Chapter 112: Broken and Bound
Elara stumbled back into the mortal world like a ragged whisper of her former self. Her eyes, once gleaming with fire and mischief, were dulled into a lifeless gray. Every step she took seemed to drain the ground beneath her, and every breath she exhaled was ragged and uneven. The seal hadn't just held her—it had devoured her.
Ariella caught her just in time before she collapsed completely. "Elara!" she cried, steadying her friend against her shoulder. But Elara didn't seem to recognize her. Her body shook violently, arms flailing at invisible things.
"Get away!" she shrieked, clawing at the air. "You don't belong here! Leave me alone!"
Her gaze darted frantically from side to side as though she were being followed.
"There's nothing there!" Ariella tried to soothe her, holding her tighter. "Elara, look at me! You're safe now!"
But Elara kept screaming, her nails digging into her own skin as if trying to tear something off. "They followed me! The souls—they're whispering! I can hear them—I can see them!"
Her voice cracked as she collapsed to her knees, trembling like a leaf caught in a storm.
Ariella knelt beside her, placing her hands over Elara's heart. "Maybe I can give you some of my strength," she whispered.
She summoned her magic, letting it surge through her arms like warm lightning, channeling it into Elara's body. But instead of being absorbed, the energy scattered—rejected, as if Elara's body had become a void. Her magic slid away, unable to anchor itself.
Ariella bit her lip. "No... no, no, no. This should work…"
Elara raised her eyes to her. "They're still watching me, Ariella. The souls. I didn't leave them. They left with me."
A chill swept through the air, sudden and biting. Ariella didn't sense anything, yet she could feel the wrongness.
Without thinking twice, she helped Elara to her feet. "We're going to the Crevice," she said firmly. "That's the only place left I can think of. Maybe the echoes there will drown them out."
Elara didn't respond. She let herself be guided, her body dragging as if it weighed a thousand times more than it should.
---
Far away, deep within the darkness of the abandoned ditch, Albert lay broken. His body was curled against the dirt like a discarded doll, arms limp, breath shallow.
Above him, something moved.
Smoke, thick and serpentine, curled and slithered in the air, coiling just above his chest. It hovered as if savoring his defeat. A shape, undefined but intelligent, studied the boy it had once scorned.
"So this... is what betrayal feels like," it muttered, voice like a whisper pressed between teeth. "How poetic that you were left behind like the others."
It drifted lower, circling Albert like a predator. "But you're not done, are you? Not yet."
The smoke surged downward.
Albert's eyes snapped open.
---
The sky above the forest cracked with light as Ariella reached the edge of the Crevice. The deep scars on the land pulsed faintly with ancient power, but even this place—once fearsome and revered—felt eerily still.
As she stepped closer to the mossy floor of the Crevice, a figure emerged from the swirling mist.
Tall, robed in woven branches and mineral threads, the Guardian of the Crevice carried an aura of age and silence. His eyes widened the moment he saw Elara, limp in Ariella's arms, eyes wild and void of sense.
"What... what is this?" he murmured, stepping closer but hesitating. "Why does she carry so many voices?"
"She was trapped inside the seal," Ariella explained breathlessly. "It changed her. She sees them now—the souls. She says they followed her."
The Guardian knelt beside Elara and touched her temple gently. His fingers recoiled as a spark of black energy crackled out.
"She's not merely haunted," he said gravely. "She's... bound. Spirit-tethered. They've laced into her essence. This is beyond mortal healing."
Ariella's jaw clenched. "Then what do we do? I brought her here because I thought maybe the Crevice could help."
The Guardian was quiet for a moment, then slowly nodded. "It might. But not through me. If she is to survive this, we must call upon the Guardians of the Chosen Ones."
"Elara's Guardian is Kai. He alone can cleanse what now clings to her. But to summon him... she must remain here. Three days. The Crevice must hold her for three days and three nights."
"And if she doesn't last that long?"
"Then she is lost."
Ariella stared at the still-twitching form of her friend, then turned to the Guardian. "Will she suffer?"
"She already is," he answered, voice low. "But if Kai comes, there may yet be hope."
Ariella hesitated, then finally stepped back, brushing sweat and tears from her brow. "Fine. Keep her here. Do whatever it takes to bring him."
"I will prepare the rites," the Guardian said.
Ariella wrapped her cloak tighter around Elara, placing a kiss on her forehead before stepping away. "Stay strong," she whispered. "You're not alone."
---
She hadn't even left the Crevice clearing when the vision came.
The world around her blurred, and the air thickened into mist. Two figures stepped forward from the haze—the Blue and White Queens.
"We bring warning," they said in unison, their voices distant but sharp. "The shadow—escaped."
Ariella stiffened. "What? You said the seal—"
"It was not a perfect lock," the White Queen said with a strained look. "When Kaelith was taken and Elara freed, a tear opened. The shadow fled before it closed."
"You should have told me," Ariella said bitterly. "We nearly died for that plan."
"There was no time. And now, it walks."
Ariella clenched her fists. "When does it ever end? We defeat one evil and another rises. Is that all this life is? Fighting shadows with no end?"
The Blue Queen reached out. "There is a pattern to it, child. The enemy adapts. But so do you."
"I'm tired of adapting," Ariella whispered. "I want to breathe."
They vanished.
She woke with a start, sweat beading her brow.
---
Later, as she walked away from the Crevice to clear her head, footsteps crunched on the dry leaves behind her. Ariella turned swiftly, her hand already sparking with light—until she saw him.
Albert.
He looked ragged, pale, and weak—but alive. His clothes were torn, his limbs scratched, his voice hoarse as he spoke.
"Ariella?" he called out.
She blinked. "Albert?"
He smiled faintly. "It's me. I made it out... I—I don't even know how. One second I was stuck in that pit, and the next… something shifted. I crawled out."
He swayed and Ariella ran to steady him. "You're alive," she breathed, her eyes wide with relief. "You're actually alive."
"I didn't think I'd see you again," he said, eyes flickering to the distance. "Is Elara…?"
"She's alive too," Ariella answered quickly. "But not okay. We just got back from the sealed realm. The seal did something to her. Something... bad."
Albert's gaze lingered in the direction she had come from. "She was always strong. She'll pull through."
Ariella nodded slowly. "You sure you're okay?"
"I'm just tired," Albert replied. "Really tired."
She wrapped an arm around him. "Rest for now. We've had enough madness for a day."