Point of View: Sylvanas
This day in Arcadia was quieter than usual. Many shops had closed their doors.
The reason was me.
They wanted to accompany me.
I walked with steady steps toward the Ascension Platform. I wore only a light robe, knowing that nothing material could protect me from what was about to come.
When I reached the center of the platform, they stopped following and remained outside the perimeter.
At a prudent distance stood the Primordials.
All of them watched me with concern. Only the soldiers on the walls and those who could not abandon their posts were absent. Even so, I knew they wished to be here with me today.
Among the crowd, I saw Eldrin and my fellow council members. Their eyes never left me. I looked at them one by one.
These are my people. This is my home.
I still remember when I told them I wanted to ascend. They asked if I was certain, if it wouldn't be better to delay and prepare more.
But I knew it was useless. I had refined all my abilities, and my cultivation had reached its absolute limit.
"Don't make that face," I said with a faint smile to the leader. "I haven't lost yet."
I closed my eyes.
I was afraid…
But remembering the previous Overflow, my doubts faded. I had to become stronger.
"System," I said firmly. "Begin the Ascension."
The sky above the platform changed.
The clouds swirled violently. Pressure descended like an invisible mountain crushing my shoulders.
The first lightning bolt fell.
It was as if the entire world split in two.
My body burned. This was no ordinary lightning—it was pure energy piercing every cell, every fiber, every thought.
I clenched my teeth.
I did not scream.
The second bolt struck before I could stabilize myself.
Stronger.
My skin split open in several places. Blood barely had time to flow before evaporating from the heat.
The platform trembled.
The Primordials could not approach. They knew interference would only make the tribulation more violent.
The third bolt fell.
This time, it did not only strike my body.
It struck my mind.
A whisper echoed.
Give up. You don't have to endure this. It would be easier to let go.
The fourth lightning bolt descended.
My back arched. I felt my bones crack.
The whisper returned.
Why continue? You've done enough. Let it all end.
The pain was unbearable.
The fifth bolt fell.
My hands trembled. My breathing became irregular.
The sixth lightning strike descended.
This time, I screamed.
My body could no longer endure it.
My mind filled with dark thoughts.
Death would be peace. No more pain. No more burden.
The seventh bolt formed in the sky.
Larger. Denser. Crueler.
When it fell, the impact was devastating.
It knocked me to the ground, and my vision went black for an instant.
I can't anymore…
My mind drifted toward darkness.
Then I heard it.
"SYLVANAS!"
Eldrin's voice shattered the silence.
"YOU CAN DO IT!"
And then another voice.
"SYLVANAS!"
And another.
And another.
The people of Arcadia were shouting my name.
I could not fully open my eyes.
But I could hear them.
I could feel them.
They need me…
My hand clenched against the ground, and with all my strength, I forced myself up.
I cannot fall.
The eighth lightning bolt began to descend.
"Not yet…" I whispered with a broken voice. "…I'm not finished."
Point of View: Eldrin
The lightning fell.
The impact was absolute.
The platform cracked.
The air exploded in a shockwave.
For a moment, no one could see anything.
When the light faded, Sylvanas was standing.
Barely.
Her body was covered in wounds. Her breathing was almost nonexistent.
But she was alive.
By a thread.
Then it happened.
Origin Energy began pouring in from all directions.
It wrapped around her body, sealing wounds, reconstructing tissue.
The Ascension had ended.
Sylvanas opened her eyes.
Her pupils shone with a new intensity.
Deeper. Steadier.
She had ascended to Level Two.
The crowd erupted in cheers.
But I noticed that, deep within her gaze, there was no celebration.
There was concern.
And I understood it.
This tribulation had been harder than the last…
If the next Ascension was even worse…
I wasn't sure she would survive.