Chapter 13: The Second Seal
"Seals aren't always forged in magic," Rhea said, watching Rayven pack weapons and supplies into a small tactical satchel.
"Sometimes, they're made from sacrifice. From pain. From blood."
Rayven didn't respond. His mind was still replaying the vision—his mother, the burning box, her cryptic warning.
"Don't trust the ones who know your name… only the ones who know your heart."
He looked up. "I need to go below. Beneath Bastion. Into the Deep Lines."
Rhea flinched. "That place is sealed for a reason."
"Which is why the truth's probably down there."
Selene leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "Then we're going with you."
Rayven shook his head. "Not this time."
"You're not going alone," Selene snapped.
"This isn't about fighting," Rayven replied. "It's about remembering. And I need to face it without interference."
She stepped forward. "And what if you don't come back?"
Rayven's eyes softened. "Then that was the price all along."
The Forgotten Tunnel – Bastion's Underbelly
Rayven stood at the mouth of a sealed tunnel hidden beneath the crumbled ruins of Old District 9. Layers of old tech, collapsed infrastructure, and decayed energy lines converged here. This was where Bastion buried its shame.
He took a deep breath, adjusted his gauntlet, and stepped into the dark.
As he walked, the tunnel seemed to stretch unnaturally. Whispers echoed around him—voices he didn't recognize, but emotions he did.
Grief. Rage. Hope.
His mother's voice came faintly:
"If you're here, you've chosen the hard path."
Suddenly, light burst around him—and he was no longer in a tunnel.
The Trial of the Forgotten
Rayven stood in a cathedral made of stars and stone. The floor reflected memories like glass. Across from him stood a version of himself—scarred, bitter, and angry.
The doppelgänger spoke, voice rough like rusted metal.
"You want truth? Then earn it."
The vision attacked, faster than thought. Rayven blocked with the gauntlet, but the blow sent him skidding backward.
Another voice echoed from the ceiling—his father's voice, whom he never truly knew.
"Your power is not in the relic… it's in your will."
Rayven closed his eyes, focusing not on the fight, but on the emotion. He wasn't here to destroy himself—he was here to accept what he had become.
As the vision charged again, Rayven dropped his guard.
He whispered, "I forgive you."
The blow never landed.
The clone dissolved into golden light.
Memory Seal Activated
The glass floor cracked—and a hidden compartment emerged. A small, hexagonal crystal floated upward, etched with the same mark from his gauntlet.
He reached for it—
And the world fractured.
Vision: The Night of the Rebellion
Suddenly, Rayven was six years old again. He stood in his childhood room, hiding beneath his bed while chaos raged outside.
Through the cracked door, he saw Watchers fighting Seraphim soldiers. Explosions. Screams. Blood.
His mother burst into the room—cut, limping, still fierce.
She dropped beside him, holding a glowing box.
"Rayven. They want to control you. Shape you into their weapon. I won't let them."
She placed the Core Gauntlet on his arm, tears in her eyes.
"This will sleep until you're ready. And when you wake… you must choose for yourself."
Suddenly, Seraphim soldiers kicked the door open.
His mother turned, unleashing a blast of Core fire—
Then black.
Back to Reality – The Tunnel Collapses
Rayven woke, the crystal clutched in his hand. The tunnel around him shook violently.
A giant obsidian figure emerged from the dark—a Sentinel, left behind by the Seraphim to guard the truth.
It roared, launching toward him.
Rayven didn't run.
He pressed the crystal into the gauntlet—
The relic pulsed with golden-red light, shifting in shape.
The gauntlet grew. Armor expanded across his chest and shoulder.
Second Seal: Unlocked.
Rayven raised his hand and unleashed a wave of energy that turned the Sentinel to dust.
Return to the Surface
When he emerged into the cold night air, Selene was waiting—kneeling beside a fire near the entrance. She looked up, startled.
Rayven stood taller. Something about him had changed. Not just his armor.
His presence.
She smiled faintly. "You made it."
He tossed the crystal to her. "One down. Two more to go."
Rhea appeared behind them, holding a tablet. "Then you'll want to see this."
She turned the screen.
Seraphim forces were landing in Bastion. Quietly. All over the city.
Rayven narrowed his eyes.
"So… they're done watching."