Part Two — The Ashborn Reforged
Alexander stood amid the fading mirrors, the world stabilizing. The air shimmered again — and from the broken glass, figures began to form: Nyx, Sera, and the others. Their images flickered, like projections.
Sera's expression was unreadable. "You walked the Trial of Mirrors alone."
"I didn't have a choice."
"None of us do," she said. "But how you walk it… that's what matters."
Nyx stepped closer. "You didn't destroy them all, did you?"
Alexander hesitated. "No. I let them be."
The air pulsed — a deep, resonant heartbeat. The mirrors dissolved fully, replaced by a single enormous gate of black crystal ahead, its surface engraved with symbols older than the gods.
Etched above the archway was a single phrase in the ancient Ashborn tongue:
"To wield power is to remember the cost."
The Heart inside Alexander answered. Its rhythm steadied. For the first time since he had inherited it, the power didn't fight him. It flowed with him — not as a weapon, but as a pulse.
Sera smiled faintly. "You've passed."
He frowned. "Passed? That— that was a test?"
"The Heart never stops testing," she said. "But this time, you chose to remember instead of forget."
Nyx added, softer, "You faced yourself without running. That's more than most ever manage."
Before Alexander could reply, the air split again — a new voice echoing through the chamber. Cold. Metallic. Commanding.
"Then let the next trial begin."
The world twisted — the mirrors collapsing into a whirl of shadow and flame. When it cleared, Alexander stood on the edge of an enormous void, stars swirling below like an inverted sky. Across from him, suspended above the abyss, hovered a massive sigil of the Heart — burning brighter than ever.
And standing at its center… a figure. Cloaked in dark flame, wielding twin blades.
Not the Shade.
Not a reflection.
A new enemy — a Warden of the Ashborn, one of the original guardians of the Heart's essence.
Its voice rumbled like thunder. "You have remembered your sins. Now let us see if you can bear their weight."
Alexander squared his stance, ashfire coiling around his hands.
"So be it," he whispered.
The Trial of Mirrors was over.
The Trial of Burden had begun.