The key of light hovered in Liara's hands—weightless, yet buzzing with power that resonated deep within her bones. It didn't feel like something meant to unlock a door. It felt like something meant to awaken her.
Or all of them.
As they stood beneath the triad statue, silence thickened between the three. But it wasn't discomfort. It was recognition.
They'd seen glimpses—visions, dreams, instinctual pulls—but now, the Vault had confirmed it.
They were bound. By fate. By soul. By something far older than prophecy.
A soft chime echoed through the chamber, and a passageway behind the dais slid open, revealing a smaller, circular room. Unlike the rest of the Vault, this space was lined with worn tomes, crystals suspended midair, and relics that pulsed with dormant magic.
Aeron stepped forward first, gaze scanning the artifacts. "This isn't just a temple," he muttered. "It's a memory vault."
Cassian smirked faintly. "Library of the damned. Bet there's bedtime stories in here."
Liara's fingers trailed along the spines of the books—until one glowed beneath her touch. The cover was blank, but as she lifted it, ink began to bloom across the parchment like spilled light.
It wrote itself as she read:
The Trinity Bond is rare and sacred. It forms only when three souls are aligned beyond the physical—woven by magic, fate, and purpose. When forged, their strength becomes greater than any single force in existence…
She looked up. "We weren't chosen to be separate keys. We're one."
Cassian leaned closer, reading over her shoulder. "So what? We're some sort of celestial triad sent to fix the world?"
"Not sent," Aeron said, voice thoughtful. "Reawakened. This has happened before… we just forgot."
Further in the room, a crystal sphere glowed as they approached. It shimmered—then erupted in floating glyphs that danced in the air. As Liara reached toward them, they rearranged into a moving constellation—three stars spiraling around each other.
Cassian, Aeron, Liara.
Three lights, one gravity.
When the bond is complete, the magic whispered, they will not only unlock the Vault… they will unlock each other.
Liara felt her breath catch.
Because she had. With both of them.
Her power had grown. Her senses sharpened. Her visions clearer.
Cassian placed his hand beside hers on the sphere. "That night… we weren't just tangled in emotion. We activated something."
Aeron's jaw tightened, but not in jealousy. "The Vault's door responded after we made the bond real."
They weren't just lovers.
They were amplifiers of each other's strength—mirrors, catalysts, conduits.
Liara turned back to the key of light.
"We're not done," she whispered. "The Vault was just the beginning. Whatever comes next… it will take all three of us."
Aeron stepped closer, brushing his fingers along her shoulder. "Then we stay. No matter what."
Cassian, ever the rogue, gave a sideways grin. "Guess I'm stuck with the brooding one and the flame."
He winked.
"And I wouldn't have it any other way."