Final Act: The Eternal Cycle Restored
720 Words
The Climax – Facing the Hunter of Souls
Lina and Kiran, having finished piecing together the final bits and pieces of the history of the lantern, make their way to the very center of the Eternal Cycle. There exists a great and magical lake where the line that separates the two worlds, life and death, is the thinnest. Here, they plan to release the first soul of the lantern with the aim of breaking the curse for good.
At the shore of the lake, the Hunter of Souls meets them face to face, her power gathering strength from the parts of the lantern she managed to steal during their previous engagements. The Hunter announces her final plan: she will use the lantern to eradicate the Eternal Cycle, the cycle of life, death, and rebirth, and reign as the supreme controller over life and death.
A last assault begins, one between ghostly energy and sheer willpower. Lina is prepared – having endured the lessons of bearing the responsibility of the power the lantern provides, and the weight which it exacts in return.
THE FIRST REVELATION OF SOUL
At the peak of the fight, Lina places the lantern in the center of the lake to reveal the dormant mystery of the lantern. The first soul – the one that was born together with the lantern – bursts into the light.
It is revealed that Aedra is the lantern’s first endowed bearer. Aedra was a faithful follower of the Eternal Cycle and chose to be imprisoned in the lantern due to the unimaginable power it wielded.
Aedra speaks to both Lina and the Hunter:
To Lina: “You bear tales that were not intended for you, yet I commend your bravery for coming us this far. Will you complete what I started?” To the Hunter: “You seek control because of fear, yet no amount of fear will rewrite the reality.”
THE SACRIFICE BY LINA
Aedra expresses that someone has to take their place in order to destroy the lantern and restore balance, therefore binding themselves to the cycle to keep equilibrium between the worlds.
Lina advances resolutely, knowing fully what it will cost. Kiran shouts out a protest, but Lina quiets them with a gentle smile. “I have always narrated someone else’s stories. Perhaps it is time I told my own.”
Lina puts her hand over the lantern and begins the process of her essence merging with the lantern’s presence. The lantern turns into raw energy that streams down to the lake and enters into the Eternal Cycle.
The Defeat of the Hunter
Stripped of his lantern, the Hunter falters, her body frail and cut off from the witches’ souls she had siphoned. With the order reinstated, the Hunter is no more, swallowed by the very elements that she tried to contain.
Resolution
The water in the middle of the lake slowly begins to warm and a soft golden hue begins to fill the lantern and the spirits within it are unleashed. These spirits, no longer burdened, flow out to the sky as if learning to fly, having lived the life they lived.
Kiran, who is crouching at the bank of the lake edge, watches the spirits vanish in the air with a pained yet fascinated look on their faces. For the last time, they recall Lina. This time she is not smiling, “Do not worry. The balance is safe. It is now time for you to live your story, Kiran.”
Epilogue – The End is But a Beginning
Cheers after a few years, portraying the users talking about that, only portraying the calmest of lakes at the edge of which lies the thin line between life and death. Some who look at the shores of this lake even claim to have seen a man or a woman with a lantern in his hair, dwelling on unfamiliar souls.
Possessing a unique perception of the world, Kiran has become a poker and relates these feelings to the people he encounters, cherishing Lina’s spirit. They have no losses, only appreciation for the person who sacrificed everything to bring back equilibrium.
The morphing images jump to the lake where, while light paves the way from the sky resembling the Eternal Cycle, the screen switches off to black.
The End.
- Writer
