The tunnel widened into a cavernous chamber, its walls lined with jagged, glowing crystals that pulsed faintly with corrupted energy. The air felt heavier here, oppressive and cold, as if the space itself were alive and watching them.

Kael stepped cautiously, his shadow stretching and writhing unnaturally on the ground. Torran moved beside him, his shield raised, while Elira kept her bow drawn, her gaze darting to every corner of the room.

“Be ready,” Elira whispered. “This doesn’t feel right.”

“You’re not wrong,” a voice said, smooth and sharp, cutting through the silence like a blade.

The group froze as a figure emerged from the shadows on the far side of the chamber. She was tall and thin, her features partially obscured by a hood, but her skin shimmered with a faint, glitching energy. The light caught her jagged, corrupted edges, though her movements were fluid and deliberate, unlike the chaotic jerks of the rogue faction.

“Welcome, travelers,” the figure said, her voice laced with mock politeness. “You’ve come far. I am Sahra, a humble keeper of knowledge.”

Elira’s grip on her bow tightened. “Keeper of corruption, more like.”

Sahra tilted her head, an amused smile playing on her lips. “Corruption, knowledge—it’s all about perspective, isn’t it?” She turned her gaze to Kael, her eyes glinting with curiosity. “And you... an Edgeweaver. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen one of your kind.”

Kael stiffened, his shadow flickering at his feet. “You know what I am?”

“Oh, I know many things,” Sahra replied, stepping closer. Her presence seemed to press against the air, making Kael’s chest tighten. “The Nodes, the corruption, even the Reset—you’re tangled in all of it, whether you realize it or not.”

Torran stepped forward, his shield raised. “If you know so much, start talking.”

Sahra’s amused smile widened. “I could. But information doesn’t come cheap.” Her gaze shifted to Kael’s belt, where the shard he had taken from the Sentinel chamber glimmered faintly. “That shard. Hand it over, and I’ll tell you everything you want to know.”

Kael’s hand instinctively rested on the pouch holding the shard. “What do you want with it?”

“It’s a fragment of the past, full of memories and energy,” Sahra said, her voice smooth. “Powerful enough to reveal truths even your System keeps hidden. And if you’re carrying it, I’m guessing you’ve already seen some of them. But you don’t know the whole picture—yet.”

Elira narrowed her eyes. “And we’re just supposed to trust you?”

Sahra chuckled softly. “Trust is such a fragile thing, isn’t it? But the choice is yours. Give me the shard, and I’ll tell you what you need to know. Or keep it, and walk away blind.”

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Kael glanced at Torran and Elira, both of them tense and waiting. His mind raced. The shard could hold critical answers, but Sahra’s motives were far from clear.

The chamber seemed to grow colder as Sahra’s gaze bore into him, her voice a soft whisper in the dark. “What’s it going to be, Edgeweaver?”

Kael’s hand tightened around the pouch holding the shard as Sahra’s words hung in the heavy air. The weight of the decision pressed on him like a physical burden. He could feel Torran’s glare burning into him, while Elira’s sharp gaze flicked between him and Sahra, searching for answers he didn’t have.

“You’re not seriously thinking about giving her that thing, are you?” Torran said, his voice edged with anger. “She’s corrupted. That shard could be exactly what she needs to make this mess worse.”

Kael met Torran’s eyes but said nothing.

“Kael,” Elira said carefully, her voice softer. “Think this through. If she’s telling the truth, that shard might help us understand what’s going on. But if she’s lying...”

“...We’ll be handing her a weapon,” Torran finished, his tone harsh.

Kael’s mind raced. The shard had already shown him glimpses of something larger—fragments of the past, clues about the corruption, and his connection to it all. Could he afford to risk losing more answers, even if it meant trusting Sahra?

He looked back at Sahra, who stood patiently, her hooded figure still and composed. Her corrupted aura flickered faintly, but her smile remained steady. “I’m not your enemy, Edgeweaver. Not yet. But the longer you hesitate, the closer your real enemies come.”

Kael took a deep breath and made his decision.

Kael extended the shard toward Sahra, his fingers trembling. The moment she took it, a pulse of energy rippled through the chamber, and her corrupted aura flared brighter.

“Good choice,” Sahra said, her voice almost reverent. She held the shard aloft, her jagged form shimmering as the energy coursed through her.

For a moment, Kael thought she might attack them, but Sahra’s expression softened as the glow of the shard stabilized. “The Reset isn’t what you think it is,” she said. “It’s not a restoration—it’s a purge. And the corruption? It’s part of that plan.”

She stepped back into the shadows, her voice lingering as she vanished. “Survive long enough, and you might just see the truth.”

The group pressed on, the tunnel twisting and descending deeper into the heart of the dungeon. The silence between them was thick with tension, each step echoing faintly against the stone walls. Kael kept one hand on the dagger at his side, his other brushing against the pouch where the shard had been—or still was, depending on his choice.

Elira broke the silence first. “We need to talk about what just happened.”

“No,” Torran said flatly, his shield strapped tightly to his arm. “We need to talk about how we’re going to survive. That Node isn’t going to wait for us to sort out our feelings.”

Kael didn’t respond, his focus narrowing as they approached the end of the tunnel. The air grew colder, and a faint red glow spilled into the passage from the chamber ahead.

Elira’s voice dropped to a whisper. “That’s the Node.”

They stepped cautiously into the chamber, the sight before them stopping them in their tracks. The Node was massive, its fractured surface glowing with an eerie, pulsing light. Corrupted energy spiraled outward, tendrils of red and black seeping into the surrounding stone.

Kael’s shadow twisted unnaturally, drawn toward the Node’s energy.

Torran exhaled sharply. “This is worse than the last one.”

A System notification flickered into view, its words jagged and distorted:

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[Node Activation: 97% Complete. Corruption Unstable.]

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Elira’s grip tightened on her bow. “If we’re going to stop this, we’d better do it fast.”

Kael stepped forward, his chest tightening as the Node’s energy pulsed harder, resonating with the shadows within him. “Then let’s end this,” he said, his voice steady.