Chapter 415: How Do I Find Her?

"Three days is not long," Thalia said. "But it’s not nothing. You may find her mostly intact. Or you may find pieces. Fragments. Memories that think they’re still a person. Either way, you hold on. You anchor her. You keep her from dissolving completely while Victoria and I perform the resurrection on her body."

"And then?" Nicholas asked.

"Then we pull," Thalia said. "Victoria will use death magic to reach into the Veil. I’ll guide her. We’ll grab both souls, yours and Lilith’s and we’ll drag them back toward life. You’ll feel it. Like a rope around your chest pulling you away from the Veil. Pulling you both toward the light. Toward life."

"And at the last moment...."

"At the last moment," Thalia interrupted, "you let go of your own connection to life and you push Lilith through. You sacrifice yourself. You stay in the Veil while she returns to her body. And the entity accepts the trade."

Nicholas was quiet for a long moment.

"What happens to me after I let go?" Nicholas asked.

Thalia’s expression was grave. "You are consumed. Processed. Your soul becomes fuel for the entity’s continued existence. There is no afterlife. No peace. No consciousness. Just....ending. Complete dissolution into nothing."

"How long does it take?" Nicholas asked. "The consumption?"

"Instant," Thalia said. "The moment you let go, the moment Lilith’s soul crosses back into life, the entity claims you. There’s no prolonged suffering. No awareness of what’s happening. Just....one moment you exist, the next you don’t."

Nicholas absorbed this.

Complete ending. No afterlife. Just ceasing to exist entirely.

It was worse than he had imagined.

And exactly what he had agreed to do.

"Is there any chance I come back?" Nicholas asked. "Any loophole? Any way I survive this?"

"No," Thalia said flatly. "The entity does not make mistakes. Does not offer refunds. Once you trade yourself for Lilith, you are gone. Forever. Completely. There is no coming back."

Nicholas nodded slowly.

He had known this. Had accepted it. But hearing it stated so bluntly....hearing the absolute finality of it, made it real in a way it had not been before.

"Okay," Nicholas said quietly. "Then let’s prepare. Tell me what I need to do."

Thalia studied him for a moment. Then nodded.

"The ritual has two parts," Thalia explained. "First, I send your soul into the Veil while your body remains here in the Underworld. You’ll be....separated. Consciousness in the Veil, physical form here. It will feel like dying. Because it essentially is dying. Your soul leaves your body and crosses into death."

"While my body stays alive?" Nicholas asked.

"Barely," Thalia said. "I’ll maintain minimal life functions. Keep your heart beating. Keep your lungs breathing. But you won’t be aware of it. All your consciousness will be in the Veil searching for Lilith."

"How long will I be in there?" Nicholas asked.

"As long as it takes," Thalia said. "Could be minutes. Could be hours. Time is different in the Veil. What feels like minutes to you could be hours here. What feels like hours to you could be minutes. You won’t know until you come back."

"And if I can’t find her?" Nicholas asked. "If the soul anchor doesn’t work? If she’s already been consumed?"

"Then you stay in the Veil," Thalia said. "Lost. Wandering. Until eventually you’re consumed too. And Lilith stays dead. And this entire endeavor is a failure."

"Encouraging," Nicholas muttered.

"I don’t deal in false hope," Thalia said. "This is dangerous magic. Dark magic. Things can go wrong at any stage. You need to understand that going in."

"I understand," Nicholas said.

Thalia nodded. "Good. Then let’s prepare."

***

The preparation took hours.

Thalia moved around the sanctum, gathering components, arranging them precisely within the ritual circle.

Candles made of black wax that smelled like smoke and old blood.

Crystals that pulsed with dark energy.

Bowls containing liquids Nicholas did not want to identify.

And at the center of it all.....a stone altar where Nicholas would lie during the ritual.

"You’ll be here," Thalia explained, gesturing to the altar. "Lying down. I’ll place the soul anchor crystal on your chest. Then I’ll begin the chant that separates your soul from your body."

"Will it hurt?" Nicholas asked.

"Yes," Thalia said bluntly. "Separating soul from body while both are still alive....it’s not natural. It’s violent. It will feel like being torn apart. But Nicholas, the pain is temporary. Once your soul is fully in the Veil, the pain stops."

"How long does the separation take?" Nicholas asked.

"Three minutes," Thalia said. "Three minutes of the worst pain you’ve ever experienced. And then it’s done. And you’re in the Veil."

Nicholas absorbed this.

Three minutes of agony. Then death. Then searching for Lilith in a realm that operated on rules he could not understand.

All to give her a chance at life.

Worth it, Nicholas thought. She’s worth it.

Victoria had been quiet during most of the preparation. But now she spoke.

"What do I do?" Victoria asked. "During the ritual?"

"You will have to stand in the grey space between the Veil and the mortal realm." Thalia said. " When Nicholas finds Lilith’s soul and anchors her, I’ll send you a signal. You’ll feel it, a pulse of dark magic across the distance. That’s when you start pulling."

"How?" Victoria asked.

"You channel death magic," Thalia explained. "You reach into the Veil the way I’m teaching you. You find the anchor point....Nicholas holding Lilith and you pull. Drag them both back toward life. Elena maintains life magic on Lilith’s body. You maintain death magic pulling her soul. Together, you create the bridge that lets her cross back."

"And when she’s almost through?" Victoria asked.

"Nicholas lets go," Thalia said. "He pushes Lilith the final distance. Sacrifices himself. And her soul merges with her body. If everything works correctly, she wakes up. Changed. Marked by death. But alive."

Victoria looked at Nicholas with tears in her eyes. "I’m sorry. I’m so sorry this is the only way."

"Don’t apologize," Nicholas said. "I chose this. I want this. Bringing Lilith back, it’s worth everything."