Chapter 82: The Last Stand

Magnus felt his hold loosening as his body thrashed against the rift's powerful pull. Around him, a flurry of light and sound threatened to rip him to pieces as the throbbing energy from the broken core erupted. Every breath he took caused his lungs to burn, and each step he took was an effort to resist the tremendous force pulling him toward the center.

Celeste's voice broke through the confusion behind him. "We must prevent its victory!"

Her words pushed him to keep going even if they could hardly be heard over the noise of the rift. The intensity of the rift pushed him back as he extended his hand toward her, but he persisted.

Magnus battled for purchase and mumbled, "Just a little more," in a raspy voice. "I refuse to let this go."

Beside him, Celeste fought, her eyes full of resolve and her face smeared with perspiration. "Come on, Magnus."

Together. Though he knew they were running out of time, the thought gave him energy. The energy had reached a critical threshold, yet the light in the core was fading. If there were moments, they had them. The fissures were threatening to devour them both, and he could see them spreading across the earth.

Magnus was flung backward and fell into the abyss of the rift as the ground shattered beneath his feet as he extended his hand. The light of the core flared, ready to devour everything, and his cry reverberated in the emptiness.

Magnus' breath left his chest as he struck the chilly stone floor with force. His whole body ached as the force of the rift raced through him, swirling his vision. His muscles screamed in protest as he tried to sit up, but he was unable to stop at this point.

Celeste's body was highlighted by the glistening core, and her silhouette hung in the air above. She was too far away. He couldn't reach it.

She yelled, "MAGNUS!" in a terrified tone. "NO!"

He tried to stand up, but every step was slow, his heart thumping terribly in his chest. The tug of the fissure got stronger every second. Everything they knew was in danger of collapsing as it was pulling everything into the center.

His palm found purchase on the edge of the split, but the energy of the gap was suddenly more powerful. His bones echoed with the heartbeat-like pulse of the core above them.

Magnus's thoughts were racing. He needed to return to her. The core has to be destroyed.

The energy around him had become more forceful, yet he was able to pull himself up. Magnus hurled himself forward with one last burst of strength, but the fissure shattered and twisted, producing an electric shockwave that threw him back again.

Celeste's hands trembled as she reached for the heart of the rift, but she was too close. It was like battling a hurricane with every move. As though reality were coming apart, the ground underneath her shifted violently and the air itself began to crack.

She glanced down at the shadows where Magnus had fallen. The chasm surrounding her was hardly lit by the light emanating from the core. She was aware of his survival. She sensed it.

"Magnus!" As she searched for a way to assist him, her voice broke with despair.

She was pressed for time. The core was unstable, its dark energy, its throbbing light. It would be too late if they didn't take action right away.

Celeste inhaled deeply before returning her focus to the core, which she knew held the secret to halting the rift. Her fingers brushed the energy around it as she grabbed for it. She was unable to retreat at this point, even though the crackling power burnt on her flesh.

Celeste was flung to the ground when the core's light burst into a bright flare as her fingers touched it. The world turned black when her body struck the rock with force.

The world around Magnus was a haze. He found it difficult to focus on anything beyond the agony that tore through him with each breath. He could feel himself being pulled closer to the center of the turmoil by the rift's unrelenting pull. The energy all around him was too much for him to handle.

Then something else broke through the haze of suffering and bewilderment—voices.

His voice was shaky as he murmured, "Celeste?" “Where are you, Celeste?”

As though in response to his cries for help, the light from the core above him flickered and then faded. His heart thumped. If the core was already out of their grasp, if Celeste had failed...

He felt a sharp burst of energy that knocked him to his knees. He heard it through the haze of his blurry vision. A voice. Known.

"Magnus, I'm here."

A beat skipped through his chest.

Magnus turned to hear her voice, but what he saw chilled his blood: a dark-shrouded figure standing just outside the core's fading light.

Celeste's body ached as she tried to lift herself up, and her brain swam as she came to. It seemed as though reality itself had cracked, shattering the world around her. She was suffocated by the rift's energy, which filled the air.

Then there was Magnus, the figure in the distance. He fought to return to her, and he was still alive.

She pushed herself to her feet and said to herself, "No more waiting." Despite the protests from her body, she couldn't afford to stop.

She could see the dark shape before the core, its eyes blazing with evil intent. Its existence was odd, and something about it seemed wrong.

She yelled, "Magnus," but the noise of the rift overpowered her voice. "Time is of the essence!"

With a low, guttural voice, the creature—the one at the center of the rift—spoke. "It's too late. The rift cannot be stopped. You can no longer control it.

The thing came forward, its shape shimmering with dark energy, and Celeste's heart stopped. With its eyes meeting hers, it muttered, "You should have stayed away."

Then suddenly the earth underneath them split open, and the core exploded in a flash of dazzling, unadulterated light.