That evening, Levi found himself alone in his assigned dormitory room, a modest but comfortable space overlooking the Academy's gardens.
Elena had been given quarters in the research wing, and Luna had promised to give them a more thorough tour tomorrow.
"Are you ready?" Elena's voice came from the communication crystal she'd given him.
"As ready as I can be," Levi replied. "What about you?"
"I've located the entrance to the basement levels. It's warded, but nothing I can't handle. The question is whether you're strong enough to break through whatever's keeping Mera prisoner."
Levi looked at his hands, watching golden light dance between his fingers. Since claiming the Fragment of Dawn, his power had grown considerably, but he still felt incomplete.
Like a puzzle missing crucial pieces.
"There's only one way to find out."
They met in the library an hour after midnight. The Academy's corridors were eerily quiet, lit only by the soft glow of emergency crystals.
Elena had changed into dark clothing that hugged her curves in distracting ways, and her usual warm expression had been replaced by professional focus.
"The entrance is behind the history section," she whispered. "I've disabled the alarm wards, but we'll need to be quick. The night patrol makes rounds every hour."
The hidden door was masterfully concealed, indistinguishable from the surrounding stone until Elena pressed her hand against a specific point.
It swung open silently, revealing a spiral staircase that descended into darkness.
"Stay close," Elena said, producing a small light crystal. "And whatever happens, don't let go of my hand."
Her fingers interlaced with his, and Levi felt a jolt of warmth that had nothing to do with magic. Her skin was soft and calloused in all the right places, speaking of someone who worked with her hands but took care of them.
The staircase went down much farther than Levi had expected.
The walls gradually changed from cut stone to natural rock, and the air grew thick with the weight of centuries.
Ancient symbols had been carved into the walls, most of them weathered beyond recognition.
"These are old," Elena murmured, studying the markings. "Pre-Academy. Maybe even pre-human."
"They're divine script," Levi said, the knowledge coming to him unbidden. "Aseraph's personal writing system. He used it to record his most important thoughts."
"You can read it?"
"I... yes. I think I can." Levi traced one of the symbols with his finger, and it pulsed with faint light. "This one says 'sanctuary.' And this one... 'protection.'"
"Protection from what?"
Before Levi could answer, they heard footsteps echoing from somewhere ahead. Not the measured tread of a patrol, but something else. Something that moved with predatory grace.
"Hide," Elena whispered, pulling him into an alcove carved into the rock.
They pressed themselves against the stone, Elena's body warm against his side.
Levi could smell her hair, feel the rapid beating of her heart.
Despite the danger, or perhaps because of it, he found himself acutely aware of every point of contact between them.
The footsteps grew closer, accompanied by a voice that made Levi's blood run cold:
"I know you're here, little light-bearer. You cannot hide from shadows in a place like this."
Vex emerged from the darkness, his form shifting between human and something else. His silver hair flowed like liquid mercury, and his eyes were pools of starless night.
"Your fairy friend is quite comfortable in her new accommodations," Vex continued conversationally. "She's been most informative about your abilities. And your weaknesses."
Levi's hands began to glow with suppressed power.
Elena's grip on his arm tightened, a wordless plea for patience.
"Did you really think you could sneak into the Academy undetected? Every ward in this place is keyed to divine energy. The moment you set foot on these grounds, I knew you were here."
Vex paused directly in front of their hiding spot. "The only question is whether you're brave enough to face me, or coward enough to let your companions suffer for your cowardice."
"Companions?" Elena whispered.
As if summoned by her words, another figure emerged from the shadows. Luna, but not as they had seen her before.
Her violet eyes blazed with lunar fire, and her silver hair whipped around her face like a living thing. She was bound with chains of shadow, but her expression was defiant.
"I told you," Luna said, her voice carrying the authority of nobility, "I don't know where they are."
"But you helped them," Vex replied. "You gave them information about the basement levels. You made their infiltration possible."
"I helped two researchers who were interested in Academy history. If that's a crime, then half the student body is guilty."
"Such loyalty," Vex mused. "It's almost touching. But ultimately pointless. They will come for you, and when they do, I will be ready."
Levi couldn't take it anymore. He stepped out of the alcove, his body blazing with golden light.
"You want me? Here I am."
Vex's smile was sharp as a blade. "There's the hero I was expecting. And Dr. Voss, I presume? How nice. All my targets in one convenient location."
"Let Luna go," Levi said, his voice echoing strangely in the stone corridor. "Your fight is with me."
"My fight is with everyone who would see the old order restored," Vex replied. "The gods have ruled for millennia. Mortals exist to serve, not to ascend."
"Aseraph thought differently."
"Aseraph was a fool. And his death proved it."
"Did it? Because from where I'm standing, it looks like you're still afraid of him."
Vex's expression darkened. "You know nothing of fear, child. But you will learn."
He raised his hand, and shadows erupted from the walls themselves. But this time, Levi was ready. He had learned from their previous encounter, had grown stronger with each passing day.
"Radiance," he said calmly, and the corridor filled with brilliant light.
The shadows recoiled, and Vex hissed in pain.
But he didn't retreat.
Instead, she began to change, her human form melting away to reveal something far more terrible.
"You want to see what a god's avatar truly looks like?" He snarled. "Allow me to show you."
[COMBAT INITIATED]
[ENEMY: VEX, AVATAR OF NYX]
[THREAT LEVEL: EXTREME]
[ALLIES PRESENT: ELENA VOSS, LUNA STARWEAVER]
[RECOMMENDATION: TACTICAL RETREAT]
"No retreat," Levi said firmly. "Not this time."
"Then prepare to die as your god did," Vex replied. "Alone and forgotten."
"He's not alone," Elena said, stepping up beside him. Her hands crackled with healing energy that had been twisted into something more offensive. "And he won't be forgotten."
"Neither will you," Luna added, her lunar fire burning away the shadow chains. "The Academy teaches us that knowledge is the greatest weapon. Let me show you what I've learned."
As the three of them stood together against the darkness, Levi felt something he hadn't experienced since Maya's illness began: hope. Not just for himself, but for the future. Whatever lay ahead, he wouldn't face it alone.
"For Aseraph," he said quietly.
"For the Academy," Luna added.
"For each other," Elena finished.
And as their combined light pushed back the shadows, Levi heard something that made his heart soar: Mera's voice, calling out from somewhere deeper in the darkness.
"Levi! I'm here! But be careful—there's something else down here. Something that's been waiting for you."
The battle was about to begin in earnest.