The water dripped endlessly from the cavern ceiling, echoing like a heartbeat that wasn't his own. Ethan stared across the dimly lit chamber, chest heaving, as Selene stood frozen at the other end. The pale light of the Hollow City pulsed around them, making her eyes glimmer like two dying stars.
Only one may be chosen.
The words still hovered in the air, etched in burning silver script, refusing to fade.
Ethan tightened his grip on the cursed book pressed against his chest. It throbbed with his heartbeat, heavy and hot, a weight both physical and spiritual. Selene's gaze fell upon it, and for the first time since he had met her, he saw fear flash across her features.
But not just fear. Longing.
"Selene…" Ethan's voice cracked. He tried to move closer, but the book pulsed violently, warning him back. "Tell me this isn't true. Tell me the city isn't forcing this on us."
Selene swallowed hard. Her lips parted, but no words came out. Her hands trembled at her sides, then clenched into fists. When she finally spoke, her voice was steady—but hollow.
"It's always been this way. The Hollow City doesn't permit equals. There can only be one vessel. One survivor. That's the rule."
The air between them grew colder. The dripping slowed. Even the echoes seemed to fall silent, as though the entire cavern strained to listen.
Ethan shook his head. "No. We can fight it. Together. We've already seen what it does to us separately—it feeds on our fear, our pain. But if we stay together—"
"Don't," Selene interrupted sharply, her voice slicing through the stillness. "Don't make this harder than it has to be."
Her eyes softened for a fraction of a second. He saw the Selene he had trusted, the Selene who had saved his life, the Selene who had laughed, briefly, when they had rested by the broken subway stairwell days ago. That version of her flickered like a dying candle, then vanished beneath the weight of the city's influence.
Ethan's chest tightened. He realized what she was thinking.
She believed she had to kill him.
The shadows stirred. From the corners of the cavern, echoes of the Choir began to seep in, whispering their names. Ethan. Selene. One must remain. One must fall.
Selene pressed her hand against her chest. A faint, glowing sigil pulsed beneath her skin—the mark of the Chosen. It matched the light radiating from Ethan's own chest, where the Heart and the book now merged within him.
Two flames in the same suffocating darkness.
The city would not allow them both to burn.
Ethan stepped forward, his voice breaking. "I don't want this. I don't want to fight you."
Her lips trembled. For an instant, he thought she might cry. Instead, she drew the knife she had carried since the beginning—a jagged blade etched with runes they had never been able to decipher. Its glow answered the book's pulse, resonating with the same cursed rhythm.
Her expression hardened. "Neither of us has a choice."
She lunged.
The knife slashed through the air. Ethan barely twisted aside, the blade grazing his shoulder and slicing into the fabric of his shirt. Pain bloomed hot and sharp, but he forced himself not to strike back. Instead, he raised the book like a shield.
The impact was explosive. Light burst outward, blinding him. Selene staggered back, her blade vibrating violently as though resisting her grip. The book in Ethan's hands seared his palms, urging him to counter, to strike, to end it.
"Fight her," the whispers hissed. "She will kill you if you don't. She already chose."
Ethan clenched his jaw. "No… I won't…"
But Selene didn't stop.
They circled each other in the dim cavern, the whispers rising in a dreadful chorus.
Selene's breaths came fast, her chest rising and falling as though she were fighting herself as much as him. "Why couldn't it just be me?" she spat, her voice cracking. "Why did the city need you?"
Ethan's heart ached at the rawness in her voice. She wasn't just fighting for survival. She was fighting because deep down, she believed she was destined for this role, and his presence was stealing that destiny from her.
"You think I asked for this?" he shouted, fury breaking through his fear. "You think I want to be part of this nightmare?!"
The book pulsed again, its pages whispering: Yes, you do. You are already one of us.
He nearly threw it away—but the thought of being defenseless stopped him.
Selene lunged again, faster, her blade slashing in a deadly arc. Ethan blocked with the book, sparks of light scattering as steel met cursed paper. The clash echoed like thunder, shaking the cavern.
The force sent them both stumbling apart.
Ethan's chest heaved. His vision blurred. He saw not Selene but a thousand shifting versions of her—some laughing, some crying, some already dead. The Hollow City was bending reality again, feeding on their struggle.
"Selene… please," he gasped. "This isn't you. You're stronger than this. Don't let it control you."
But her face twisted with anguish. "You don't understand, Ethan. I need this. It's the only way I matter. Without this… I'm nothing."
The words pierced him deeper than her blade ever could.
The cavern shook violently. The walls cracked, revealing glimpses of writhing flesh behind the stone, as though the city itself leaned closer to watch.
The whispers grew to screams. Choose! Choose! Choose!
Selene raised the knife, tears spilling now, her whole body trembling.
Ethan raised the book, his heart pounding with equal parts rage and sorrow.
The air between them crackled with unbearable tension, the Hollow City holding its breath.
And then—
The ground split open beneath their feet.
They both fell into darkness.