Chapter 59 - Escalation
For a long time none of them said anything.
The only thing that remained was the sound of the screeching and tearing outside the temple walls…
and Ariel’s trembling grip around Ryn’s hand.
The silence between them stretched, heavy and suffocating.
Then Ariel shifted slightly, her head turning toward him.
At first, he didn’t hear her.
Her voice was too soft, too thin — and it was swallowed by the sound of the creatures snarling and scraping behind them.
But then she muttered, barely above a breath:
“I… I want to… talk to Lilia.”
Ryn nodded and pulled Ariel up, his left arm wrapping around her to support as much of her weight as he could. She stumbled forward at first, her legs weak and unsteady, but he caught her before she could fall.
Together, they made their way toward Lilia, who sat huddled near the far wall.
She was still shaking — her breaths shallow, her eyes fixed on the dark as another screech tore through the stone around them.
Ariel and Ryn settled beside her, the three of them pressed close in the suffocating darkness.
Ariel looked at Lilia for a long time before saying anything.
“Lilia…” she whispered.
Lilia didn’t respond at first.
It took her a moment — a long, shaky breath — before she finally lifted her head.
“Are you… feeling better, Ariel?”
Her voice was thin, strained. When she looked up, her eyes were dark and hollow, worse than usual, and faint tremors ran through her entire body.
Ariel looked away and nodded.
Lilia managed a small, tired smile. “That’s good.”
Ariel’s voice rose, sharper, cutting through the quiet. “Lilia, I need—”
“Get some rest,” Lilia murmured, glancing between the two of them.
“Both of you. You look—”
Ariel didn’t let her finish.
She reached forward and grabbed Lilia’s shoulders, gripping them tight.
She couldn’t meet Lilia’s eyes, but she forced herself to speak.
“Thank you… for everything.”
Her voice cracked.
“Thank you.”
Before Lilia could respond, Ariel pulled her into a hug.
Lilia’s arms lifted a little, stiff at first, tense and unsure — like she didn’t know what she was supposed to do.
But after a moment, the tension eased.
Slowly, carefully, she wrapped her arms around Ariel in return, holding her close.
Outside, the screeching continued — claws against stone, bodies slamming against the barrier, shrill cries echoing through the temple.
But the two of them held each other anyway.
They stayed like that for a long time.
Ariel’s tears began to fall again, warm against Lilia’s shoulder.
Then Ariel whispered, voice breaking apart:
“I… I need to tell you something.”
She pushed Lilia back slightly, enough to see her face — though she still couldn’t bring herself to meet her eyes.
Her hands remained on Lilia's shoulders, grip trembling.
“The light,” Ariel whispered.
She paused, breath trembling.
“The one that destroyed everything. That burned through the walls. That killed—”
Her throat closed, the rest of the sentence shattering inside her.
Her voice fell to a whisper.
“It was me.”
The screeching outside grew louder, pounding at the walls as if reacting to her confession.
Tears streamed faster down her cheeks.
“I can’t let you die thinking I’m someone worth risking your lives for.”
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The words tore out of her, jagged and shaking.
“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry I dragged you into this.”
Her voice kept breaking, every syllable splintering as she tried to breathe.
“It was me, Lilia!”
Her breath hitched, throat tight and burning as she forced the truth out.
“It wasn’t the gods. It wasn’t a curse—”
Her voice collapsed.
“It was me.”
The screeching and pounding outside continued, rattling the stone, shaking dust loose from the ceiling.
“Why aren’t you saying anything?” Ariel whispered. Her voice cracked. “Are you that disgusted with me?”
Silence.
Then Lilia whispered, barely audible:
“I… guessed as much.”
Ariel froze.
Something in her chest twisted sharply.
She slowly lifted her head, forcing herself to look at Lilia.
Lilia’s expression didn’t change.
Her tone stayed soft, quiet… strangely steady.
She even smiled.
“Why, did you think I wouldn’t notice?” she asked gently. “The cracks on your skin. The way those things followed you.”
Her voice wavered, but only a little.
“You were never the best at keeping things to yourself.”
Ariel’s arms dropped from Lilia’s shoulders.
“This isn’t… this isn’t fair,” she whispered.
“You’re not being fair Lilia.”
“Say something,” Ariel begged. Her voice rose, frantic. “Tell me I deserve it! Tell me I ruined everything! Please!”
She tried to wipe her tears, but they kept falling, slipping through her fingers faster than she could catch them.
And Lilia didn’t yell.
She didn’t flinch.
Ariel sobbed, shoulders shaking violently.
“I thought you’d scream,” she choked out. “I thought you’d hit me, or hate me, or—something—”
She pressed a trembling hand over her face, breath hitching, “—but you’re… why aren’t you angry!?”
Her words broke apart.
Her breathing became ragged, falling into silence so fragile it felt like it might shatter.
Then Lilia spoke.
Her voice was soft.
Almost trembling.
“…I can’t hate you.”
Ariel's breath caught, something breaking inside her chest.
The pounding rose to a thunderous roar, shaking the entire temple.
Ryn's jaw tightened, his remaining hand clenching into a fist.
Then, with a final, splintering crack, the walls gave way — collapsing under the weight of the monsters.
The breach in the wall let a few aberrations spill in first — marching forward without thought.
Then more followed.
Wolf-shaped shadows dragging rows of jagged bone.
Fox-like silhouettes with too many tails and too many eyes.
Twisted beasts crawling upright on limbs that shouldn’t exist.
Dozens of them.
Ryn rose with a sharp inhale, lifting his sword despite the tremor in his remaining arm. He stepped in front of the two of them as the creatures circled closer, their red, green, and gold eyes pulsing in the crush of darkness.
Ariel and Lilia remained on the ground behind him.
“You should Lilia,” Ariel breathed hoarsely. “You really… really should.”
But she didn’t finish.
Her strength snapped at once — she folded forward, sobs tearing violently up from her chest, shaking her entire body.
Lilia stayed in front of her, small and rigid with fear, but unmoving.
The aberrations crept closer.
Claws scraped against stone.
Jawless mouths opened and clacked.
Their breaths rattled like broken glass in hollow throats.
“Lilia.”
She turned towards Ryn.
“I’ll hold them off.” Ryn said, steady. “Get ready to run.”
“Ryn—?”
She looked back at Ariel, then back at Ryn again.
For a heartbeat, she froze between them—
Then with surprising firmness
She gave a small nod.
Ariel’s voice wavered out again, trembling as much as her hands.
“I’m terrified, Lilia… I’m so scared.”
Her fingers clutched desperately at the ground.
“I don’t want to lose anyone else. I just want you and Ryn to survive.”
A fox-shaped aberration slunk nearer, its neck bending at an impossible angle as it watched her.Its many eyes fixed on her—unblinking, gleaming—as if it understood what she'd said.
Ryn shouted again, he began to countdown for Lilia.
“But that’s so selfish,” Ariel whispered. “I’ve taken so many lives already.”
Her breath hitched sharply.
“I’ve caused so many people suffering just to keep myself alive.”
Around them, the creatures pressed in tighter, forming a ring — twitching, shifting, waiting.
Ryn shouted, “Lilia—now!”
Lilia lunged for Ariel’s sleeve, trying to pull her to her feet and run—
but Ariel didn’t move.
She didn’t even flinch.
“Everything in this world has a cost,” Ariel said, her voice cracking. “I know that. I know it’s greedy but I still… I still want us to live.”
She squeezed her eyes shut, trembling harder.
“I want us to stay together.”
Another sob.
“I want to survive… and I want you guys to be there…”
“So… I’m sorry,” Ariel whispered, her voice barely steady. “I need to do this.”