The Forsaken Hero

I gasped the words through the pain, completing the second spell I held in my soul. Alverin froze, mouth parted mid-threat, as five magic circles blazed to life around him, the runes appearing like stars against the setting sun. He glanced at his ring, surprise turning to fear, as he found the enchantment gone.

He threw a desperate hand toward me, clawing at my face, but I’d already fallen back off his sword. Before he could react, thick strands of dark, oily mana shot out of the circles, binding his soul. They carried the vile taint of Curse Magic, drenching him in the same shadows he’d unleashed on me just seconds before.

Alverin screamed as the dark tendrils latched onto his soul, not in pain but in pure, unbridled rage. I flinched as the noise pierced my ears, but poured more mana into the spell, battling against his soul. He was powerful, with even more mana than I had, but no soul had inherent curse resistance.

His eyes locked with mine as our souls clashed, his breath coming as quick and shallow as my own. ”I...will...never...submit,” he growled through clenched teeth. ”I am the master, you the slave!”

”You wanted the perfect Heart Crest, didn’t you? The version you cast on Elise was good, but it wasn’t perfect.” I said, approaching him with slow, deliberate steps. It wasn’t out of any concern or intentional action but because walking simply hurt too much. ”But how does it feel? To see the only true Heart Crest cast in this world?”

”You!” he snarled through gritted teeth. A vein bulged on his forehead, but he was held fast by the curse that slowly worked its way into his soul. ”How dare you!”

I shook my head. ”You’ve sought to enslave the souls of millions, but more, you took my dearest friend, the one who saved me when no one else would. You violated and humiliated her, broke her body and spirit day after day. Do you have any idea what that even means? How much she suffered?”

His snort was filled with contempt. ”You care too much for a simple slut,” he sneered. ”The world is filled with useless creatures good for nothing other than an evening’s amusement. Whether I bed or torture her, what does it matter?”

”Is that what I am to you too?” I asked, my voice hoarse and strained, anger simmering beneath the surface.

He shrugged, a cruel smirk playing on his lips. ”No, as you just demonstrated with this spell, you are so much more. You are actually worth something, a companion I would have by my side. I know you can’t kill me, nor do you have the character to keep me enslaved. Once I’m free, you will stand beside me. To be a slave is all you were meant for, the only destiny that could possibly satisfy you.”

My stomach churned, bile rising in my throat. ”I’m not that girl anymore. I could never stand by you.”

I waved my hand, pushing Alverin’s soul over the edge. The magic circles flashed once, and his soul disappeared beneath a tide of darkness. The effect was immediate. His muscles slacken, and his eyes take on a distant, vacant look. I stared at him, almost transfixed by the sight, until the circles’ last glimmers faded.

Finally, I shook my head, breaking free from the trance of horror and despair. Alverin was watching me, waiting for a command. I bowed my head, voice a forced whisper, the single word heavy on my tongue. The same command he tried to issue me.

”Kneel.”

Alverin stiffened, his entire body rebelling against the command. I could see the resistance in his eyes, a silent battle raging against the curse. But even as his body trembled in fury, he slowly, agonizingly, knelt before me.

A shiver ran down my spine, a wave of horror mixed with an unfamiliar sense of power. This was control, a level of dominion I’d never experienced, and it terrified me. To have someone forced to heed my words... was this how Soltair had felt that day in the Divine Throne, all those years ago? Or had he found himself enjoying it, like Alverin did?

”I’ve never cast a curse before,” I admitted, voice barely above a whisper. I spoke more to myself than him, turning away to gaze at the statue of Fate. ”People should be free to choose their own fate.”

”Then why?” he asked, his voice devoid of anger, replaced by a curious lilt. He gestured towards himself. ”I’m grateful you did, but why hurt yourself and cast this on me, my love?”

I shuddered at the endearment. This time, it felt genuine, as though he truly believed he loved me. And perhaps he did, now, under the influence of the Heart Crest.

”Because I wanted you to know what it felt like,” I said, ”I wanted you to know what it felt like to be helpless and alone, unable to do anything but obey your master. Even if it’s only for a few seconds, I wanted you to understand.”

He was quiet for a moment, then I heard a soft sniffle. I turned to find tears welling up in Alverin’s eyes.

”I’m sorry I upset you,” he said, tears streaming down his cheeks. ”I’m very sorry.”

This wasn’t what I expected. It was exactly what I wanted, yet seeing him on his knees, broken and pathetic, brought me no satisfaction. There was no triumph or glory, no pleasure in enslaving this monster.

It filled me with loathing. In all the years I’d endured abuse and torment, I never once wished it upon another. I hated the power I now wielded, the way it made me feel, and I promised myself never to cast a curse again.

But if anyone deserved it, this man did. Even if just for a fleeting moment.

”Do you still have that knife?” I asked, turning back to meet his tear-filled gaze. It sent a shiver down my spine, filling me with disgust.

He nodded and withdrew a long, slender blade from his spatial ring. My tail stiffened at the sight of the blade gleaming in the pale starlight. This was the weapon he had used to force Sari to hurt herself. How fitting.

”Good,” I said, unable to meet his gaze any longer. I swallowed hard, my following words a heavy weight on my tongue. ”Kill yourself.”

Alverin gave me one last, agonizingly sincere smile, then plunged the blade into his chest. His armor offered some resistance, but the enchanted steel pierced through, burying itself just right of his heart. He gasped in pain, his fingers loosening their grip on the knife, leaving it protruding from his chest. Crimson fluid spurted past the blade, soaking his pristine clothing.

I watched the blood flow, feeling nothing but a lingering bitterness in my mouth. I waited for the blood to trickle down his gleaming armor and pool on the floor, for the strength to leave his muscles. Then, I waved my hand and dispelled the curse.

Alverin came to with a gasp, choking on blood as he brought his hands to his chest, fumbling for the knife, barely managing to tear it free of his breastplate.

”Do you understand now?” I asked, stepping back, my tail twitching nervously. His strength was gone; there was nothing he could do now, but I still felt a lingering wariness towards the man who had caused so much ruin and despair in my life. What if he managed enough strength to throw the knife? In my state, I’d never be able to dodge it.

He coughed up more blood, and I realized my fears were unfounded. With tremendous effort, he raised his head and met my gaze, his eyes filled with righteous anger.

”Do you think you’re better than me That you’ve won?” he rasped. ”You’ve become the very monster you feared.”

”I told you before,” I said, my voice steady. ”I’ve become what I must. I don’t believe in the gods’ twisted sense of justice, but I hope that in your next life, you’ll be born under the very instruments you helped them create.”

Alverin’s breath grew shallow, his strength ebbing away with each agonizing gasp. He slumped to the ground, unable to hold himself up any longer. ”You haven’t won,” he repeated with his dying breath, his voice a venomous whisper. ”You’ll never forget me, the mark I’ve left on your heart. And because of that... you’ll always be my slave. Never truly free.”

”Perhaps,” I replied, my voice unwavering, my tail finally still. ”But perhaps not. Either way, you’ll still be dead.”

He grunted one last time, his hand reaching out in a final gesture of defiance towards me. But I turned and stumbled away, unwilling to dignify him by witnessing the final flicker of life leave his eyes. There was no need for him to see the tears that now flowed freely down my cheeks, or to hear the sob that wracked my body. The dull thud of his hand falling back to the ground and the fading presence of his soul were all the confirmation I needed.

The sunpurge had reached my feet, its fiery tendrils crawling relentlessly across my skin. But I didn’t have far to go. There was no reason to leave the cathedral now. Elise was safe, and Alverin was dead. My final goal had been fulfilled. A searing flame now consumed my soul; even holding onto my mana was impossible.

I staggered towards the statue of Fate and collapsed at her feet, biting my lip to stifle a scream as my sunpurge-afflicted knees collided with the cold stone floor. Through tear-blurred eyes, I could make out the shadowy form of the Remnant hovering nearby, no longer atop the statue but just a few paces away.

”Thank you,” I whispered, bowing my head in gratitude. ”Thank you for allowing me a chance to end this.”

It remained silent, watching me for a long moment. Then, it raised its sword. As strange power gathered on the blade, it suddenly froze, its smoldering eyes flicking toward the cathedral entrance.

I didn’t, or rather couldn’t, bring myself to care or even notice. I’d been running on adrenaline and sheer willpower, unwilling to let myself fall while Alverin still breathed. But now that he was gone, it was like a dam had burst. What little strength I had left drained from my body, leaving me feeling hollow and empty. All that was left was the terrible power of the sunpurge, burning my body and soul.

Through the haze of pain and exhaustion, I faintly registered the scent of ash and the warmth of a presence nearby. A powerful soul tainted by infernal energy. Had Gayron somehow survived Victor’s attack and followed me into the gate? But why him? Where was Korra? It would have been nice to see her one last time. To thank her for everything she’d done.

It didn’t matter, though, as I never got to see their face anyway. The world around me grew fuzzy, and I drifted in and out of consciousness, each descent into darkness lasting longer than the last.

At one point, I thought I felt strong, gentle arms around me, my cheek resting against the warm metal of a breastplate, but the sensation faded as my senses dulled. The pain became a distant echo, my body and soul feeling detached as if they belonged to someone else. It was like witnessing myself through the lens of a vision, a silent observer in my own fading existence.

At last, only a single feeling remained, accompanied by a solitary thought: Alverin had been wrong. Every part of me felt heavy, as though I were smothered in chains—except for my heart. It had never felt so light and unburdened before, like a sunbeam piercing through a storm, or the first star appearing in the vastness of the night sky. It was a bittersweet irony that now, at the very end, I was truly free.

And then that feeling was gone, and I slipped entirely into the blackness. It was cold and peaceful, familiar even. It was the same as I felt when the needle slipped from my hand back on earth, the feeling of death.

There would be no gods this time, no kind and gentle Fate to call me awake. Soon, if what I’d learned was true, my memory would be washed away in the darkness like sand by gentle, lapping waves, and I would be reborn in another world, in another life. Perhaps then I’d have a chance to live free as a simple girl in a simple world. With no chains, slavers, gods, or demons.

There was so much more I wanted to do in Enusia and so many more good memories to make. To reunite Sari with Ror, show Elise my smile, and visit Selena and the elves. But I’d already done more than I should have, and it wouldn’t be fair for me to live when I’d caused so many others to die.

But at the very least, perhaps in my next life, I could truly be free.