And suddenly—
I’m emptying.
My power doesn’t obey me anymore. Itrips free, dragged out in violent streams of light, siphoned straight into the creature’s core. The brilliance dims as it leaves me, my limbs growing heavy, my breath stuttering.
“So much power… Nyxos likes you.” He drools, sludge dripping from where his mouth should be.
“No—stop—!” I gasp, clawing at the tendrils, but my hands pass through them like smoke.
The Siphongrows.
Its shape swells, edges sharpening, form stabilising—stronger, more solid than before. My power wraps around it like a crown.
“Oh, little Asha,” it purrs, its voice folding around my name like a caress. “Who would have thought you would burn this bright?”
My knees buckle.
The world tilts violently, cinders and smoke blurring into streaks of grey and gold. My heart pounds too fast, then too slow. Every breath hurts. My hands tremble, light flickering weakly between my fingers before dying out completely.
I fall to one knee, then both.
Ryder shouts my name somewhere far away. River’s voice follows—panicked, hoarse—but I can’t answer them. I can barely hear them.
The Siphon leans in closer.
“This is how you end,” it whispers. “Shame you won’t get to meet him.”
Dark spots creep into my vision as the last of my strength bleeds out of me.
My chest feels caved in, like something vital has been scooped away.
I wanted to hurt it.
Instead—
I fed it.
Chapter Forty-Two
My knees buckle, and my limbs become too heavy to respond. I am but a ragdoll, suspended, being devoured.
Light fractures in my vision; shapes blur.
The air hums thick with Godly energy—myenergy—consumed.
This is it.
This is the end.
Or it should be.
Suddenly, my mind races through everything—the journey, the trials, the gem.
Every piece seems to fall into place, every Gift I have been blessed with.
Realisation strikes like lightning, igniting everything inside me.
It was always supposed to end like this.
