Ezra wasn't the type to leave mysterious treasures behind, especially ones that looked like they could be worth something. After all, who knew how valuable it could be?
"How much do you think this would sell for, Sol?" he asked, crouching down, his eyebrows furrowed in focus as he observed the glowing shard.
Sol stared at him, her unblinking blue eyes radiating a mixture of disapproval and caution.
"Oh, right, you can't talk," Ezra said with a smirk, glancing at her. "Sucks to be you, doesn't it?"
The feline didn't react, her sharp gaze fixed on him and the shard.
Ezra turned his attention back to the artifact, its ethereal glow captivating him. The white light emanating from within seemed to ripple, casting shifting patterns on the walls of the chamber. It wasn't just beautiful—it was hypnotic, almost as though it was calling out to him.
He reached out, his hand trembling slightly as his fingers hovered centimeters away from the shard's surface. The air around it felt warmer, tingling faintly against his skin, as though the shard was alive.
"Just one touch," he murmured to himself, his curiosity overriding the nagging voice in his mind that screamed at him to stop.
Sol let out a low, warning growl. Her tail swished, and she edged closer, her body tense and ready to spring.
Ezra paused, glancing at her. "What's your problem now? It's just a rock. A glowing, probably valuable rock."
But Sol didn't relent. Her growl deepened, and she took another step closer, her ears flattening against her head as she glared at him.
"Alright, alright, relax," Ezra said, pulling his hand back slightly. "Geez, you're acting like it's going to explode or something."
Despite his words, the shard's glow seemed to intensify, the pulsating light growing brighter. The hum emanating from it grew louder, vibrating faintly in the air around them. Ezra's lavender eyes narrowed, and his curiosity burned brighter.
"Okay, fine, fine! I won't take it, don't worry," Ezra said with a sigh, raising his hands in mock surrender. He stood up, shaking the dust from his clothes with exaggerated motions.
He cast one last glance at the glowing shard, the temptation still gnawing at the back of his mind, but Sol's unyielding gaze kept him in check. "Happy now?" he muttered under his breath.
Sol didn't respond—of course she didn't—but the subtle flick of her tail and the way she turned sharply on her paws spoke volumes.
She walked in front of him, her head held high and her posture commanding, as if ensuring he didn't make any sneaky detours.
Ezra sighed again, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he followed her back toward the chamber. "You're way too bossy for a cat, you know that?" he grumbled, kicking at a stray rock on the ground.
Sol's ears twitched, but she kept walking, her pace steady and confident. Ezra couldn't help but feel like she was deliberately ignoring him, which only made him grumble more. "I mean, it's not like I was going to do anything stupid. Probably."
The shard weighed heavily on Ezra's mind as he walked away, each step feeling more reluctant than the last. He wasn't one to stick to rules, especially unwritten ones enforced by a cat.
Glancing forward to ensure Sol was far enough ahead, trotting confidently and seemingly oblivious, Ezra slowed his pace and cast a quick look back at the shard. The white glow beckoned him, its faint hum filling the air with an almost magnetic pull.
'C'mon, what's the worst thing that could happen?' he thought, biting the inside of his cheek. 'It's just a glowing shard, nothing more.'
"Should I take it or should I not?" he muttered to himself, his voice barely above a whisper.
The logic—or lack thereof—spilled out of him in a rush. "Again, it's just a shard. It's not like a meteor is going to come crashing down on us, or the ceiling's going to collapse…"
He caught himself nibbling on his thumb, a nervous habit he hadn't done in years.
"Should I…?"
The temptation clawed at him, refusing to let go. Ezra's hand twitched as he turned back toward the shard, his resolve hanging by a thread. The glow seemed to intensify as if the shard itself was urging him closer, daring him.
"Okay, just a quick touch," he murmured under his breath, barely convincing even himself.
Steeling himself, he took a step forward, his fingers hovering just inches away from the shard's surface. The air around it felt warmer, almost alive, and the faint hum grew louder in his ears as his hand inched closer.
And then, ignoring every instinct that screamed for him to stop, Ezra reached forward.
As his hand closed around the shard, the glow intensified, erupting into a blinding, searing light that enveloped him entirely. His body tensed, locking in place as a wave of raw, overwhelming energy coursed through him. It was unlike anything he had ever felt—wild, chaotic, and utterly consuming.
He tried to release the shard, his fingers desperately clawing to let go, but it wouldn't budge. It was as though it had fused to his hand, an unrelenting force binding it to him.
Pain spread through his arm like molten fire, searing and relentless.
His muscles strained, and he gritted his teeth, gasping for air as the energy surged through him, relentless and unyielding. His vision blurred, shifting to a stark white haze, and his head throbbed with an unbearable intensity, as though it might split apart at any moment.
His legs gave out, and he crumpled to his knees, his breath ragged as the light around him pulsed in rhythmic waves. The shard's glow grew brighter, forcing the edges of the chamber to recede into an ethereal haze.
The sound of his own heartbeat pounded in his ears, a deafening rhythm that matched the pulse of the shard's power.
A sharp burning sensation erupted on his arm, and he looked down to see an intricate glyph forming, glowing faintly against his skin as if etched by the light itself. Ezra's vision wavered, the overwhelming energy finally pushing him past his limits.
With one last gasp, he collapsed, the shard slipping from his grip as darkness consumed him.