A/N: Hiiii! I know may Trigger Warnings na tayo doon sa 'About the Book' section, but gusto ko lang mag-remind ulit. This particular chapter is heavy; it contains strong language and extreme physical violence. Kaya please, read with extra caution. Take care!

SAGE'S POV

"I-Ivory..."

I barely managed to choke out her name. Nanuyo ang lalamunan ko as I realized I'd been caught red-handed. Again.

Nanatiling tahimik si Ivory. Her utter stillness was far more terrifying than any scream could ever be. Her icy blue eyes locked onto me, a stare so cold, sharp, and piercing it felt like physical blades.

My hands shot up in a frantic, defensive gesture. "T-teka—"nauutal kong sabi, tila nabara ang aking lalamunan. "This isn't what you—"

She cut me off with a sharp, decisive shake of her head. Slowly, she clicked her tongue against her teeth.

"You're so dead, Sythria."

Sa sandaling iyon, parang akong binagsakan ng kulog. My mouth parted, trembling, desperate to form a coherent protest, but every single word had entirely abandoned me. My body locked up completely. Cold sweat prickled across my skin, leaving me utterly paralyzed.

Dahan-dahang humakbang si Ivory paatras patungo sa kadiliman. She didn't utter another syllable aloud. Instead, she simply mouthed two words of final condemnation:

Good luck.

And that was when I felt it—a bizarre, heavy presence bleeding into the air nearby, like a suffocating winter settling over the forest.

From my peripheral vision, a jolt of pure horror made my eyes snap wide. There, watching us from the deepest, ink-black shadows of the ancient trees, was a pair of glowing red eyes.

Holy hexes. For a terrifying second, my lungs forgot how to function. The sheer sight of those crimson eyes felt like it was physically stealing the air right out of my chest. I swallowed hard, a lump of dread forming in my throat.

Suddenly, a rapid, heavy crunching of footsteps echoed from directly behind me. The sudden sound violently shattered my paralysis.

I whipped my head around to face the threat, but before my brain could fully register the movement—

A blinding, scorching heat violently clamped down around my neck.

"HURR—K—K—!"

I thrashed wildly for any air, nagngangalit ang mga ngipin ko habang sumisikip ang matinding sakit sa aking lalamunan. Trembling, my fingers clawed desperately at the constriction.

It was a collar made of solid, unyielding metal—thick, heavy, and radiating a blinding, holy light. Nanghihinang sinundan ng mga mata ko paitaas ang kumikinang na mga kadena, sinusundan ang mga kawing hanggang sa dumako ang tingin ko sa taong may hawak nito.

"A-Audra—"

She didn't give me a single millisecond to breathe. With a cold expression, she yanked the chains, tightening the collar securely around my windpipe.

Isang magaspang na singhal ang kumawala sa aking bibig. I could literally hear the bones in my neck groaning under the sheer, crushing pressure.

"Argh—!" I choked, desperately trying to pry the metal apart, but it was already too late.

Without a word of warning, Audra brutally wrenched the chain forward.

"B-Bitawan mo a-kkr— AUDRA!" Marahas akong napasinghap, my boots scraping violently against the dirt as I stumbled blindly after her. The air around us grew severely unbearable, turning into a thick, suffocating vacuum.

Hindi sumagot si Audra. Walang salitang kumawala sa kanyang labi. Hinila niya lang ako sa likuran niya na parang isang kaswal at ordinaryong paglalakad lang sa kakahuyan, patuloy niya akong hinihila papasok sa madilim at hindi pa nababatid na teritoryo ng kagubatan.

But even through the agonizing pain, I felt her. The exact moment a sudden, violent black mist began to swirl aggressively around her chest... I felt it all.

The raw anger. The hostility. The contempt. The towering conceit.

And above all else... fear.

All of those chaotic emotions were swirling inside her all at once. And me?

"T-tama n-na—" I struggled weakly, hot tears streaming rapidly down my face, burning against my cheeks. "P-please—"

I felt like a witch about to be brutally exorcised.

Pero tuluyan nila akong binalewala. Even Vanya, who was trembling and sobbing hysterically, just pathetically trailed behind Audra like a ghost.

Pagkaraan ng ilang minuto, napagtanto kong paparating kami sa isang malaki at matayog na puno isang liblib na lugar. Mas madilim, tahimik at ang bawat sulok ng lugar ay tila may sariling buhay ang mga aninong nakapaligid dito.

Kusa akong tumingala. Much to my dismay, the radiant moon was slowly being swallowed whole by a dense wall of black clouds.

Audra shot a brief, icy glance in my direction before forcefully dragging me toward the towering tree. Patuloy akong natisod at sumasayad ang aking mga tuhod sa magagaspang na ugat at pilit naghahabol ng hininga, hanggang sa huminto si Audra.

With a brutal flick of her wrist, she threw the length of the chain upward. It moved like a living snake, automatically wrapping and securing itself tightly around a massive, high-reaching branch overhead.

"You think hiding in the shadows makes you clever?" she hissed out, her golden girl facade cracking. Hinawakan niya ang dulo ng kadena at saka ipinulupot ito nang mahigpit sa kanyang palad at hinigpitan ang pagkakahawak nito.

Then, she yanked the chain so violently that my feet nearly left the ground. I choked, the metal cutting deeply into my throat.

"Sneaking around like a disgusting rat in the dark—spying on us?!" sigaw niya diretso sa mukha ko.

A violent flash of panic swept through my system, but the sheer surge of adrenaline forced me to suppress it.

"Seryoso ka ba?!" I spat back, coughing roughly as the metallic taste of blood pooled on my tongue. "D-Dinala mo ba ako dito dahil sa isang bagay na inakala mo?! Ano nga ba talaga ang problema mo?!"

"IKAW," she sneered, her blue-gold eyes flashing with lethal intent. "IKAW ANG PROBLEMA. ALWAYS HAVE BEEN!"

I narrowed my eyes, shooting a venomous glare straight back at her.

"And so are you!" I spat, pulling uselessly against the restraints. "Pero sa ating dalawa? Ikaw 'yung mayabang na babaeng laging nagpapalala sa lahat."

She scowled deeply, the very register of her voice turning heavy and ominous. "You sure have a sharp tongue for a noxious witch."

I visibly flinched at the slur.

"But that doesn't change the fact that you are exactly what I saw," she added, a dark certainty settling over her features.

Napalunok ako nang mariin, pakiramdam ko ay nauubusan na ako ng sasabihin habang nakatitig sa kanya.

"What?" she mocked, a cruel smile touching her lips. "You think this is some kind of joke? You've been a threat since the literal day you arrived at this academy. I've seen what you become. I saw it with my own eyes!"

I forced out a breathless scoff.

In response, she brutally yanked the chain once more, forcing me onto my tiptoes.

"You..." Audra whispered, her voice trembling with a strange horror. "...standing in the dead center of absolute ruins... soaked entirely in blood and darkness."

My breath hitched at her words. A cold dread pierced my chest. "Wha–w-what do you mean?" I asked, my voice finally shaking.

She grinned wickedly, looking entirely unhinged.

"That you and your wretched fate have granted us the perfect chance to get rid of the threat—to eliminate YOU before anything catastrophic happens."

Teka... ibig sabihin ba niyan... papatayin niya ako? As in, murder me right here?!

NABABALIW NA BA SIYA?!

I could feel my own blood boiling violently in my veins. A deep, chaotic tremble tugged at my heart as I fought desperately to breathe. The cold, metallic texture of the collar wrapped around my neck started to burn, searing into my flesh like raw fire.

But right now, I couldn't care less about the pain.

"H-huh." I clicked my tongue sarcastically. "So... one stupid vision... and you just automatically decided it's the absolute truth?"

Pinilit ko ang sarili kong magpakita ng kalmado at nangungutyang patsada sa kabila ng sakit, ngunit may isang matindi at nag-aalab na emosyon na pilit na kumakawala sa aking lalamunan. "T-that's so pathetic... so s-shallow—"

Audra cut me off by callously tugging the chains one more time.

My boots were now a mere inch from the dirt. The terrifying reality that I was about to be executed via hanging slammed into my brain.

"You have absolutely no idea how dangerous you are, noxious witch." Audra shook her head firmly, her patience completely depleted. "You don't know what I saw. You don't know what I felt..." She gritted her teeth so hard her jaw strained. "...seeing you walking around alive, acting like you belong here, like you're one of us. But—YOU'RE NOT! You're the damn storm, Runa. And I saw it coming for ALL. OF. US."

Pinanood ko ang marahas na panginginig ng kapit ni Audra sa mga bakal.

She noticed her own weakness too. With a feral snarl, she jerked the length of the metal again, tightening the loop to a lethal degree. The chain crawled higher, grinding loudly against the thick bark overhead, and the glowing white collar branded my skin with holy fire.

With that sudden, violent action, my head was forcibly wrenched upward and tilted at an unnatural, agonizing angle beneath the tree, leaving my entire body completely off-balance.

Hindi ko na kayang itago pa. Lumitaw ang purong takot na bumabalot sa aking kaluluwa.

One inch left.

One more single inch left bago niya ako bitayin.

"H-huh..." Nagpakawala ako ng mapait at namamaos na halakhak kahit nanunuot na ang aking lalamunan. "You... of all people... acting like a damn savior." Humihina na ang aking boses, pero patuloy ko pa ring nilalabanan ang bigat na nararamdaman ko.

Audra merely glared back, refusing to offer a reply.

"You..." I growled, pinning her with a venomous stare. "P-pretending to be so righteous... when you're literally choking me to death with your holy chains." I gritted my teeth, forcing the immense pain back down my throat. "A-aren't you supposed to be the golden girl of protection? White magick, h-huh? Holy seals, divine shields, and all that heavenly bullshit?"

Suddenly, the suffocating grip of the collar loosened just a fraction.

Audra seemed visibly startled, her eyes widening in fury as she hurriedly stepped closer to me. "You don't understand what I'm trying to do!"

My lips pressed into a hard, severe line of forced silence. Cold sweat beaded heavily on my brow, tracing a slow, hot path down to my temple.

With a slow, ragged exhale of air, I spat right back, "I do."

Umangat ang kanyang isang kilay, nakakuyom ang kanyang panga habang pinipigilan ang sarili na magsalita.

I let out a dark, bitter laugh, locking my sharp silver gaze onto her eyes. "You're scared."

"I'm not."

"You're terrified of me."

"I am not scared of you!" she yelled, her perfect voice cracking. "I am doing what needs to be done!"

"Y-you are," I wheezed, my sweaty hands desperately gripping the burning collar. "B-because you..." I trailed off, taking one last, shaky, desperate breath to speak with absolute clarity.

"...You just couldn't stand the thought of being wrong."

Ang buong kagubatan ay nagsimulang umikot sa aking paningin. The sheer, suffocating weight of the dark tension in my body was rapidly becoming too heavy to carry.

I watched Audra swallow hard. Her hand was visibly trembling now, the frantic rattling of the chains serving as undeniable evidence of her mounting nervousness.

"You really are evil." Her eyes glowed with a fierce, blinding white light as her brows furrowed in pure disgust. "Noxious. Cursed bitch. Cursed fate—"

Cursed?

That single word struck my soul like a final, fatal blow.

"C-cursed..." I whispered in a completely faded voice.

Namilog ang mga mata ni Audra as she stared at me in absolute horror.

Hindi ko na alam kung ano na ang nangyayari. But in the very next second—the glowing white collar and the holy chains attached to me violently shattered into a thousand jagged fragments.

Sa isang iglap, agad na bumagsak nang sampung digri ang temperatura sa clearing, isang nakakabigla at nagyeyelong kabaliktaran ng init ng aking takot.

I hung my head low. My ragged, broken breaths tore violently in and out of my lungs, racing to match the frantic, thunderous rhythm of my heartbeat.

Something inside me had snapped.

It was a terrifying, primordial force that utterly transcended any of the physical pain I had just endured.

I didn't lift a single finger. Nakatayo lang ako, sa harap niya, blangkong nakatitig sa tuyong damo sa ilalim ng aking mga bota.

Yet, I could feel a heavy, ice-cold mist beginning to churn violently around my body. The air grew unnaturally thick, freezing, and dead still. A pitch-black, suffocating presence began to pool heavily at my feet, swirling outward and aggressively demanding space in the forest's quiet darkness.

"A-audra... umalis na tayo dito—" Umalingawngaw mula sa gilid ang takot at humihikbing boses ni Vanya. "Audra... umalis na tayo dito please—"

"Shut it, Vanya," Ivory's voice cut in, sharp and laced with an unusual tremor from beside me. "Can't you tell she's already on edge?"

I forcibly gripped my own head, the sheer effort sending violent tremors up my trembling arms and hands. I bit down on my lower lip so hard that the sharp, metallic tang of my own blood instantly flooded my mouth.

The ground beneath our feet began to tremble—a low, violent, catastrophic shudder.

Then, the shadows around us deepened, coiling and gathering with an intense, suffocating malice until they completely enveloped the clearing.

"H-hey, Audra... something's not right—her power—it's c-colder than any blizzard I've ever summoned," Ivory's voice was actively shaking now.

Amidst the encroaching darkness, Audra just stood there, completely frozen, staring at me in wide, unadulterated disbelief.

I could hear the three witches frantically stepping away from me.

"...Audra? You can stop her, r-right?"

Dahan-dahan akong nag-angat ng tingin sa kanilang lahat.

I felt a terrifying, hellish ignition spark deep inside my chest as my silver eyes began to glow with a blinding, lethal brilliance.

Within my field of vision, everything was instantly swallowed by the catastrophic power I had just unleashed. The forest, the stormy sky, the stars, the moon—every single thing was completely consumed by a pitch-black, suffocating darkness.

"ACK—K—KK—L-Let go—of m-me—"

I barely reacted to their desperate, agonizing screams.

Hindi na sila nakatayo sa lupa. Lahat silang tatlo ay biglang nakalutang ere, ang makapal na mga lubid ng itim na usok ay nakasabit sa kanilang mga leeg na parang malulupit at mapang-aping mga kamay ang sumasakal sa kanila.

They kept screaming, coughing, completely suffocated by the sheer, unbridled agony I was unknowingly causing.

The moment I dropped my arms on my sides, hands forming into white-knuckled fist, I just stood there. Immobile. Unblinking. Walang imik akong nanonood sa kanilang nagpupumiglas at nagdurusa sa hangin, na para bang hinihintay ko lang silang tuluyan nang bawian ng buhay.

Until finally, pure, unadulterated darkness completely consumed my vision.

No matter how loud they screamed...

I stopped listening.