I looked at myself in that vast space and saw a towering blue figure, my soul body. Its surface glowed faintly.
For a moment, I just stood there, feeling the new connection I had established. Then I sensed it, the crimson chain linking me to North, Steve, and Primus.
Through it, I could faintly feel their souls. North’s was flickering, weak but holding on. Steve’s burned steady, stubborn as ever. Primus’s was dim, fading slowly.
I decided I wouldn’t let the pressure crush us.
First, I focused on the soul energy flowing through me and directed it along the crimson chain, forcing it against the creeping corruption. The effect was instant, the red veins that had begun to spread along my arms stopped. The corruption pushed back, twisting like a living thing, but I willed a barrier in front of it and held firm.
Once that was done, I brought my hands together and released a ripple of soul force outward. It spread through the air, invisible but heavy, clashing against the invisible pressure pressing down on me. My soul shook under the strain, but I felt a slight release, enough to catch my breath.
But it was not enough.
I gathered more energy and sent another ripple, stronger this time, then another. By the fourth try, the resonance felt right. The crushing force around me weakened, and I could finally breathe properly again.
I opened my eyes in the real world and exhaled hard.
My knees ached, but I forced myself upright before settling into a cross-legged position. Keeping my focus steady, I continued to send controlled ripples of soul energy outward, adjusting them again and again to match the shifting weight pressing on us. Slowly, I felt the pressure lessen around North, Steve, and Primus as well.
Seconds turned to minutes. The pressure didn’t stop. It only grew heavier, darker.
I kept adjusting the rhythm of the ripples, fighting to hold them steady, but it got harder with each wave. When minutes stretched into hours, my control began to slip. A dull pounding filled my head, each surge of pain felt like a hammer striking my Psynapse.
Even the barrier I’d made to block the corruption began to crack.
Red tendrils started leaking through again, inching toward my soul. I gritted my teeth, forcing my will to hold, but the edges of my vision flickered.
I glanced at the others. Steve and North were still holding on, though barely. Primus was whispering his daughter’s name again and again, lost somewhere between pain and memory.
Even Vaelix, who had seemed steady before, was on one knee now. His body trembled under the invisible weight, golden light flickering around him. Still, the pressure didn’t stop. It kept building, slow and merciless, as if testing how much we could endure before breaking completely.
Suddenly, my vision went black.
For a second, it felt like my consciousness was slipping away, but I forced myself to hold on, gasping as my sight returned.
My head throbbed, and the edges of my vision still flickered, but I couldn’t stop now. After all these hours, I had grown used to the rhythm of my soul force, its pulse, its flow, the way it responded to my will.
So I decided to follow the same path Dante once took.
I focused on my right arm, just below the elbow.
The soul energy there trembled violently, and then, without warning, it burst apart. A shock of pain tore through me, raw and searing, almost unbearable. It wasn’t just physical; it was like my very existence had been ripped open. But I gritted my teeth and pushed past it, forcing the released soul energy to obey me.
I shaped it into a shield, a layer of soul force that surrounded me, pushing back against the corruption and the crushing invisible pressure. The resistance worked. The force that had been suffocating us began to ease, if only slightly.
Time blurred after that. Minutes slipped into hours.
The constant hum of pressure was still there, always pressing down, always threatening to crush us completely. My soul was trembling, but I refused to let go. When the strain became too much, I knew I had to give more.
So I did it again.
I sacrificed the rest of my right arm.
Another surge of pain hit me, even sharper this time, but I endured it. The new wave of released energy spread around me like a blazing tide, reinforcing the barrier and keeping the corruption away.
Primus was already unconscious by then, but I could still feel his soul faintly through the crimson chain. It was dim, yet stable. North and Steve were weak but alive, their soul flames still flickering beside mine. Even Vaelix’s presence was there.
Then, suddenly, it was gone.
The pressure vanished in an instant, as if it had never existed.
A deep silence followed, and for the first time in what felt like forever, I could breathe freely again. Relief washed over me, pure, overwhelming relief. My soul stood tall in the vast inner space, though now missing its right arm. I could feel the faint ache where it used to be, but I didn’t care.
I turned my focus inward and started clearing out the remaining corruption. Bit by bit, I pushed the darkness away until it was gone completely. When I finally opened my eyes, the real world came back into focus.
All of us were lying there, exhausted, drenched in sweat, barely conscious in front of the first stele.
The golden word "Burden" that had glowed so brightly before now dimmed and flickered. A deep rumble spread through the ground, and the stele sank slowly back into the earth.
My body trembled. Every breath hurt, and my head pounded like a drum.
I tilted my gaze toward Vaelix, he was sprawled across the ground, his golden aura faint, eyes half open. I tried to stand, but my legs gave out beneath me. The world spun, colors fading into gray, and before I could even curse, darkness took me again.
****
I heard distant voices echoing through the haze.
"What’s happening to him?" North’s voice sounded frantic, close but muffled, like she was shouting through water.
"I’m not sure... I was unconscious," Primus replied.
I forced my eyes open, my vision swimming for a moment before it steadied. North and Steve were standing a few steps away, their eyes fixed on me. Primus was kneeling beside me, worry written all over his face.
"What happened?" I asked, my voice hoarse.
Primus hesitated for a second before saying, "Look at yourself."
Confused, I looked down and froze.