Location: Ravenspire Vale – Night of the Blood Eclipse
POV: Ashren Vale
The sky had turned to blood.
Ashren watched the moon eclipse, its light devoured by something older than night. The air pulsed with a sick rhythm, and even the trees bent as if in mourning.
Beside him, Seris stood silent, her face shadowed beneath her hood. Though her body held, Ashren could feel the shift. Thamaris was close—closer than ever.
> "She fights well," the voice inside her said, "but the fire cracks."
He didn't answer the voice. He spoke only to her.
"You don't have to carry this alone."
Seris didn't look at him. "You came here to kill me."
Ashren gripped the shardblade at his side. "I came here to save you."
---
A Memory of Stars
They sat in the ruins of an old watchtower, once a fortress of the Starborn Order. Ashren had once bled here in a war no one remembered.
Now, he was preparing to bleed again.
Seris turned to him, her voice soft. "Do you ever wonder… if the curse isn't something to fight, but something to accept?"
Ashren's jaw tightened.
"That's not you talking."
"But what if it is?"
He reached for her hand. Cold. Trembling.
"You are not a vessel. You are Seris Valen. You're the only thing that's ever made me believe this world might deserve saving."
A silence passed between them.
Then, a kiss.
Slow. Desperate. Final.
---
The Eclipse Breaks
The earth split.
A pillar of flame and shadow erupted from the center of Ravenspire Vale, cracking the land for miles. Out of it came them—Thamaris's spawn, twisted forms born of agony and ash.
Ashren drew his blade.
Seris's eyes glowed gold—and black.
One word left her lips: "Run."
But Ashren stood his ground. "Not without you."
---
Final Scene – The Choice
The curse surged.
Seris fell to her knees, screaming, her voice echoing with otherworldly power. Her back arched, glyphs flaring to life. Around her, the shadows danced—forming him.
Thamaris.
A silhouette of vast wings and a face like an empty sky.
Ashren raised the shardblade.
She looked up at him, her voice cracking.
"If I change… end me."
Ashren stepped forward.
"No. If you change… I'll follow you into hell and bring you back."
And the battle began.