Tokoyami pressed forward onto the new path, his steps heavy, his heart weary, and his soul feeling more and more empty with each passing moment. The Blade of Sacrifice weighed heavily in his hand, a constant reminder of the cost of his quest, the sacrifices he had made, the humanity he had lost. But one end result would make it all worth it. The cost was already high but he was almost there. Anya-Lyra was everything he had to his name now and he was now here to defend her from the oncoming threat. To let her die now would mean his own demise.
The path led him deeper and deeper into the labyrinth, its walls closing in on him, its darkness pressing in on him from all sides. He was alone, isolated, cut off from the world. There were no more voices, no more visions, no more temptations. Only silence, a deafening silence that threatened to drive him mad. As the silence filled the air the path began to twist. He had heard the sounds of water coming from somewhere. Was it a trick? Probably. But everything here had to be done. It was all a part of the test.
Tokoyami had heard that the last part of these tests generally tested who you were. And the test appeared to be here now.
In front of him was a pool. It was calm. It was still. It seemed to absorb light and create a new darkness. In the center of the pool was Anya-Lyra.
Her back was turned but he knew it was her. He would recognize her anywhere and the feeling of her presence was all that he could feel. This was the test he had been waiting for the whole time. Could he protect those around him even if it meant risking his own life? She needed to be saved and this was her only way to do it.
He ran as fast as he could before the pool began to rumble. And she turned to face him. The eyes were something he had never seen before. The pupils glowed a bright red as the rest of her face was pale and cracked. This would be it. The last act. The final hurdle to getting what he wanted. He had to act.
"Help me… please… I am fading away" Her voice rang in his ears with a feeling that he could never forget. Each word was perfect as if they were exactly what he had been wanting to hear the whole time. There were no other factors in the room other then her.
Tokoyami paused in his tracks. What should he do? She needed to be saved but he knew what he had to do. He could feel it. This was not her. Her soul was lost in this labyrinth of lies and deception. He had already began to fade away as he was in the final test.
"I am sorry but I know you are not her. May you find rest as you were not destined to have it" As Tokoyami said the words he was filled with great pain and the face of Anya-Lyra began to crack even more. The final choice had come.
Tokoyami readied the Blade of Sacrifice and prepared to plunge it into this specter of what she once was. He ran forward and readied his heart for great pain as his own world began to fade away. He was now becoming nothing.
"You did it all for naught" The false Anya-Lyra screamed as she faded to dust.
The world around him began to shift and change. As the darkness fell away there was not a portal but a stone tablet as the familiar voice echoed around the cavern.
"You have succeeded where many have failed. However, this came at a cost. It has been paid. You are now worthy of what has been promised!" The voice said as a rune began to glow.
Tokoyami fell to his knees. He could feel it. The power of all those around him surged into him. Everything he did was perfect and the result would never go unnoticed.
As the power filled him a new skill was etched into his mind:
A Heart of Onyx: This ultimate passive skill grants a permanent and significant bonus to all shadow-related abilities, attack power, and durability. All skills can be used more with a great reduction in drain. However, your emotions have begun to fade making it harder to empathize with others. As time fades your ability to gain relationships or care for others will fade making you cold and calculating.
Tokoyami could feel it now. He was a shell of a man but he could do what was needed to stop Malkor and that would be the only thing that truly mattered. All other results are worthless.
The room began to rumble as a giant rune began to glow on the ground. The task had been completed and it was time to head home.
As he looked into the air with his once bright eyes now dim and dead he said "I am ready to complete what must be done."