A heavy silence fell over the group after Lady Lyanna's revelation. Faces reflected a mixture of shock, mistrust, and confusion. Caelum was the first to react, his eyes moving from Lyanna to the Echo Crystal she still held.

"Working with the Order of the Veil?" His voice was calm, but charged with tension. "How can we trust you now?"

Kaela, fists clenched, couldn't contain her anger. "You've been lying to us from the start! All this time, you knew what was really going on!"

Dorian, still kneeling beside the wounded Raven, raised a soothing hand. "Wait. We don't know the whole story. Lady Lyanna, can you explain your motivations?"

Lyanna, her face pale but determined, nodded. "I understand your anger. But believe me, everything I've done was to protect Astrelia, our continent, you can't yet understand the current stakes! The Order... they're not what you think. Their goal is to maintain balance, even if their methods are sometimes questionable."

Sir Alden stepped forward, drawing all eyes. "Lady Lyanna speaks the truth. The situation is far more complex than you imagine. But for now, we have more urgent problems to deal with."

He pointed to Raven, still lying down and grimacing in pain. This sight seemed to bring everyone back to the reality of their precarious situation.

Dorian leaned over Raven again, carefully examining the wound. "The wound is deep, but I can treat it. I'll need help and silence to concentrate."

Kaela immediately approached, kneeling on the other side of Raven. "What can I do?" she asked, her face betraying her concern.

"Keep his head elevated," Dorian instructed. "And talk to him, keep him conscious while I try to heal him."

As Dorian began to clean and treat the wound with precise gestures and whispered incantations, Kaela leaned towards Raven, speaking softly.

"Hey, stay with me," she said, trying to keep her voice light despite her obvious worry. "You can't leave us now, who else could get us out of trouble with his dubious charm?"

Raven managed a weak smile. "You're finally admitting I'm charming?" he whispered.

Kaela laughed softly, but her eyes shone with contained tears. "Don't push your luck."

Dorian, while focusing on his work, couldn't help but cast furtive glances at this exchange. A shadow passed over his face, quickly masked by his renewed concentration on the task at hand.

Meanwhile, Caelum had moved away with Sir Alden, seeking answers.

"You know more than you're telling," Caelum began, his voice low but firm. "What's your true role in all this?"

Alden sighed, passing a tired hand over his face. "My role? To protect what must be protected, Caelum. The Seal, Lunaris, the balance between nations... it's all connected."

"And the Order of the Veil? Are you one of them?"

"No," Alden replied, his gaze lost in the void. "But I have my own... commitments. Responsibilities I cannot ignore."

Caelum frowned, sensing that Alden wasn't telling him everything. "What responsibilities?"

But before Alden could answer, a cry from Dorian drew their attention.

"It's done!" he announced. "The wound is closed, but Raven will need rest to recover completely."

The group gathered around Raven, who already seemed to look better despite his obvious weakness.

"Thank you," he murmured, his gaze moving from Dorian to Kaela.

"What do we do now?" asked Kaela, turning to the others.

"We must continue," said Caelum. "This cave surely holds secrets about the Seal. We can't turn back now."

They decided to split into two groups: Dorian and Kaela would stay with Raven while the others explored the cave deeper.

Caelum, Lyanna, and Alden ventured further, guided by the light of the Echo Crystal. Soon, they discovered new inscriptions carved into the rock.

"It's ancient Myralian," Lyanna whispered, running her fingers over the symbols. "I can decipher part of it... It speaks of a great sacrifice, a power sealed for the good of all."

Suddenly, the Crystal in her hand began to pulse violently, its light intensifying until it became blinding. An inexplicable wind rose in the cave, swirling around them.

"What's happening?" Caelum shouted over the roar of the wind.

But before anyone could answer, the world around them seemed to dissolve. When the light faded, they were... elsewhere.

They were standing on a vast plain, under a brilliantly blue sky. Around them, thousands of people were gathered, forming an immense circle. In the center stood a group of figures dressed in robes, holding a shining object that could only be the Seal of Abnegation.

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"It's impossible," Alden breathed. "Are we... in the past?"

They watched, fascinated, as a scene seemed to play out before them. The bearers of the Seal began an incantation, their voices rising in a powerful chorus. The Seal rose into the air, shining with a golden and silver light.

Suddenly, a wave of darkness appeared on the horizon, rushing towards them at a terrifying speed. The people around began to scream, but remained in place, their hands joined.

As the wave of darkness struck the circle of people, the Seal exploded in a blinding light. A dome of pure energy formed, pushing back the darkness.

But the cost was terrible. Before their horrified eyes, Caelum, Lyanna, and Alden saw hundreds, then thousands of people collapse, their life force drained to power the shield.

As suddenly as it had begun, the vision ended. They found themselves back in the cave, panting and shaken by what they had just seen.

"That was... the creation of the Seal," Lyanna whispered, tears in her eyes. "The great sacrifice the legends speak of."

Caelum, still in shock, was about to respond when a metallic clicking drew his attention. Part of the cave floor had opened, revealing a complex mechanism.

"A trap," said Alden, drawing his sword. "Stay on your guard."

As they carefully examined the mechanism, it became clear that it was some sort of ancient lock. Symbols similar to those in the inscriptions surrounded it.

"I believe... I believe it's a test," said Lyanna. "We must prove we're worthy to continue."

Caelum looked at his companions in turn, then at the mechanism. "We must decide. Do we try to solve this riddle, at the risk of triggering a deadly trap? Or do we turn back, knowing we might miss crucial secrets about the Seal?"

Silence fell as they weighed their options. The decision they were about to make could well change the course of their quest, and perhaps even the future of Myralis or even all of Astrelia.

As Caelum was about to give his opinion, a dull sound echoed in the cave, followed by a distant cry that could only belong to Kaela.

"The others are in danger," he said, his heart tightening. "We must..."

But his words were cut off by a deafening rumble. The ground beneath their feet began to shake violently, and cracks appeared in the cave walls.

"The cave is collapsing!" Alden shouted. "We must get out of here, now!"

As they rushed towards the exit, Caelum couldn't help but cast one last glance back at the mysterious mechanism and the secrets it guarded. But the choice was made: their friends' safety came first.

They ran through the collapsing tunnels, dodging falling rocks, guided by the flickering glow of the Echo Crystal. Kaela's cry still echoed in their ears, pushing them to accelerate despite their exhaustion.

Suddenly, they emerged into the main cavern, and the scene before them froze them in place.

Raven was on his knees, his wound reopened and bleeding profusely. Dorian stood in front of him, his hands glowing with magical energy, ready to defend his friend. And Kaela...

Kaela was floating several meters off the ground, unconscious, held in the air by an invisible force. Before her stood an imposing figure, dressed in a black cape that seemed to absorb the light around it.

"Finally," said the figure in a deep and icy voice. "You've arrived just in time for the show."

The figure slowly turned towards them, revealing a face half-hidden by an obsidian mask. Its eyes, of a deep black, seemed to contain entire galaxies.

"Blacky Umbramort," Lyanna whispered, her voice trembling with fear and respect.

The leader of the Order of the Veil slightly inclined his head, a cold smile on his lips. "The Crystal will have made its choice," he said, pointing to Lady Lyanna. "But I have doubts..." fixing Caelum with an incisive gaze, which made him nervous. "And now, thanks to all of you, the true power of the Seal will soon be in our hands."

Two other figures emerged from the shadows, placing themselves on either side of Blacky. One of them, a woman with hair as black as night, was nonchalantly playing with a pair of daggers. The other, a man with a charming smile, held an imposing scythe with unsettling ease.

"Nyx, Zephyr," Blacky introduced them with a casual gesture. "My most faithful lieutenants."

The Echo Crystal in Lyanna's hand began to pulse frantically, reacting to Blacky's presence and the magic that permeated the air.

"Here's what's going to happen," Blacky declared, his voice leaving no room for negotiation. "You're going to hand over the Crystal to me, and in exchange, I'll return your friend. Refuse, and... well, I'm sure you can imagine the consequences."

Caelum, paralyzed by shock and fear for Kaela, realized with horror that everything they thought they knew, everything they had fought for, might have just been called into question in an instant.

"Don't do it," Raven growled, struggling to get up despite his wound. "The Crystal is too important."

Nyx took a step forward, her daggers glowing with an unhealthy light. "Choose quickly, little disciple," she hissed. "My blade is getting impatient."

Caelum felt an icy shiver run down his spine. His body instinctively tensed, ready to react to the slightest movement of the assassin. His eyes, usually so calm, blazed with a fierce determination mixed with fear. He clenched his fists, his nails digging into his palms, as he inwardly struggled between his duty to protect the Crystal and his desperate desire to save Kaela.

Zephyr, for his part, twirled his scythe with deadly grace. His eyes, icy blue, fell on Lady Lyanna, a seductive but predatory smile on his lips.

"My dear," he purred, his voice as soft as velvet, "you're far too ravishing to be mixed up in all this. Why not join me? I could show you... pleasures far more exquisite than this futile quest."

His gaze then slid to Kaela, still unconscious and floating in the air. He extended a hand, caressing the air a few centimeters from her face.

"Or perhaps I should take care of this sleeping beauty? She seems so... vulnerable."

Turning back to Caelum, his expression hardened, all trace of charm disappearing. "As for you, I can show you what a man is! A real one! By gutting you in front of your friends... It will be an unforgettable memory for them," he said with a snicker, his eyes shining with an unhealthy glow of anticipated pleasure.

Caelum's eyes blazed with cold rage. He took a step forward, defying Zephyr with his gaze despite the danger.

"You sadistic bastard," he spat, his voice vibrating with contempt and anger. "You think you're a man? You're just scum that feeds on the fear of others. Come on then, if you've got the balls. We'll see who ends up in pieces, you coward."

As the cave continued to collapse around them and Kaela remained suspended, unconscious and vulnerable, Caelum understood that their true battle was just beginning. And the first thing he had to do was choose: give up the Crystal to save Kaela, or risk his life to protect the artifact that could be the key to everything.

Time seemed suspended as all eyes turned to Caelum, waiting for his decision that could change the course of their destiny forever.

In this moment of confusion and imminent danger, Caelum realized that the choice might not be the one he thought. It wasn't between the Crystal and Kaela, but between acting or submitting.

Time seemed to stretch as he made his decision. He took a deep breath, ready to act, to change the course of events.

"I've made my choice," he declared in a firm voice, drawing all eyes to him.

But before he could utter another word, an explosion of blinding light burst from the Crystal, engulfing the entire cavern. The world around them seemed to dissolve in a whirlwind of colors and energy.

The last thing Caelum heard was the cry of surprise from his companions, mixed with the roar of rage from Blacky Umbramort.

Then, nothingness...