Chapter 144: The Quiet Before

Midnight – Hidden Camp on the Edge of the Cursed Valley

The sky hung heavy with unnatural clouds, bruised black and red. No stars. No wind. Just the thick, unmoving fog of death.

Selene sat by a crackling fire, the flickering flame barely keeping the darkness at bay. It wasn’t wood they burned—there were no living trees here. Lyra had carved dry bone-root from a fallen cursed tree. Even that seemed to burn with reluctance.

But the fire gave them warmth, and in this place, that meant something.

The group had agreed to stop here—just until dawn. The final strike would happen then. When Darian’s magic was most unstable.

Selene stared into the fire. The medallion at her chest pulsed softly, like a heartbeat.

Elias approached from the trees. “Can’t sleep?”

She shook her head. “I haven’t slept in weeks.”

He crouched beside her. “You used to talk in your sleep. Back when we traveled north, remember?”

She glanced at him. “About what?”

“Your mother. Your guilt. The stars. You always said you were looking for something.”

She smiled faintly. “And now I’ve found it—a war I can’t run from.”

He hesitated. “Selene, tomorrow… if something happens to me—”

“Don’t.” Her voice was sharp, cutting. “Don’t do the goodbye speech.”

“But if—” “I said no,” she repeated, looking at him now, eyes fierce. “We’re going to walk into that sanctum together. We’re going to face him. And we’re going to walk out—together.”

He blinked, then nodded. “Alright.”

There was a pause.

Then she added, more softly, “But if I fall… you have to destroy the medallion. No matter what. Promise me.”

His jaw clenched. “I won’t make that promise.”

“Elias—”

“I’m not planning for your death, Selene. That’s not the future I want. That’s not the one I’ll fight for.”

She didn’t argue further. Instead, she leaned against him. For a moment, they said nothing—just two souls caught between war and memory.

Nearby – On the Edge of the Camp

Kael sat with his back against a crumbling stone, breath ragged. Mira stood nearby, arms crossed, watching the horizon.

“You should rest,” she said.

“Can't,” he replied. “Pain keeps me alert.”

Mira knelt beside him, unwrapping his bandages. The wound had festered slightly. She applied a cooling salve and began rewrapping. Her hands trembled once.

Kael noticed.

“You’re scared.”

She scoffed. “Of course I am. I’ve seen what he becomes when he lets the gate in. This… isn’t the same Darian we once followed.”

He looked at her. “You once loved him.”

“I once believed him,” she corrected. “That’s not the same.”

Kael was quiet a moment.

“And me?” he asked finally. “What did you feel for me?”

She didn’t answer at first. Then: “I don’t know. Maybe that was the problem.”

He gave a dry laugh. “Maybe.”

“But I do know this,” she said, tightening the last wrap. “I didn’t come back for Darian. I came back because if the world ends tomorrow, I wanted to do one thing right before it did.”

Their eyes met.

Kael reached up, his hand brushing hers. “You did.”

She didn’t move. Just let her fingers rest there a little longer than necessary.

Back at the Fire – Lyra and Theron

Lyra sharpened her blades in silence. The repetitive scrape of steel on stone was the only sound between her and Theron.

He finally spoke. “You hate me.”

“No,” she said. “Hate is easy. I resent you.”

He tilted his head. “For siding with Darian?”

“For not choosing us sooner. For watching the world burn and calling it strategy.”

He nodded. “Fair.”

There was a long pause. The fire popped. A log cracked.

Then Lyra added, “But I also know people change. If Selene trusts you, I’ll give you one more chance. But only one.”

Theron gave a small, bitter smile. “I won’t waste it.”

Later – Final Words

Selene stood before them all, the medallion glowing faintly.

“This is it,” she said. “At dawn, we move. We divide into three paths - Kael and Mira will go underground, disable the ward stones. Lyra and Theron create a diversion at the eastern gate. Elias and I will enter from the high ridge—and confront Darian directly.”

No one objected.

Selene looked around the circle—faces that had survived horrors, betrayals, and loss.

“You’ve all lost something to this war. Tomorrow, we reclaim it. Not just for ourselves—but for those who never got the chance to fight back.”

She drew her dagger and dragged it across her palm, letting a drop of blood fall into the fire.

“For Naelira. For every soul twisted by the gate.

For every child that won’t have to grow up with fear.”

One by one, they stepped forward and added their own blood to the flames.

Kael.

Mira.

Lyra.

Theron.

Elias, last.

The fire flared white for a brief second—burning pure. Sacred.

Then faded to red again.

Selene’s Tent – Just Before Dawn

She sat alone, eyes closed. Hands clenched in her lap.

Elias entered silently.

“Couldn’t sleep,” he said.

“Didn’t try.”

He hesitated. “You ready?”

She looked up. “I was born ready. I just didn’t know what for.”

Then, she stood and touched his face.

“If we win, Elias… I want peace. Not a throne. Not power. Just you.”

He smiled. “Then that’s what we fight for.”