Chapter 318
The temple was quiet when Dain arrived, the only sound being the distant rustling of the trees outside, the wind whispering through the ancient stone walls. The air felt thick, as if the very atmosphere had become charged with tension, ready to crack at any moment. Dain’s heart pounded in his chest, his mind swirling with confusion, anger, and fear. He couldn’t shake the vision he had seen—the vision of Elyra, her eyes filled with pain, watching as the darkness consumed him.
This is not how it was supposed to be.
He clenched his fists, his knuckles white from the pressure. Elyra had been pulled further away from him with every passing day. And now Althea—Althea had been manipulating her, twisting her thoughts and pushing her away from him.
Dain’s footsteps echoed in the hallway as he made his way toward the central chamber. His jaw was clenched, his body tense, and the shadows seemed to stir around him, responding to his emotions. The energy within him buzzed, dark and untamed, like a storm ready to break loose.
When he entered the chamber, Althea was standing by the altar, her back to him, her hands resting lightly on the stone surface. She didn’t need to turn around to know he was there. She could always feel him. Feel the darkness that was growing inside of him.
“Althea,” Dain’s voice was low, cold, as he stepped forward.
The older woman turned slowly, her gaze meeting his. She didn’t flinch at the fury in his eyes, nor the anger that crackled through the air between them. Instead, she stood still, waiting for him to speak.
“You’ve been manipulating her,” Dain spat, his voice growing louder with each word. “You’ve been twisting Elyra’s mind against me. Against us.”
Althea’s expression was unreadable, her eyes steady. “I’m trying to help her, Dain. To keep her from making the wrong choices.”
Dain took a step forward, his fists tightening. “Wrong choices? What right do you have to decide what’s right for her? You don’t get to make that call. She’s not your puppet!”
Althea’s calmness only made him angrier. “I am doing what needs to be done. You cannot see it now, but you will. The prophecy must come to pass. She cannot stay with you if she wants to survive.”
“Survive?” Dain repeated, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “You mean you want her to survive. This isn’t about Elyra. This is about control. You want her to follow your orders, to do what you say. But she won’t. She’s not like you.”
For the first time, Althea’s gaze faltered, a brief flicker of something in her eyes. “You don’t understand, Dain. She’s the key to balancing everything, but her heart—her emotions—are her greatest weakness. She is not ready for what’s coming.”
“And you think you are?” Dain’s voice rose, his emotions spiraling out of control. “You think you can control everything, that you can force us into some twisted path you’ve set out for us? I don’t need your help, Althea. I never did.”
The shadows around him stirred restlessly, the power inside of him urging him to act. The energy was rising, swirling through his veins, tugging at him, calling him to unleash it. He could feel it—the dark power the Warden had promised him, the power that was slowly consuming him from the inside out.
His breath came in ragged gasps, the temptation to let go growing stronger. It would be so easy to give in. To embrace the darkness fully. He could feel it, the power just beneath the surface, waiting for the right moment to explode.
Althea took a step back, her eyes narrowing. “You must resist, Dain. You cannot let the darkness take you.”
“You don’t get to tell me what I can and can’t do!” he shouted, his anger reaching its peak. The shadows around him thickened, swirling like a storm, and before he knew it, he was raising his hand, the power surging through him.
“Dain, no!” Althea warned, but it was too late.
With a violent motion, Dain unleashed the dark energy within him. The force of it sent a shockwave through the room, shaking the very foundations of the temple. The air seemed to ripple with energy, the stones cracking and groaning under the pressure. A pulse of raw, uncontrolled power exploded from his outstretched hand, blasting against the walls.
For a moment, everything went silent.
And then the temple trembled, its ancient stones creaking under the force of the dark energy. The lights flickered, and the very ground beneath their feet seemed to shake as the power Dain had unleashed coursed through the chamber. The shadows twisted and writhed around him, as if the darkness itself were alive, feeding off the energy he had just released.
Althea staggered back, her hands raised in an attempt to shield herself from the blast. She had underestimated how far Dain had fallen, how deeply the darkness had taken root within him. He was no longer the man she had once known—he was something else entirely. Something more dangerous.
“Dain,” Althea breathed, her voice barely a whisper. “You’ve gone too far.”
Dain stood there, breathing heavily, his eyes glowing with an unnatural light. The darkness was consuming him, and yet, part of him reveled in the power he had just unleashed. He could feel it coursing through him, alive, intoxicating, and impossible to resist.
“You’ve made your choice, Dain,” Althea said, her voice laced with regret. “But know this—there is no going back from this. You’ve set something into motion, and the consequences will be far greater than you can imagine.”
Dain turned his gaze to her, his expression cold and distant. “I don’t care about your consequences, Althea. This is my path now.”
He took a step back, the shadows around him thickening, swirling like a storm. And in that moment, Dain knew that whatever happened next, there was no turning back.
-: Dain unleashes dark energy, nearly shattering the temple.
~
