Chapter 373 ANY LAST WORDS?

Chapter 373 ANY LAST WORDS?
SERAPHINA’S POV
I am nothing… nothing but a pound of flesh, an offering meant to strengthen the enemy and bring more suffering to the remnants of a world that once meant everything to me.

I lack the strength and the will to shed even a single tear; I dare not cry for myself, for the end that looms ominously close, nor do I mourn for those I've inadvertently harmed by merely existing, by believing I had any right to the breaths drawn from the universe.

I exist in silence, awaiting my tragic conclusion.

All I feel is Grendaline, like a restless soul hovering around me, basking me in warmth that desperately tries to reach a heart I no longer possess.

Though she does not speak, I feel her—her fretting and sadness, her worry for me when there's no point. I was never a good witch, despising what I was whenever the opportunity presented itself, fleeing from the power in my blood.

Then again, I was never a good person either, bringing death wherever I went, ruining the lives of everyone around me.

Even now, I still deny that he's really dead, despite the evidence within me. I fight it, unable to bear the truth, only able to wait for my final demise and an end to everything that causes pain.

Today, like any other, the lights come on and the doors open. Gideon walks in alone, pleased as always, perhaps a bit too pleased this time.

There are no more needles or food.

Why waste food on an offering about to be slaughtered, after all?

Perhaps he no longer sees me as a threat, realizing that I won't fight him anymore, that I have no reason to fight, and that's why there are no guards with him today, blocking the exit.

"It's time," he says simply, helping me to my feet.

I don't need a textbook to know what he means by it. I assume he's finally found what he needs to complete the ritual... his ascension to godhood.

All that's left is me.

I get to my feet without conflict, shrugging off his filthy hands once I balance myself—his filthy hands that murdered Artemis and took everything from me.

"I can walk on my own."

He raises both hands in defeat, letting me walk ahead of him and outside.

The hallway is empty, unlike when Artemis came to take me; all those people that blocked our path are now gone, almost as if everything that happened was a setup.

I grind my teeth and clench my fist silently.

We walk, following his directions, until we stumble across a room behind large double doors, and he steps forward to push them open, revealing the inside.

A large hall with a center where a large, flat, elevated surface sits beneath an opening high in the ceiling, where the light from a setting sun seeps through.

A magic circle is already drawn around it, with a circle of candle lights surrounding it—a typical ritual ground.

"I take it you prepared all of this for me."

"Only the best for you, my dear," he whispers from behind me, his lips close to my ear and almost brushing against them.

Disgust fills my gut, while I bite my lower lip now, tears daring to spill from my eyes, but I bite them back down.

I won't cry; I won't give him that satisfaction.

He leads me forward, guiding me closer by my hand towards the center, where rose petals are scattered around.

"I tried to make it as beautiful as possible, as a final gift to you, who will give me everything I want."

The tears I've been fighting back break through, a single one spilling from my eyes. I close them shut, and all I see are flashbacks of Artemis, of everything we were up until his death—everything we've been through.

His finger wipes my tear away, and once I open my eyes, I see the disgust in his.

"Don't worry, I will ensure that your loved ones live well after this."

I don't believe him; not a single thing he says could possibly be true. Yet, I pull away from him and lay down right in the middle of it, where he wants me to.

My heart pounds harder while I focus on the light in front of me, the beautiful orange colors in the sky.

As if my life truly is about to end, more flashes pierce through my brain: the orphanage and all the bullying, surviving it all only to go to that school and be bullied further, meeting friends, and falling in love—only to lose it all again.

It wasn't fair.

None of life was ever fair to me, considering how much I tried to fight for the weak and be a good person. Yet, every cruel and heartless person out there gets to live while I die horribly.

I lied to myself, thinking I feel nothing anymore.

I'm angry, furious… hateful.

I hate them all for what they did to me and to Artemis, for what they took from me.

I hate them all…

I want it all to burn to the ground.

"You don't have to do this. You don't have to give into him," Grendaline whispers into my mind.

I don't want to…

I want to kill him, rip him apart slowly and burn him into ashes.

"You are much stronger than you think. Even that damned bracelet cannot restrain the power that you hold within you. You need only let it out."

How do I do that when I can't even conjure a ball of light or form sparks on my fingertips? How do I break free when everything hurts so badly?

'Give into us, Sera. Give into your hate. Give into your despair and sadness.' Voices whisper, more than one, more than Grendaline's; the vengeful voices of a thousand Astrians from the depths of hell.

My vengeful hate and a desire to kill summoning their souls to make a connection with me. I feel an ugliness welling up in my chest, a darkness consuming my soul.

'Give into us and set yourself free. Take everything you deserve and burn this world.'

That's right, why did I ever hold back? Why did I ever fight what I always was?

A witch…

A monster.

I've lost everything, so there's no need to hold back anymore.

"This will only hurt a bit," Gideon emerges again, towering over me with a dagger in his hands, raising it above his head.

‘Why are you holding back? Will you let him win?’

No, I want revenge.

‘Then give yourself up to us!’

"Any last words?" Gideon asks, a final grace he offers me before he takes my life and steals my heart.

"Fuck you," I spit bitterly.

And I let go.

My soul slowly begins to taint, the darkness of hatred consuming any light left in it. It's not until the last bit of me remains that I wonder if I made a mistake. But it's already too late to stop, to regret.

I accept the evil into my body, losing all control of my magic as well, ceding to them wholly. While my soul is put into a state of slumber, I watch the blade in his hands fall forward, just before I lose consciousness.