The ground trembled beneath them. The golden fractures along the walls widened, releasing waves of raw energy that pulsed through the chamber like a heartbeat. The First Sanctum was unraveling.
Celestine's mind raced. They had no time left.
"How do we reach the Core?" she demanded, turning to Veyrion.
The last Architect lifted a hand, and from the cracks in the floor, a spiral staircase of luminous stone began to rise, twisting upward into darkness. It had not been there before—or perhaps it had been waiting to be revealed.
"The Core lies above," Veyrion said. "But the path will test you."
Elias snorted, gripping his wounded arm. "Great. A death trap. Just what I wanted."
Alistair ignored him, his eyes fixed on the ascending path. "If we don't stop Malrik, none of this will matter."
Celestine's hands tightened into fists. She turned back toward the gate, where the voidborn had appeared moments ago. The air beyond still pulsed with their presence. There would be more.
She exhaled. No turning back now.
"Let's move."
The staircase spiraled higher than it seemed, each step humming beneath their feet. As they ascended, the golden glow of the walls shifted, deepening into something darker—not the comforting radiance of the First Sanctum, but something colder.
Celestine felt it press against her mind. A whisper, a pull—like unseen hands reaching out.
She pushed forward.
Then, the air rippled.
The space ahead shattered like glass, revealing a different place entirely—a corridor of floating stone platforms, suspended over a chasm of swirling void.
Elias let out a low whistle. "That's… not normal."
Veyrion's voice was unreadable. "This is the Path of Reckoning."
Alistair's jaw tightened. "Which means?"
Veyrion stepped forward, his presence unwavering. "It is a trial. And it will not allow passage freely."
Celestine's pulse quickened. The Core was just ahead, but between them and it—the Sanctum itself would decide if they were worthy.
She took a breath and stepped forward.
The trial had begun.