The Blood of Vampire: Chapter 25 - The Chalice of Silent Light
Jatex and Ryn reached the Mirror Lakes, a series of massive, ancient volcanic craters filled with water so clear it perfectly reflected the sky. The geomantic energy here was liquid and fluid, the opposite of the Gem's quartz solidity.
In the center of the largest, deepest lake, a single, inverted pillar of water stood, holding aloft the Second Ward: The Chalice of Silent Light.
The Chalice was a cup of spun, frozen light, radiating a blinding spiritual Truth. It was protected by an army of Shadow-Wraiths—failed Vaelanar who had allowed the Thirst to consume them entirely, turning them into ravenous, mindless spirits.
The Wraiths screamed, but the Gem of Frozen Tears shielded Jatex from their chaotic noise. Ryn, operating with her newly enforced Loyalty, navigated the lakeside terrain, directing Jatex toward the most stable geomantic path.
Jatex had to cross the water. He still couldn't use a chaotic Shadow-Leap without risking his Stillness.
He focused his Weave, using the Gem's Order and Aeliana's Silent Will. He performed a sustained Path-Weave—creating a bridge of perfectly still, shadow-infused ice across the water's surface, straight to the inverted pillar.
The Wraiths lunged. They clawed at the ice bridge, trying to shatter Jatex's concentration.
But Jatex was shielded by Stillness. He felt no fear, no anger, only the cold, hard drive of his sister's defiance.
He reached the pillar, his feet leaving no trace on the ice. He placed his hand, the Gem embedded in his palm, on the Chalice of Silent Light.
The impact was not a freezing silence, but a wave of overwhelming, brutal honesty. The Chalice demanded that Jatex shed all falsehoods.
The Shadow-Blood Weave screamed. The Gem's Stillness fought the Chalice's Truth. In the agonizing split second of contact, the Chalice forced Jatex to confront the deepest lie of his being:
He was not trying to save the world; he was trying to die. He was trying to use the Wards to create a prison so perfect, he would never have to mourn Aeliana again.
The crushing Truth—the utter purity of his self-destruction—was accepted by the Thirst as the ultimate Grief. The two Wards fused instantly. The Stillness and Truth combined to create a single, chilling spiritual structure in Jatex's heart.
Jatex gasped, clutching the Chalice. He was now a vessel of Silent Truth, driven by a suicidal, absolute discipline.