The massive doors groaned open, revealing a chamber bathed in an ethereal glow that seemed to pulse with ancient power. The air was thick with a sacred stillness, broken only by the faint whisper of swirling mists that danced across the gleaming white marble floor. Intricate gold and jade trimmings adorned the towering walls, catching the light and casting shimmering reflections like distant stars. Marble statues of angels and archangels loomed overhead, their eyes unsettlingly lifelike, following every movement with silent vigilance.
Chris stepped cautiously into the room, his gaze fixed on the figure before him. His voice broke the reverent silence, sharp and resolute. "John…you're John, right? Cecilia's father? Please understand, this place is not yours to command. The Book of Life and Death is no mere ledger—it is a force beyond mortal reckoning. It will not tolerate your intrusion. If it senses a threat, it will not simply destroy the vessel; it will annihilate the soul within. You are putting Cecilia in danger!"
A soft, sorrowful laugh escaped from Cecilia's lips, though the voice that answered was John's—haunted yet resolute. "I came prepared, Captain. I would never let harm come to my daughter, even if I must wear her skin to protect her. I am here to give Cecilia what she has been denied all her life—a family whole once more. Is it just that she should live bound by loneliness and loss?"
John's eyes glistened with unshed tears, his voice heavy with conviction. "You speak of balance, but what balance is there in a world where my child is left to wander alone? I have felt the ache of her loss claw at my very soul, and I refuse to accept a fate that tears us apart. If rewriting the laws of life and death is the price to reunite my family, then so be it!"
Chris's expression hardened, pain mingling with determination. "You are blinded by grief, John. The Book enforces the cosmic order—it is not swayed by desire or sorrow. Your defiance threatens not only your family but the threads that hold existence together. This path leads only to ruin."
John's gaze sharpened, but the anguish remained. "And what of Cecilia's ruin? Caused by her endless cycle of loss and pain? What of the suffering she endured getting torn from her loved ones? No cosmic law can heal a broken heart, Captain. I will bring them back. I will defy the fate that condemns us."
The chamber seemed to hold its breath as the spectral figure within Cecilia's form stood resolute, the swirling mists and watchful stone angels bearing silent witness.
Cecilia's hands trembled as she lifted the corrupted hourglass, the sands glowing with a dark, swirling light. With a deliberate motion, she turned it over. Instantly, tendrils of shadowy energy erupted from the hourglass, coiling around him like living serpents. The air crackled with power, the very atmosphere thickening as the ancient magic surged.
Her eyes locked onto the Book of Life and Death resting on its pedestal. The tome's pages shimmered with divine light, but the tendrils of energy shielded Cecilia, forming an impenetrable barrier. She reached out, fingers brushing the gilded edges of the book.
Suddenly, a blur of motion—Chris charged forward, determination blazing in his eyes. "John, stop this madness!" he shouted, lunging to seize the book before Cecilia could alter fate.
But the tendrils lashed out, striking Chris like a whip. The force threw him backward, crashing against the marble floor with a heavy thud. Gritting his teeth, Chris struggled to rise, his gaze never leaving Cecilia.
Cecilia's lips curled into a triumphant smile as she flipped through the pages, searching with intent. Finally, she found it— "Selina Gabriel Bermudez." The name glowed softly, etched in the cosmic ledger.
With a surge of dark energy, the tendrils wrapped around the name, erasing it stroke by stroke. The page shimmered, the name fading into oblivion. Cecilia's smile widened as he looked around, anticipation radiating from him. "Selina," she whispered, "come back to us."
Seconds stretched into moments, and then minutes. The air remained still. The shadows held their breath. The smile faltered, then vanished. Doubt crept into Cecilia's eyes. "Why… why is she not here yet?"
Chris, recovering from his fall, rose slowly and approached. His voice was steady, but heavy with truth. "Because she's already gone, John. Selina's soul rests in Kaginhawaan. Once there, even erasing her name from the Book can not recall her. She cannot be brought back."
A crushing silence filled the chamber as John's hope shattered, replaced by a deep, aching despair. He tried erasing another name, Ernesto Gabriel, but his father-in-law did not show up.
John, still inhabiting Cecilia's body, slammed his fist against the Book of Life and Death. With a roar of frustration, she ripped the page that once bore Selina's name from the ancient tome. The paper fluttered to the floor, torn and trembling—but the air remained heavy with silence. Nothing stirred. No sign of Selina's return.
Oblivious to the subtle shift behind him, John's eyes burned with desperate fury as he muttered curses under his breath. The hope he clung to was slipping away, replaced by a growing void of despair.
Chris's hands tightened around Cecilia's trembling form, his voice low but urgent. "Cecilia, listen to me—this isn't just about your father's pain anymore. What he's doing, trying to rewrite fate, it's tearing at the very fabric of existence. If you don't fight him, if you let him control you, it won't just be your soul at risk. The whole balance—life, death, everything—will unravel. You could vanish, lost forever in the void he's creating."
He pressed his forehead gently against hers, eyes searching hers for any spark of resistance. "You're stronger than your sorrow and grief. Hold on to who you really are. If you surrender now, there may be no coming back—not for you, not for any of us."
His embrace was firm but tender, a lifeline thrown across the chasm of darkness. "I'm here. Hold on to me. Don't let him take you away."
The possessed Cecilia faltered, the faintest flicker of her true self struggling beneath the weight of John's presence. Chris's words pierced the shadow, a fragile beacon in the encroaching night.
The darkness inside Cecilia's mind writhed, John's spectral presence tightening its grip like a suffocating shadow. Her breath came ragged and shallow as she fought to reclaim control of her own body, every fiber screaming in resistance. The corrupted hourglass pulsed with malevolent energy in John's grasp, fueling his strength, but Cecilia's will burned fiercer, unyielding and relentless.