The Damned Demon

The chamber seemed quieter now—so quiet that each heartbeat echoed like a solemn drum.

Ravina stood rigid, her eyes fixed anxiously upon Aira’s slender figure. Moments earlier, those same eyes had been pools of swirling darkness, a dreadful abyss threatening to drown everyone around her. But now, clarity shone through them, pristine and resolute, dispelling all trace of shadow. Ravina sighed softly, her breath quivering with relief.

Naida, sensing this subtle shift, gently smiled as she watched Aira carefully rise to her feet. “You don’t seem that shaken after seeing all that,” she murmured softly. “I suppose after living through so many lifetimes, nothing can really faze you.”

Aira shook her head slowly, stepping forward shakily, her gaze burdened with years of buried pain. “I do feel it,” she whispered, each word etched deeply with sorrow. “No matter how many lifetimes I’ve witnessed, each wound feels fresh. Yet somewhere along my endless road, the pain turned to rage, and that rage blinded me. I hurt Cedric… and countless others. It was arrogant to think I could bend time to my whim. Time is no servant, and I was punished repeatedly for that arrogance.”

Ravina stepped forward carefully, her voice gentle but firm, “But you don’t have to anymore.” She paused, finding strength in her brother’s words. “My brother…your son… he wanted me to tell you something: ‘Time doesn’t weep for those who twist it. It kneels for those who master it. You’ve wept enough. Now make it kneel, Mother, and stop looking back.'”

Aira’s chin trembled faintly at hearing Arthur’s words, delivered through the earnest lips of Ravina. Her eyes shimmered, tears threatening to spill as she reached out softly, cupping Ravina’s youthful, earnest face. “You truly are just like your father. Brave, steadfast…and a heart that is willing to go to any extent to care for those you love.” She then glanced at Naida, remorseful yet grateful, “Both of you sacrificed so much to come here. I only wish I had time to truly know the people who mean so much to him.”

Ravina’s heart swelled painfully, tears pricking her vision despite her desperate attempt at composure. Naida’s gentle smile mirrored a heartbreaking sadness, as she softly whispered, “Perhaps in another lifetime.”

“Perhaps,” Aira whispered back, voice heavy with unshed tears. But then she straightened, a new resolve tightening her features as she stepped away.

Aira raised her arm, and instantly a heavy, intricately woven bracelet materialized, pulsing with a strength so immense it distorted the very air around it.

“What…what are you doing?” Ravina stammered anxiously, her eyes wide with awe and trepidation at the unfathomable power radiating from the Radem. She was worried if Aira might overwhelm her body after pushing herself so much.

Aira turned, eyes blazing with newfound determination. “Doing exactly what my son asked. I’m done looking back.” Without hesitation, she clasped the artifact around her wrist, and began absorbing its profound energy.

A radiant white glow surged forth from the Radem, suffusing Aira’s body with overwhelming brilliance. Ravina stepped back instinctively, her jaw slackened in wonder and disbelief as she watched Aira’s aged, weary appearance gradually peel away, the grotesque spikes and monstrous growths disintegrating like ash in wind, leaving behind smooth, luminous skin.

Before her astonished eyes, Aira was reborn—her aged visage melting away to reveal youthful beauty, her long, flowing hair cascading down her shoulders in shimmering waves of pure white mana. Her eyes, once tormented, now burned with crystalline purity, deep and infinitely serene. Yet the transformation didn’t halt; it intensified.

Aira’s body slowly lifted from the ground, buoyed by currents of radiant, swirling mana. Her entire form ignited in dazzling brilliance, becoming an ethereal figure of pure, transcendent white—no longer restrained to anything within this world.

“What…what is happening to her?” Ravina gasped, astonished and awed in equal measure, unable to tear her eyes away.

Naida watched solemnly, calm but reverent, her voice soft yet brimming with hope. “Shedding her mortality.”

“But isn’t that what she intended before? Then why did we stop her?” Ravina questioned desperately, confusion and wonder intermingling in her voice.

Naida’s voice carried quiet wisdom. “Because before, she was consumed by vengeance and pain. She couldn’t grasp the truth behind mastering time without first realizing her mistakes. She finally saw the answer clearly through my memories and your brother’s words. The answer isn’t in battling the Damned One directly—it’s in understanding and using its own rules against it. Only she knows exactly how.”

Realization dawned in Ravina’s widening eyes, her breath hitching softly. “Then…”

Aira’s radiant form blazed brighter, filling the entire chamber with blinding illumination. She hovered above them, her glowing eyes gently gazing down, offering a brief but profound farewell smile. It carried gratitude, love, sorrow, and infinite resolve.

“Aira…” Ravina whispered, her voice trembling with bittersweet acceptance.

Then, with a sound like celestial thunder, the chamber quaked. The radiant glow intensified to an almost unbearable brilliance, forcing Ravina and Naida to shut their eyes, shielding themselves from the intensity.

When the shaking subsided, and the blinding glow softened into silence, Ravina cautiously opened her eyes, finding only emptiness where Aira had been.

“Where…where did she go?” Ravina asked breathlessly, bewildered and trembling.

“Out there,” Naida whispered, her voice gentle yet certain. “Wading through the currents of time, searching for the right answers to change fate itself.”

In the hidden silence, Asher watched, stunned and silent, eyes wide and astonished, feeling the echoes of something profound—a transformation beyond mere mortality.

He had watched, helpless yet hopeful, as Aira transcended humanity itself, becoming something more than a mortal…an immortal.

And now she was somewhere out there in time…still fighting for him and everyone.

—

The sky hung above them, bleak and unyielding, like a forgotten canvas painted in shades of ash and midnight despair.

Ravina emerged from the underground chamber, her slender frame trembling under the emotional weight while carrying Cedric’s unconscious body. Her gentle breath misted lightly in the chilling air, drifting upwards like ghostly sighs, each one heavy with grief.

Behind her, Naida stepped quietly, eyes already sorrowful, a lifetime of regrets etched into her graceful, tired expression. Together, they stood on the threshold, gazing out upon the wasteland that was once a thriving human city.

Gone were the lively streets and bustling plazas; gone were the familiar comforting lights. Instead, destruction sprawled as far as they could see, its twisted remnants darkened under the indifferent gaze of stars. Buildings lay shattered like bones, skeletal ruins silently mourning their own demise.

Ravina halted abruptly, staring with widened, horrified eyes. Her voice cracked softly, like porcelain breaking against stone, “What happened here?”

Naida’s reply was soft, tinged with weariness. “This… this is what happens when someone like Aira goes rogue. Her rash actions brought these consequences. But it doesn’t matter now.” She closed her eyes momentarily, breathing out a resigned whisper, “Everything ends the same way eventually, at least in this timeline.”

Ravina’s heart sank. She hugged Cedric tighter, pressing him protectively against her chest as though to shield him from the sorrowful truth spilling forth. Her breath trembled, filling the quiet with her hesitant voice, “Hey… about what we initially planned…” she paused, swallowing back doubt, her next words trembling softly, “…Can we just not do it? Can’t we stay here and live with my father? Even if this world is doomed, we’ll still have him. It’s better than killing ourselves, right?” Her voice grew desperate with a fragile hope, eyes pleading as she glanced up at Naida, “We still have those pills my brother gave us to survive here. We can learn to make more before they run out. We can build something together, just… be happy for once.”

Naida turned slowly, her gaze gentle yet unbearably sad. Shaking her head softly, she whispered with profound sorrow, “Ravina… you don’t truly understand what you’re asking. Even if Aira finds her way through time, it won’t alter this timeline.” Her eyes flickered briefly toward Cedric, unconscious yet serene in Ravina’s protective embrace, a heart-wrenching sadness filling her voice, “He will still perish on that day, one way or another.”

“I know…” Ravina responded quietly, her voice choked by tears she struggled to restrain. Her eyes gleamed with a fierce, heartbreaking resolve, “But you know I never really got the chance to spend time with him. Not as long as I wanted. And you…” Her gaze softened further, sorrow merging into gratitude, “You have always played the bad guy, pushing him and your kingdom to despise you till the end. But you don’t have to anymore. This…this is our last chance for a bit of peace, for a family. We never got that chance.”

A distant shadow stood motionless, invisible yet broken-hearted. Asher’s gaze fixed on his daughter with immeasurable sorrow. Hearing Ravina’s words, he was overwhelmed with shameful regret, a profound sense of failure gripping his soul. He’d never imagined he would neglect her, yet her words echoed cruel possible truths he was forced to confront.

Naida’s eyes trembled briefly, emotion briefly overpowering her composed facade. Her voice was a whisper edged with sadness and compassion, “You’re right, Ravina. But the closer you draw to that inevitable day, the deeper your pain will be. Even if Cedric wakes as a demon, there’s nobody alive there. Both of you can’t survive there for long. Explaining yourself to him would only multiply both your sufferings. Is that truly what you want? You don’t belong to this reality.”

Ravina shook her head sharply, her chin quivering as stubborn tears began falling freely, “I don’t care if it isn’t mine,” she whispered fiercely. “I don’t want to die without knowing what it’s like to truly live with my family. Even if I am reborn in another timeline, how can I be sure Aira will succeed then? How do I know I won’t relive this endless agony again? At least here, I have something real….at least for a few years.” Her voice softened painfully, anxiety rising within her, “Why do you speak as if you intend to leave? You won’t abandon me, will you?”

Naida’s smile was fragile, filled with quiet sincerity, her voice soft and motherly, “I would never abandon you, Ravina. You may not share my blood, but in my heart, you’re my daughter in every way that matters. Always have. Always will be.”

A brief relief flashed through Ravina’s eyes, bright yet fleeting.

But Naida’s next words came with a heaviness that instantly shattered that relief, “So I’m sorry that I must play the bad guy one last time.”

Confusion furrowed Ravina’s brow, replaced swiftly by shock and sudden dizziness. Her knees buckled weakly beneath her, breath catching in stunned horror, Cedric slipping from her grasp.

Naida moved swiftly, catching Cedric and lowering Ravina gently to the ruined earth. Ravina stared upward, dazed and fearful, realizing her mana was fading rapidly. Her voice broke in betrayal, anguish shining in her eyes, “Aunty Naida… what… what did you do? My mana…? How…”