Cel's fingers closed around a jagged fragment, its edges sharp enough to part skin with the gentlest touch. Blood welled from tiny cuts across his palm, warm and real in this world of crystalline lies.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0DConknpkN
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW94pmSoIDG
His laughter had faded to breathless giggles, but his expression remained - a savage mask of joy that belonged on no sane face.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡemVZhGHyen
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCDq3YKJpFb
His father's towering form stepped forward, his mirror-born body showing the first signs of instability - thin cracks that wept luminous tears.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeOYcIM7EHq
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY79PLFhDHY
"You will always be—"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ11aZiHXuI
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiwZyeF2Ps5
"ALWAYS BE WHAT?" Cel shrieked, voice breaking into hysterical laughter as he lunged forward. The shard punched through Lord Aldric's chest with a sound like winter ice cracking. "Always be ALIVE? Always be STANDING?"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc5890RYivJ
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPcmFK2GNTz
His father's mouth hung open in shock, silver light pouring from the wound. Cel's giggles turned savage as he twisted the blade deeper.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWU4TnndHl7
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmSeebp206k
"What? Nothing to say?" He grinned up at his father's dying face. "Where are all those WONDERFUL words?"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfWbFQIC7dt
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjvWBRrwusJ
Then Lord Aldric exploded, fragments scattering across the obsidian floor. Cel threw back his head and laughed at the beautiful destruction, tears streaming down his cheeks.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz0Ujw5m65D
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdaVNfbqGKT
"Son." His mother's voice drifted from behind him, soft as falling snow.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj1kk093vJL
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLC6LBf5X2C
He whirled to face her, that terrible smile stretching wider. She stood with one hand pressed to her throat, her crystalline body catching the phosphorescent light.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw5czDEGEok
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2MnP7yF8JS
"I tried to protect you," she whispered. "But you wouldn't let me."38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHteJSSs8vC
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrTfZSdHehC
"PROTECT me?" The words came out in a strangled shriek. "You TRIED? You stood there and WATCHED!"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3xS6xnmRIy
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQkvDXZVByu
The fragment drove through her throat before she could finish the lie. Her form shuddered, light bleeding from the wound like luminous blood.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE5QtHnvUvl
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXaHODLL4YS
"How's that for protection?" Cel giggled as she burst into countless pieces. "Much better than what you gave me!"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6bFrGnIQcH
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvSX8OrJRjP
Darian stepped forward, fractures already visible in his translucent flesh. His fists remained clenched at his sides, unchanged from that moment of cowardice.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTpxNJfjiQY
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVfk3HCWy6Y
"I couldn't risk it," Darian said, hollow-voiced. "You understand, don't you? My inheritance, my position... I couldn't throw it all away.”38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3kYZDTMWjk
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7yPm6Mteqg
Cel's laughter turned bitter, edged with something that might have once been grief. "Oh, I understand PERFECTLY, brother." He hefted the phosphorescent shard, his grin turning feral. "You were always so good at strategy. Cost versus benefit, wasn't it?"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMCRuwBTvrE
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU83NnOZOXR
"I had no choice!"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpg8cU3Lfy8
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSopeOOltt7
"Haha!" Cel's arm moved with violent joy. The fragment caught his brother in the chest. "Brothers don't weigh POLITICS against BLOOD!"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn670uzQZ1V
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb6lXWLv5DR
Darian's form held longer than the others, crystalline features cracking slowly. "You would have done the same," he said, his voice growing fainter as fractures spread. "In my position... you would have made the same choice."38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzcaOC4CzRF
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTvQ7NfEmwM
"Would I?" Cel's laughter bubbled up fresh and wild. "We'll never know!"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQnDBMK2I3k
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRZWyPNKdf3
Then Darian shattered, and Cel giggled at the beautiful sound of his excuses dying.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ7Wm0qvTV8
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6MTeDKUBbk
The clan members fell next in sprays of silver light, each destruction punctuated by his delirious mockery. The servants burst like glass ornaments while he made jokes about their loyalty. The cultists shattered into glittering fragments as his laughter grew hoarse but never stopped38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsZEBesklHv
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHB5kyt3nUZ
With each killing, something shifted. The crushing weight of their judgment shattered alongside them. But the madness remained, coloring everything with bitter joy.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiPlyD3cTM2
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpJXG5nc0bV
Soon, only one figure remained among the mirrored ruins.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWkAa6ZeBYE
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrN21dR7Mbq
This reflection wore Cel's current face with the lean severity of the starved. It stood perfectly still among the glittering debris, watching him with eyes that held no accusation, no mockery. Only the blank stare of someone who had stopped caring.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCfFdjfldhc
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcL5C8nc97F
The sight of it made Cel's laughter falter. His smile wavered for the first time since the violence began.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvGejTfeUaR
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs0zhKnupb8
"You missed one," it said simply.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeYmsERUQdk
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUBnmJGi73W
Cel's hand shook as he raised the shard. Blood ran in steady streams from his lacerated palm. The madness was draining away now, leaving behind something rawer.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL7FqsRLXpZ
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFS7Jwva0Ds
"I know."38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAEDZBdzrFm
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAhkXUWPKAU
The reflection didn't move, didn't flinch as Cel approached. It just watched with those hollow eyes - the eyes of someone who had given up long before the first blow fell.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1P6geqbNjF
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq1THZ7vQFx
"You're the worst of them," Cel said, his voice hoarse from laughter and screaming. "You're the one who let it all happen."38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4lfCrFc3lx
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Mb368GA6C
The reflection said nothing. It simply stood there, passive and broken, everything Cel had refused to become.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbmaKrSMNzk
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6XEuSVaNVs
"Say something!" Cel snarled, raising the shard higher. "Fight back! Argue! Anything!"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtOCnYGIYyI
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡicMxbnmabF
But the reflection remained silent, indifferent. That empty acceptance was worse than any sneer or mockery.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWu6gUXAgN1
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvGWY0pSGwn
Cel's fury reignited, burning away the last traces of his savage joy. This thing wearing his face represented every moment he'd wanted to give up, every second he'd considered letting them win.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvKODDtXF22
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhqNcaDQ4XI
"This ends now," he said through gritted teeth.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIoxI9SLv9Q
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQCJakUTVN0
The reflection finally moved, lips curving into the faintest smile - not cruel, not twisted, just... knowing. 38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBVCHQQEYqI
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnwy8JO7Vla
"Does it?"38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡouKKWRiPId
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUyZFJPK0pk
“It does!” Cel drove the shard deep into its chest. Cracks spread across the reflection's surface, but that small, terrible smile never wavered.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ0JgpA1q63
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsvNnAgoYMq
As the fractures reached its face, the reflection spoke at last:38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmJEhwDLN9P
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8kiEyZbJBH
"We will see." 38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT8VJkJ9En5
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJpEQrqDHh0
With that, it shattered completely, leaving Cel alone among the ruins of his past. The silence that followed felt expectant. As if the world itself were holding its breath.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhaQKxOn06D
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdQrneadA9F
Then, the crystalline walls began to shake.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOrbJglHKd4
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTzuXZFfZYI
Hairline fractures appeared in the black glass, spreading outward like spider webs. The phosphorescent glow flickered and pulsed. A grinding roar filled the air as the walls collapsed inward.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlc3vuyCcLd
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzsRw5C10Qb
An invisible fist seized him and hurled him backward. The world became a blur of spinning light and shadow, his stomach lurching as he tumbled through empty space.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGfDYiSs2rq
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ43YAjI4QZ7
He slammed into jagged stone with enough force to drive the breath from his lungs. Stars exploded across his vision as his head cracked against crystal.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaUttwzx1YD
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyhCxYHmRRC
Slowly, the world swam back into focus.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQoYjss4YHW
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn8cOFHQyxi
The four suns had vanished behind the crystalline peaks, leaving only the soft ghostly glow of crystalline  formations to paint everything in familiar, hostile violet hues. Night had fallen over the maze - the real maze.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqf6rsmjSLg
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUXpl4sTq46
Crushing fatigue settled into his limbs. Every muscle felt leaden, hands shaking with the aftershocks of what he'd just experienced. Cel's face felt strange, unfamiliar - the manic grin finally relaxing into something hollow. The fevered heat that had driven him through the violence drained away, leaving only cold emptiness in its wake.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoWNOcbS1ew
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT0PmfsqM7S
Eventually, Cel pushed himself up on trembling arms. The silence pressed against his damaged eardrums like cotton. No whispers. No accusations. Just the hollow quiet that had become his constant companion.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhkHI60C0x8
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRKIV2IYJ3s
His eyes found the lake's surface, expecting to see that perfect mirror that had started his torment. Instead, the liquid stretched before him like polished obsidian, absolutely flat and utterly empty. No reflections stared back. Not the crystals, not the dark sky, not even his own battered form.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJsmLlXMYau
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIAFfNbMuYJ
Nothing.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8X8dH9Hs8x
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPCcA0xnTxp
Cel crept closer, heart hammering. As he gazed into that perfect emptiness, unease crept up his spine. The absence felt wrong somehow, too complete. It was as if the lake had devoured not just his painful memories, but his very existence.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7JBmC53Ry3
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Me36DSsCk
A tremor ran through the ground.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡttnvqk2xVM
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw7KYgprlB3
The vibration traveled up through his knees, subtle but unmistakable. Cel froze, every instinct screaming danger. The lake's surface remained perfectly still, but something had changed.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwqhBpZOQrC
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMeu5V7UZ4D
Another tremor, stronger this time.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYg4kbdNBPt
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0UHgxSoHer
Cel took a careful step backward, never taking his eyes off the void. The silence that had plagued him since the previous day felt different now - not empty, but waiting. As if the world were holding its breath.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYnyeFLTGPX
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnbMn9OkOWM
The liquid began to ripple.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsxJxPX5vtI
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIvAcTjCO8D
It started as barely perceptible movement at the center, rings spreading outward like a stone dropped into still water. But there had been no stone. No disturbance except the trembling ground beneath his feet.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg4cTsD8716
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGcQGiMrpdu
The ripples grew larger, more violent. The boundaries of the lake shuddered, then began to push outward. Dark liquid seeped across the crystalline ground like spilled ink, moving with unnatural purpose.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqMQ41xyt1F
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡActKvpu9Kh
Cel's blood turned to ice. Whatever he had unleashed by destroying the reflections, it wasn't finished with him.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbdHPZaKF18
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpCt8nKmIQT
His eyes swept the maze walls until they found the distant spire piercing the darkening sky like a needle of violet light.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqdlvuTDSyB
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyPzM4SHi5k
He had to move. Now.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhPeNkfh6Gq
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA268yXWdqo
Cel's legs shook from exhaustion. Every step felt like walking through deep sand, his body protesting the abuse it had endured. He stumbled more than ran, one shoulder scraping against crystal walls for support. The hysterical euphoria that had carried him through the violence was gone, leaving behind a hollow ache that seemed to echo in his bones.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhmgdaxi2It
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm0bdVFE68e
The crystals around him pulsed with soft violet light, releasing the energy they'd absorbed from the four suns throughout the day. The ethereal radiance painted everything in ghostly hues, casting eerie shadows that made the passages seem to writhe and shift.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoV4J0ob4fw
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpbf1TRowIa
Minutes crawled by. Or maybe hours. Time felt as broken as everything else in this place. His breathing grew ragged, each inhalation burning his throat. The cuts on his palm from gripping the shard had reopened, leaving a trail of dark spots on the luminescent ground behind him.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ17YoxHrpHk
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4u9RVXrxRr
A vibration through the crystal walls made him freeze - not the gentle tremors from before, but something deliberate. Something following his bloody trail.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgoHEpp8uFZ
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYM8sa7c7UZ
Cel pressed himself against the nearest wall, heart hammering. The vibration came again, stronger now. A rhythmic pulse through the stone, like something vast dragging itself forward. The void wasn't just spreading - it was hunting. 38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQCQ37ns37z
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrXon13T7Ib
It was hunting him.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr0FCf5hdnd
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcs6Mqj8wAB
A sharp turn brought him face-to-face with a dead end.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ62rNtphsoA
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhbDW3LUhyL
Behind him, the vibrations grew stronger - rhythmic pulses through stone punctuated by sharp, staccato tremors. The void crept around the corner, its perfect darkness swallowing the crystals' glow as it climbed the walls.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFBuWjlRYek
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhWkg9biNrV
His fingers found purchase on razor-sharp crystal edges. Each grip sliced deeper into his lacerated palm, warm blood making the surfaces slippery, but he hauled himself upward, crystal by agonizing crystal. The jagged formations cut through his already torn rags, leaving fresh wounds along his arms and chest.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzCasF27Lvl
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwFnywI4Anb
He pulled himself over the crystalline barrier just as the void reached where he'd been standing, rolling away from the wall and landing hard on his side. Shattered crystal fragments bit into his skin. For a moment he lay there gasping, blood filling his mouth.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB9CksLTdV8
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYpOOyHE38y
When he finally lifted his head, the spire loomed larger against the dark sky. And before it, carved into the hillside and bathed in the crystals' gentle radiance, the familiar silhouette of the ruined structure.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC62OeNRh1P
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1fFcohM4bK
His sanctuary.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNJWrn3BwcA
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQzux66a8HF
Cel forced himself to his feet, stumbling forward across the crystalline ground. Every step sent fresh jolts of pain through his battered body, but he pressed on until the flat maze floor gave way to a rocky slope that forced him into a slow, stumbling climb. His legs felt like they were made of wet rope, muscles cramping at every move. His breathing grew labored as the incline steepened.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ZmwO1pgTF
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOw89Ez5KLB
Behind him, vibrations through the ground told him the void was still coming.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ76DyKqNkf6
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOHuMChS6GQ
His hands found purchase on jutting stones and glowing crystal outcroppings, pulling himself up the steep slope one painful grip at a time. The ethereal light helped him find handholds, but his vision kept narrowing to tunnels of gray at the edges.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuyTZHjqWIt
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZkPeu5hhx6
The ancient threshold seemed impossibly far above him. His arms shook with each pull, threatening to give out entirely. But the alternative was the void, and that thought alone kept him moving.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡizDWgoSdaA
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ56Zch9gJHP
Finally, he hauled himself over the broken threshold and collapsed inside the ruin's embrace. The stone floor was cold against his cheek, solid and real. He lay there for long minutes, chest heaving.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt6RQSeOuzi
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3NCnJE0Xba
Only when his breathing steadied and strength began to return did he force himself to look back outside.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKk8aJE7v2Y
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFA6OCdoJqp
The liquid had reached the bottom of the hill, its absolute darkness a stark contrast to the crystals' soft glow. It lapped against the rocky slope but stopped there, as if some invisible barrier held it at bay.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuUhl8DWF5x
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwV3JvOzFsC
He pressed his back against the nearest wall and slid down until he was sitting. His fingers traced the ancient carved stones, each fissure familiar as old scars. Whatever force had built this place held fast against the encroaching void.38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwRh3gotLJy
38Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0aQS6hd1db
"Thank you," he whispered to the ancient stones.1234 copyright protection34ＰＥＮＡＮＡqoAPYXVtHn 尼

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