Kael sat on the cold, hard cot in his cell, his wrists raw from the mana suppression cuffs and his body aching from the relentless torment of the past weeks. Every time the guards took him to another interrogation session, it felt like a part of him was being stripped away. He was fraying at the edges, unraveling bit by bit, but he couldn’t let the Council win. He couldn’t give them the satisfaction of breaking him.

The isolation was the hardest part. Every second spent in the cell stretched into an eternity, the silence pressing down on him like an iron shackle. And yet, through all the pain, through the countless moments of doubt, Reyla’s voice had been a constant comfort—a reminder that not everyone in this place was an enemy.

But even Reyla’s words were starting to ring hollow. Kael couldn’t shake the suspicion that had been growing in the back of his mind, the gnawing doubt that whispered to him in the darkness. Reyla’s insistence, her subtle pressure to give in, to tell the Council something… it didn’t add up. But what choice did he have but to trust her? She was the only person who had shown him any kindness in this nightmare.

He heard the familiar sound of footsteps approaching his cell and braced himself, forcing his expression to remain neutral. The door slid open, and Reyla stepped inside, her face pale and drawn.

“Kael,” she said softly, her voice barely more than a whisper. “I’ve been talking to the guards, trying to buy you some more time, but they’re getting impatient. Harrow is losing his patience.”

Kael didn’t respond immediately. He studied her face, searching for something—some sign of deception or insincerity. But all he saw was worry and exhaustion, a reflection of his own inner turmoil.

“I can’t keep this up,” she continued, her voice trembling slightly. “You need to tell me something—anything—about your creature. Just a name, or its abilities… anything to keep them from doing something drastic.”

Kael clenched his fists, feeling the cold bite of the cuffs digging into his skin. “You know I can’t do that,” he muttered, his voice rough.

Reyla’s eyes flashed with something like desperation. “They’re going to throw you into the Pit, Kael. Do you know what that means? No one survives the Pit. It’s a death sentence.”

Kael felt a chill run down his spine, the rumors of the Pit echoing in his mind. But he forced himself to stay calm, to keep his voice steady. “Why do you care so much?”

Reyla’s face hardened, but there was a flicker of something in her eyes—something that almost looked like guilt. “Because I don’t want to see you die,” she said, her voice almost pleading. “Just give me something, Kael. I can help you, but you have to trust me.”

Kael felt his stomach twist with doubt. There was something in her voice that didn’t sit right with him, something that felt forced. He looked away, his thoughts a tangled mess of suspicion and fear. He couldn’t afford to give in, not now.

“I’m not telling you anything,” he said, his voice barely more than a whisper. “Not now, not ever.”

Reyla stared at him, her expression unreadable. For a moment, there was only silence between them, the tension thick and suffocating. Then, she sighed, a heavy, resigned sound.

“I tried,” she murmured, almost to herself. “I really did.”

Before Kael could respond, the door to the cell slid open, and Harrow stepped inside, flanked by two guards. Kael felt his blood run cold as the realization hit him like a punch to the gut. This was it.

“Reyla,” Harrow said, his voice almost amused. “Step aside.”

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Reyla hesitated, her expression wavering for a split second before she nodded and moved away from Kael’s cot. Kael felt the world tilt beneath him as he stared at her, the pieces of the puzzle finally clicking into place.

“You…” he breathed, his voice shaking with disbelief. “You were working with them this whole time?”

Reyla didn’t meet his gaze. She looked down, her face a mask of regret. “It wasn’t supposed to go this far,” she muttered. “I thought I could get you to talk before it came to this.”

Kael felt a surge of anger and betrayal, his chest tightening with the weight of her words. She had been playing him from the start—pretending to be on his side, gaining his trust, all while working with the guards. Even the escape attempt had been a ploy to manipulate him, to make him trust her more.

“Why?” Kael demanded, his voice breaking. “Why do this?”

Reyla looked up, her eyes filled with something that almost looked like pity. “Because if I didn’t, they would have thrown me into the Pit,” she said quietly. “I didn’t have a choice.”

Kael’s anger boiled over, the betrayal burning in his chest like a hot iron. “You lied to me,” he hissed, his voice low and venomous. “You used me.”

Reyla didn’t deny it. She simply looked away, her face hardening as if she couldn’t bear to face the consequences of her actions.

Harrow stepped forward, his smile widening. “I have to admit, Kael, you put up quite a fight. But in the end, it was all for nothing.”

Kael felt the weight of his situation pressing down on him like an iron shackle. He had been betrayed by the one person he thought he could trust, and now he was facing the one thing he had feared most.

“Take him to the Pit,” Harrow ordered, his voice cold and final.

The guards grabbed Kael, pulling him to his feet and dragging him toward the door. He struggled, but the mana suppression cuffs left him weak and disoriented. There was no way to fight back—not now, not like this.

As they led him down the corridor, Kael’s mind raced, his thoughts a chaotic whirlwind of anger, betrayal, and desperation. He couldn’t let it end like this. He couldn’t let them win.

They reached a massive, iron door at the end of the corridor, its surface engraved with symbols that seemed to pulse faintly with arcane energy. The guards unlocked the door, and it creaked open, revealing a dark, yawning chasm beyond.

Kael felt a chill run down his spine as he stared into the abyss. The Pit. This was where the Council sent those who wouldn’t break, those who refused to give up their secrets. It was a place from which no one had ever returned.

The guards shoved him forward, and Kael stumbled to the edge of the chasm. The darkness seemed to stretch on forever, swallowing everything in its path. Kael could feel the cold air rising from the depths, carrying with it the faint, distant echoes of something ancient and hungry.

Harrow stepped forward, his smile fading as he regarded Kael with a look of grim satisfaction. “This is your final chance, Kael,” he said, his voice calm and steady. “Tell me the name of your creature, and I’ll spare you.”

Kael stared at him, his heart pounding in his chest. For a brief moment, he considered it—considered giving in, telling Harrow what he wanted to hear, and buying himself a few more moments of life. But then he remembered Reyla’s betrayal, the way she had manipulated him, and the way the Council had stripped away everything he cared about.

And in that moment, Kael’s fear gave way to something else—something darker and more resolute.

“You want the truth?” Kael said, his voice shaking with anger. “Fine. Here it is.”

He straightened, his eyes blazing with defiance as he glared at Harrow. “I swear, on the shadows that chose me, that I will survive this place. I will conquer this Pit, and I will grow stronger than you ever imagined. And when I return, I will destroy everything you hold dear.”

Harrow’s smile faded, his expression hardening. “You’re a fool, Kael.”

Kael took a deep breath, steeling himself. He knew what he had to do.

Before the guards could react, he turned and leapt into the chasm, the cold air rushing past him as he fell into the darkness. For a brief moment, he felt weightless, the sensation of freefall almost liberating.

As the shadows swallowed him whole, Kael felt the faint, distant connection to the Dreitailen stir, the creature’s presence coiling around him like a protective shroud. He didn’t know what awaited him in the depths of the Pit, but he knew one thing for certain: he would survive.

And when he did, he would make them all pay.

The darkness closed in, and Kael’s world became an endless void of shadows and silence. But even in the depths of the abyss, he held on to the one thing that the Council could never take from him—his will to fight.

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