CASSIE'S POV
I observed Arceus's face as he lay unconscious on the cold floor of the hallway. I leaned over him alongside Reinhardt, my heart tightening with worry, while the faint light revealed the exhaustion etched into our own countenances. The three of us had battled our own demons in the form of illusions, and though the relief of seeing Arceus awaken was indescribable, the weariness weighed upon us like an invisible slab.
—How long...? —murmured Arceus with a hoarse voice as he slowly opened his eyes, his gaze still lost somewhere between nightmare and reality.
—You were the last to awaken —responded Reinhardt, keeping his tone calm—. Cassie woke up first, I did so a few minutes later.
I extended my hand toward him, feeling how worry gripped my throat as I took in his condition. The pallor of his skin reminded me of the first time I saw him at the orphanage, that silent boy with empty eyes who so desperately needed a ray of hope.
—Are you okay? —I asked with a trembling voice I couldn't control—. You seemed... to be fighting against something truly atrocious.
I watched as he took my hand and struggled to his feet, noticing the tremor in his legs that he tried to conceal with dignity. An ironic smile curved his lips, though I noted it didn't reach his eyes.
—I'm fine. It was just an unsolicited reminder that the past always finds a way to catch up with us —he looked at us alternately, assessing us with that sharpness that defined him—. And you two?
—That was... intense —I replied, feeling a shiver run down my spine as I recalled the images that had paraded through my mind. I saw Reinhardt nod in silence, his usual serenity visibly shaken.
—The runes —said Reinhardt after a moment of contemplative pause, pointing to the walls with a precise gesture—. They're similar to the previous ones. They seem to control the illusions. The base pattern is the same, but the sequence...
Since awakening as a Warlock, his perception had notably increased. Though, as a level 1 Illuminated, his practical abilities wouldn't be of much help for that, his eye remained invaluable.
I directed my gaze toward the new runes that glowed with a ghostly luminescence on the surface of the walls. The pattern bore a certain resemblance to those we had faced before, but with subtle differences that stood out to someone who knew how to look. This time, however, we were better prepared. With the experience gained from our first encounter and the urgency to avoid more mental traps, the three of us set out to unravel the enigma without delay.
—If they're similar, we can apply what we learned before —I pointed to a particular set of symbols while my mind worked swiftly, trying to establish connections—. The arrangement is almost identical, but the symbols are inverted.
Reinhardt nodded at my observation, his brow furrowed in absolute concentration.
—It's like a mirror... or more precisely, like a photographic negative —he theorized while running his fingers over the inscriptions without touching them—. If the previous sequence followed a left-to-right order...
—This one must be read in the opposite direction —concluded Arceus, completing the thought with that synchrony we had developed after years of living together.
—But not only that —he added, his voice gaining strength as the discovery took shape—. Each individual symbol is also inverted. It's a system of double inversion.
—It's like a three-dimensional puzzle —murmured Reinhardt after several failed attempts that had led us into dead ends—. Each symbol not only has to occupy the correct position in the sequence, but it must also be properly oriented.
We worked in perfect harmony, each contributing our strengths to the task. This time, the solution came to us more quickly thanks to our coordination, honed by the adversities we had shared.
The runes emitted an intense glow for an instant, as if acknowledging their defeat, before extinguishing completely. The mist that had permeated the atmosphere began to dissipate gradually, though it didn't vanish entirely, leaving a subtle haze floating around us as a reminder that the danger had not passed.
—Well done, team —said Arceus, allowing himself a small smile of satisfaction that momentarily lit up his usually serious face—. Now we can...
His words hung suspended in the air as a sudden change in the atmosphere sent a chill through my veins. I felt the air grow dense, as if the atmosphere itself had turned into liquid lead weighing down my lungs.
The temperature dropped sharply, and a sensation of primordial terror began to seep into my bones like a slow poison. I watched in horror as a dark and malevolent presence began to manifest in the hallway, an aberration that seemed to devour the light and warmth surrounding us, as if it were a black hole in the fabric of reality itself.
Arceus was the first to sense it. I saw his eyes dart toward the walls, where the runes we had just neutralized underwent a sinister metamorphosis, taking on an intense blood-red color that pulsed like a dying heart.
—Close your eyes! Don't look into its eyes! —whispered Arceus with urgency, a tremble in his voice I had never heard before—. Listen... Whatever happens, don't look into its eyes! If you lock gazes with it, you're dead! Stay still, don't make any movement, and remain in absolute silence!
Cold sweat dripped down my forehead as I felt that presence drawing closer with agonizing slowness. Each step echoed like a funeral drum in my ears, and the terror it exuded was almost tangible, an oppressive force threatening to crush my spirit into dust.
Pallor invaded my face as my knees trembled uncontrollably, threatening to give way beneath my weight at any moment. Tears welled up in my eyes without my ability to stop them, but I knew that to survive, I had to endure the fear that struggled to consume my heart like a ravenous fire. I covered my mouth with both hands to stifle any sound that might escape my trembling lips.