Raziel's mind didn't dive into a void, but was dragged into a freezing darkness.
Just when he thought he would be lost, a series of cold blue notifications popped up in his vision.
[WARNING: FRAGMENTED MEMORY OF UNKNOWN ECHO DETECTED]
[INITIATING FORCED SYNCHRONIZATION TO PREVENT SOUL CORRUPTION]
[STABILIZATION COST: -20 SANITY POINTS]
Before he could process what the hell "Unknown Echo" meant, the darkness tore apart and a vivid scene appeared before him, so sharp and real he could almost smell the smoke.
It was a small village in the north of Phaedra.
Straw roofs and wooden buildings stood silently under a gray, leaden sky.
The stillness shattered with the arrival of armored figures on horseback, their capes fluttering with the hated symbol of the Inquisition.
Flames exploded.
Screams filled the air as villagers ran from their burning homes, but the Inquisitors were faster.
Raziel watched the massacre with horror, a helpless spectator, unable to move or look away.
In the middle of the chaos, he saw a woman running with a baby clinging to her chest.
She dodged debris and panicked people, eyes wide with terror, but she never let go of the child.
An Inquisitor spotted her and chased her. The woman weaved between buildings, breathing raggedly. For a moment, it looked like she might escape.
But as she turned a corner, she ran straight into another Inquisitor.
The man reached out and snatched the baby from her arms.
She screamed and fought, but she was too weak.
As the child was ripped away, Raziel saw his face.
A boy with striking blue eyes.
Azure eyes.
The vision faded, but the woman's screams kept ringing in Raziel's mind.
'The baby... It can't be. The System said... an Echo? When the hell did I absorb something like that?'
The thought, as impossible as it seemed, sent a chill of pure terror down his spine.
What if it wasn't a random vision?
"GASP!"
Raziel coughed and sputtered as a stream of cold water hit his face.
He blinked, confused, and Lucian's smiling face appeared before him.
"I told you it would work!" exclaimed Lucian, holding an empty canteen.
But Raziel wasn't in the mood for jokes.
The vision weighed on his mind like a slab and he felt tears stinging his eyes, so he wiped them quickly before anyone saw.
Odessa knelt beside him, face full of worry. "Raziel, are you okay? What happened?"
Kiera stayed a few steps back, hand resting on her sword, always alert. "This place... something isn't right. Did you feel something strange before fainting?"
Raziel sat up, head still spinning from the images of destruction and loss. "I... saw something. A vision. But it wasn't mine."
Lucian's smile faded, replaced by a look of concern. "A vision? What do you mean 'it wasn't yours'?"
"I don't know," admitted Raziel quietly, because he couldn't tell them the truth. "It was a village. Some Inquisitors were attacking it. There was a woman with a baby..."
Odessa and Kiera exchanged a tense look.
"Inquisitors attacking a village?" Kiera sounded incredulous. "That's impossible. They're supposed to protect people, not hurt them."
Odessa put a hand on his shoulder. "Whatever you saw, this place is affecting you. Maybe we should go back."
"No!" said Raziel, voice sharper than he intended. He took a deep breath, trying to calm down, because he couldn't back down. Not now. "We have to keep going. There is something here, something important."
They continued deeper into the crypt. The air got thicker, heavy with a nauseating smell that churned Raziel's stomach.
"Blessed Goddess," muttered Odessa, covering her nose. "What is that stench?"
Kiera's eyes narrowed. "Smells like... rotting meat and something else."
Turning a corner, Raziel stumbled and leaned on the wall to stop from falling. To everyone's surprise, part of the wall moved, revealing a hidden passage.
"A secret room," said Kiera, unsheathing her sword. "Be careful."
They entered cautiously.
As their eyes adjusted to the darkness, horror took over their faces.
The chamber was a nightmare workshop.
Jars with organs floating in murky liquid, bones carved with forbidden symbols, and in the center, a stone altar stained with dry blood.
"This... this is sick," whispered Odessa.
Lucian vomited in a corner.
Raziel walked toward the altar, because he recognized the symbol carved on its side. It was the same one he had seen in the library.
"It's connected," he said, voice hoarse. "Seraphina, the Necromancers... everything is connected."
While they searched, Raziel found a leather book hidden under the altar. Just as his fingers touched the cover, a scream echoed in the chamber.
They spun around and saw a figure at the entrance, wrapped in shadows.
"Don't touch the altar!" ordered a familiar voice.
The figure stepped forward, pulling the hood back. Raziel froze.
There, standing before them, with eyes glowing with dark power, was Sister Seraphina.
"I'm impressed you made it this far," said Seraphina, her voice resonating strangely. "But your journey ends here."
Odessa raised her sword, in disbelief. "You? You are the necromancer?"
Seraphina let out a cold laugh. "Oh, I am much more than that."
Lucian stepped back, pale. "But... you were missing..."
"You thought exactly what I wanted you to think," she interrupted him, eyes fixed on Raziel. "Especially you, Raziel. You played your part perfectly."
"Why?" asked Raziel, his mind racing a mile a minute.
Seraphina's smile turned cruel. "To change the world, of course. And you, my dear Raziel, are the final piece I need. I'm sorry, children, but you can't leave here alive. After all, every great work needs... a sacrifice."
She waved her hand and shadows lunged at them. In that instant, while Odessa and Kiera prepared to fight, Raziel's System exploded with red alerts.
[WARNING! HIGHER LEVEL KILLING INTENT DETECTED]
[HOSTILE ENTITY HAS INITIATED SACRIFICE PROTOCOL]
[ACTIVATION CONDITION MET: IMMINENT EXISTENTIAL THREAT]
A scorching heat surged from Raziel's chest and a blinding golden light burst from his hands without him being able to control it.
Seraphina didn't seem surprised.
On the contrary, she smiled with manic satisfaction.
"Just in time," she said, as Raziel's light illuminated the crypt. "Just as I planned."