone present.
Chants of something ancient and forbidden began to spill from their lips. The darkstones emitted thick smoke that dripped like black oil onto the ground. Blood-red runes began to form on the floor, glowing brightly as they created multiple lines that snaked toward the centre of the altar where Evelyn lay.
Soon, a bloodcurdling scream tore from Evelyn’s lips.
Her eyes watered with extreme pain, feeling as if her entire body were being pierced by thick needles. Her body thrashed and twisted against the agony. Selene continued to watch the woman she had birthed, and as the screams intensified, a sense of elation filled her dark, rotten heart.
The grin on Selene’s face widened before her eyes turned pitch black, the darkness swallowing the whites entirely. Dark roots formed around her eyes and veins. The wind began to pick up with furious speed, whipping their dark cloaks and Selene’s hair, yet her gaze remained fixed on her writhing daughter.
The crimson light from the moon intensified as thick, dark clouds gathered above. They obscured the moon, making it appear as if the clouds themselves had been painted red. Loud thunder roared across the expanse until a barrage of red lightning began striking the ground around them.
"For Lord Azrath!" Selene roared, her shrieky voice cutting through the storm. She began chanting, raising the ancient dagger above her head with both hands curled tightly over the hilt.
The chants grew louder, and the air thickened with heavy, pulsing dark magic. The barrage of red lightning stilled for a single second before the bolts fell in unison, striking the tips of the pillars where the red runes shone brightest.
The ground beneath them rumbled with such force that it shook everyone present. Yet Selene remained unaffected as she began to levitate above the stone, her dagger aimed directly over Evelyn’s beating heart.
Another blood-curdling scream tore from Evelyn’s lips. Her tearful eyes flew wide open, shining a brilliant gold as they stared directly at the dark blade. The metal glinted crimson, illuminated by the red lightning that filled the air.
For a single second, everything stilled.
Her entire life flashed before her eyes. She saw every moment from the time she was first held as a child in her father’s arms, feeling his loving gaze upon her. She remembered being abused by her biological mother and forced to forget, and being tormented by her nanny and forced to forget, only to be abused by her stepmother and remember it all.
She saw her time with Septimus, the only peace she had known, as he taught, saved, and sheltered her until the day she first stepped into the academy.
Then she remembered bumping into Ivan for the very first time, the way he had wrapped his arms around her, and the way she had stared into his molten red eyes as they danced with fire. She saw the moments she met Cece, Damien, and Edward.
Every single class she had attended and every adventure she had embarked on with them passed through her mind. Every moment of laughter, happiness, and sadness she had experienced flashed before her eyes like a slideshow.
Then her memories stilled.
She saw herself held in Ivan’s arms back at the cottage after their first union, and his deep voice resonated through her entire being.
"I love you, Evelyn."
Her body arched forward as every muscle tightened violently. Veins stood out along her forehead and neck as her wide golden eyes streamed tears of blood. Another memory surfaced, the final one, but this time it belonged to her past life.
The very first memory of him...
The two figures continued staring at one another in silence until a single droplet of water touched Solaira’s pale cheek, followed by another. Within moments, rain began to pour heavily, drenching them where they stood.
She was about to turn and leave when the man introduced himself. "My name is Malakai. What is your name, Daughter of Light?"
"Solaira," she replied.
In that final moment, a faint smile touched her bloodied lips as her gaze drifted beyond the descending blade, as though she were looking straight into those mesmerising eyes that always made her heart race, and the softest whisper escaped her.
"Kai...."
With that, the dagger descended, plunging into her chest, piercing her heart deep within. A final gasp escaped Evelyn’s lips, and the air stilled.
Her heart beat once.
Twice.
Then... nothing.
Her radiant golden eyes widened before the light within them slowly faded, revealing deep blue orbs that turned dull and lifeless. Every strained muscle in her body loosened as she sagged against the altar. Blood began to pour from her mouth, gushing out the moment Selene pulled the dagger back with force.
Blood spilled everywhere, yet instead of flowing off the dark stone altar, it began to shift and stretch across an intricate symbol carved beneath her. The symbol glowed red and pulsed once, as though it had drawn its first breath.
It pulsed a second time.
Then a third.
Soon the rhythm quickened, no longer like cold stone but like a living heart, absorbing every drop of divine blood that continued to pour from Evelyn’s body.
Selene held her breath, her darkened eyes wide as she slowly stepped backwards, away from the throbbing altar, while never taking her gaze off Evelyn’s lifeless form, as though she feared the girl might rise at any moment.
The air was so still that it felt as if all of existence were in a state of shock over what had just occurred.
Nothing moved.
The crimson clouds went quiet.
The thunder and lightning disappeared.
The only sound anyone could focus on was the steady, rhythmic pulsing of the altar, which grew faster with each passing second.
As the rhythm intensified, the ground began to tremble once more. The tremors grew increasingly violent until cracks splintered outward from the altar, while the red pulsing light spread across the entire structure.
Selene barked, "The structure is going to collapse. Everyone, move out at once!"
On her word, everyone scrambled away to stand on the solid ground outside the breaking altar.
Clair came to stand beside Selene, her eyes fixed on the crumbling stone. She asked, "Milady, is it working?"
Selene was about to reply when she sensed a disturbance behind her. Just as she whirled around, something heavy crashed into her. The force sent her flying, and she landed hard at the very edge of the cracking altar.
Nobody saw it coming or had the time to react when the loud sound of the ground being ripped open at the altar echoed through the air.
The crimson clouds began churning above, forming a massive, swirling storm. The wind picked up violently, and the barrage of red thunder and lightning that had briefly stopped returned with a more furious dance. This time, the lightning strikes spanned across the land, jolting people awake from their slumber in the city far below.
Then, without warning, the once-dormant volcano yawned open at the heart of the altar. The rocks crumbled, falling into the molten lava revealed beneath the shattered ground.
Evelyn’s body, which lay lifeless on the platform, began to fall along with the broken structure beneath her.
Just as her body was about to sink into the molten lava, something moved with the speed of lightning. Warm arms wrapped around her at the very last second, pulling her away from the pool of fire that swallowed the altar whole.
As soon as she was moved away from the heart of the impending chaos, the ground shook violently. The volcano erupted with a thunderous roar that reverberated through the entire space.
Dark plumes of ash spread across the sky as lava poured out like a living thing. Everyone retreated several miles to watch the scene, which looked like nothing less than the apocalypse itself.
The figure who held Evelyn close landed softly on the ground, several miles away from the epicentre of the eruption and the dark ones surrounding it.
He did not move for several seconds, kneeling there with her held tightly against him. He buried his face in her hair as if trying to stabilise his raging pulse.
