Shadows Entwined (Shadows Descent #3)

37. Violet

37

VIOLET

Reality ripples around us like a reflection in disturbed water. The sky above the Academy splinters into a kaleidoscope of different dimensions - some pretty, some frightening, all trying to break through into our world. The Nexus tree’s branches whip violently despite the absence of wind, its ancient magick responding to the chaos of the Convergence.

My power burns through my veins, seeking release. But there’s no time to adjust to these new abilities. Not when the veils are trying to rip apart all the work we did, sewing them back together.

A massive crack splits the air, and a piece of sky literally falls to earth about fifty metres from us, shattering like glass when it hits the ground. Through the hole left behind, I catch a glimpse of something vast and tentacled, reaching toward our dimension.

“Welcome back,” Blackthorn says, and I turn around to see him standing near the tree. “I won’t ask but know you don’t have much time.” He glares at Nathaniel, but seeing as no one is trying to kill him, he doesn’t make a move.

“We know,” I reply. “We’re ready.”

“We need to get behind the wards at MistHallow,” he states, already striding off and expecting us to follow. “It’s the only way we will survive this.”

“Wait! What about the Nexus?” I shout, rushing to catch up, with everyone else behind me.

“You can use Thraxus’s crystal. It will need charging anyway, so Mr Flint needs to be there.”

I catch Flint’s eye, and he nods. He is clearly up for this.

As more cracks appear in the veils, we sprint toward the Academy, dodging falling fragments of sky and reality. The ground beneath our feet shifts unpredictably, sometimes solid, sometimes as yielding as quicksand. Caine creates ice paths where needed, while Thorne’s shadows deflect the worst of the dimensional debris.

A bunch of staff members, some I recognise, some I don’t, stand at the Academy’s main entrance, their hands raised as they channel power into MistHallow’s ancient protective barriers.

“Are you sure about this?” I cry as the sky falls on my head, splintering off and scattering the ground.

“It is the only way you will be safe,” he says.

The usually invisible barrier around MistHallow has become salient, a dome of pure magickal energy struggling to maintain its integrity against the Convergence. Cracks appear and seal themselves continuously, the pattern hypnotic and terrifying.

“Move!” Professor Blackthorn bellows over his shoulder when we clearly aren’t running fast enough for his liking. “The wards won’t hold against this level of dimensional instability for long.”

We race through the entrance just as another piece of sky crashes down behind us. The Academy’s interior is chaos. Students are huddled in protective circles while teachers maintain shields. The air sparks with concentrated magickal energy.

“This way!” Flint takes the lead, his Dragon fire blazing brighter than ever. His enhanced power leaves scorch marks on the stone floor as we run.

The journey to the Crystal chamber becomes a desperate obstacle course. Black holes appear around us, illusions of other realms interspersing with ours. One moment we’re running down a corridor, the next it twists into an impossible spiral. Thorne’s shadows anchor us, keeping us oriented when gravity becomes unreliable.

“The stairs!” Caine shouts, as the staircase leading to the lower levels begins to fold in on itself like origami. He throws out his hands, his enhanced ice magick freezing it, making it a slippery slope down to the next level.

“Oh, this is going to be fun,” Nathaniel mutters as we stand at the top of the slide.

Glaring at him, I growl, “Drop your arse and slide before I shove you down there.”

He holds his hands up and takes the lead, whizzing down with a whoop of pure joy that I swear sounds like it comes from any other creature but him.

I shrug and follow with Caine right behind me.

We slide down the icy staircase at breakneck speed, the world blurring around us. I can hear Flint and Thorne behind us, their curses echoing off the walls. We hit the bottom in a tangle of limbs, scrambling to our feet as reality shifts again.

The corridor ahead stretches impossibly, seeming to go on forever.

“Illusion,” Thorne growls, his shadow magick reaching out to dispel it. The hallway snaps back to its normal length, but now the walls are melting like wax in a furnace.

“Keep moving!” Blackthorn shouts from behind us. “The Crystal chamber is just ahead!”

We sprint down the corridor, dodging globules of molten stone that drip from the ceiling. The floor beneath our feet becomes unstable, rippling like water. Caine creates an ice path for us to run on, but even that starts to crack under the strain of the Convergence.

Finally, we reach the massive doors of the Crystal chamber. They’re bending and twisting, fighting against their own nature as reality breaks down around them. Flint steps forward, his hands blazing with Dragon fire.

“Stand back,” he warns, before unleashing a torrent of flame at the doors. The fire isn’t just orange and red now but swirling with impossible colours. The doors glow white-hot for a moment before shattering into a million pieces.

The deeper we go into the Academy, the worse the dimensional instability becomes. The walls ripple like water, showing glimpses of other realities trying to break through. I catch flashes of hopeless landscapes, twisted versions of our world, places that human minds were never meant to comprehend.

“Look out!” Thorne yanks me back as a section of the corridor simply vanishes, revealing a void of swirling colours. His enhanced shadows swallow up the black hole, and I gape at the sheer power he is showcasing.

“The Crystal chamber is just ahead,” Flint pants, his skin glowing with inner fire. “But something’s wrong. The energy feels different. Its rhythm is erratic, struggling against the chaos of the Convergence.”

“The Crystal’s trying to maintain multiple realities at once,” Blackthorn says. “It wasn’t designed for this.”

Caine steps forward, ice spreading from his feet as he tries to stabilise our path. “We need to reach it before?—”

A deafening crack interrupts him as reality splits open above us. Through the tear, I see something vast and dark, with too many eyes and legs. The sight of it sends pain shooting through my skull.

“Run!”

We burst down the second staircase and into the Crystal’s chamber. Thraxus’s Crystal is a tornado of pure energy. Multiple realities reflect within its facets, each one fighting for dominance. The chamber seems to exist in several dimensions at once, its boundaries blurring and shifting.

The Crystal’s light pulses erratically, each flash revealing a different version of reality. In one, the chamber is underwater. In another, it’s consumed by flames. The variations are endless and dizzying.

“We need to help it choose our reality, and fast,” I say. My power responds to the Crystal’s energy, making me feel slightly nauseous.

A violent tremor rocks the chamber, and reality fractures again.

“Form a circle around the Crystal!” I shout over the dimensional chaos. “We need to channel the power—all of it—into anchoring our reality!”

We form a circle around the Crystal, with Flint at the centre, his hands touching the Crystal. Our improved powers create visible auras around each of us.

The power thuds through our connection, stronger now than ever before. Each heartbeat sends waves of ancient magick flowing between us, the marks on my skin blazing with that bright purple light.

“Focus on our reality,” I call out, raising my hands toward the Crystal. “Everything that makes this dimension ours!”

The moment we channel our power into the Crystal, the chamber erupts with light. The sensation is overwhelming, like trying to hold back an ocean with bare hands. Multiple realities crash against our consciousness, each one fighting for dominance.

“Steady!” Flint growls. “Don’t let go!”

The Crystal’s light shifts from blue to purple as it responds to our combined power. But something’s wrong. Instead of strengthening, the dimensional rifts seem to be growing larger.

“It’s not enough,” Nathaniel shouts. “The Crystal’s designed to protect MistHallow, not the entire world!”

“I hate to agree,” Blackthorn comments dryly, even in this dire time. “We need to focus on Flint. All of you, forget about the Convergence and channel your power into Flint.”

Another reality tears through—this one shows a version of the Academy in ruins, consumed by darkness. The sight sends shivers down my spine.

“The wards are failing fast,” Blackthorn announces. “We need to redirect all of MistHallow’s defensive magick through the Crystal. It’s our only chance.”

I nod and stare at Flint. He is strained as he tries to contain the power of the Crystal. I inhale deeply and then push my power towards Flint.

The Convergence fights back.

Reality fractures faster now.

“Something’s coming through!” Thorne shouts.

Dark shapes emerge from the tears. Creatures from other dimensions drawn to our world by the Convergence. Their forms shift and change.

“Hold the circle!” I command, channelling more power into the Crystal. The marks on my skin burn like brands, but I can’t worry about that right now. “Whatever comes through, we can’t break the connection!”

The Crystal’s light suddenly intensifies, becoming almost blindingly bright. The various realities reflected in its facets blur together, creating a kaleidoscope of possibilities.

The power flowing through us reaches a fever pitch. My bones feel like they’re vibrating, every cell in my body humming with ancient magick. The Crystal pulses faster.

“Something’s changing!” Caine shouts over the dimensional chaos.

The Crystal’s energy signature is shifting, becoming something else entirely. It’s no longer just trying to maintain our reality - it’s attempting to forge a new one, combining elements from multiple dimensions.

“No!” Flint roars, his Dragon magick exploding outward. “It needs to anchor our reality, not create a new one!”

But the Crystal isn’t listening. Its light changes from purple to a lurid green. The chamber walls dissolve, revealing the swirling chaos of multiple realities beyond.

The dimensional creatures are getting closer, their impossible forms becoming more solid as they push through the weakening barriers between worlds. Some look almost human, but wrong in ways that hurt to process. Others are completely alien, defying all natural laws.

“We need to do something now!” Thorne yells.

A rise in power unlike anything I’ve experienced before resonates with the Crystal, creating a feedback loop of pure energy. The marks on my skin blaze with blinding light, and I hear my guys cry out as their reinforced abilities spike to unprecedented levels.

“Violet!” Professor Blackthorn’s voice cuts through the chaos. “The Crystal’s trying to reset reality. You need to?—“

His warning is cut off as reality splinters. The chamber walls disappear, leaving us suspended in a void of swirling dimensions. The Crystal’s light engulfs everything.

Through our connection, I feel my guys’ presence anchoring me, but something else is happening. The power is changing us, transforming us into something beyond what we were before.

The last thing I see before everything goes white is the Crystal cracking, hairline fractures spreading across its surface like a cobweb. Within each crack, a different reality bleeds through, and at the centre of it, something ancient and powerful is awakening.

Then everything explodes in a burst of impossible light, and reality itself comes undone.