The air around them crackled with a palpable energy, thick and oppressive. The ground trembled beneath their feet as the statues came to life, their stone forms creaking and groaning as they moved. Their eyes burned with a malevolent light, and each step they took sent echoes through the chamber, amplifying the oppressive aura that surrounded them.
Gideon's heart pounded in his chest as he drew his blade, the icy chill of the cursed mark creeping up his arm. The pain was growing stronger with each passing second, and he knew time was running out. They had come too far to turn back, but the truth that awaited them here was far more dangerous than they had anticipated.
"This place..." Darius whispered, his voice laced with disbelief. "It's not just a temple. It's a prison."
Lilith's eyes widened as she stepped closer to the altar, the glowing symbols on the stone tablet pulsing in rhythm with her heartbeat. "No. This isn't just a prison. It's a gateway."
Before anyone could react, the voice from the walls echoed again, louder this time, resonating with a deep, ancient power.
"You seek to free the truth, but the truth is a curse. You are not the first to come, and you will not be the last. But none of you will leave with your souls intact."
The ground split open beneath them, revealing a massive, shadowy figure rising from the depths. It was a being of darkness, its form shifting and writhing, as if it was made of pure malevolent energy.
"Who... what is that?" Selene asked, her sword at the ready.
The creature's voice boomed, shaking the very foundation of the temple. "I am the Forgotten One. The one sealed away by those who feared my power. The one whose name is lost to time. And now, you have awakened me."
As the creature's form solidified, its dark energy engulfed the room, casting everything in shadow. The light from the runes dimmed, and the statues around them shifted, their once lifeless eyes now fixed on the intruders.
Gideon raised his blade, ready to strike, but as he did, a revelation slammed into him like a freight train.
The Forgotten One... it was tied to his past. This creature, this ancient force, had been the true origin of the curse that had followed him for so long. It had been the one who had unleashed the darkness that had consumed him and so many others.
"You're... you're the one who cursed me," Gideon said, his voice trembling with the weight of realization.
The Forgotten One's eyes burned with a malevolent gleam. "I did not curse you. I merely gave you a gift. A gift that will consume you, as it has consumed all who came before you."
The truth was finally revealed. Gideon had never been chosen to be the Ghost Slayer. He had been marked, cursed, and bound to a power that he couldn't escape. The very power he had used to fight the darkness was the same darkness that had consumed him.
As the Forgotten One's laughter echoed through the temple, Gideon knew one thing for certain.
The true battle had just begun.