Theodore struggled against the vines, but they only tightened, binding him like a beast before judgment.
Isen didn't look at him anymore.
His eyes were on Ivy.
She lay still on the stone, her breath shallow, her skin cold from the ritual drain. The shattered chains glittered around her like broken stars.
"Ivy," he whispered, running to her side. He fell to his knees and touched her cheek with trembling fingers.
Her eyes fluttered open.
"…Isen?"
His heart cracked open. "I'm here. I've got you."
She tried to speak, but he gently hushed her, lifting her into his arms. The Ivy amulet around her neck pulsed faintly, reacting to his presence. The power shared only with her true bond was returning.
From behind them, Theodore's voice cracked like thunder, still filled with venom.
"You don't understand what you've interrupted… That eclipse was mine! That power was—"
Isen turned, raising his hand. A spiral of green vines snapped around the king's mouth, silencing him.
"I don't need to understand evil," Isen said. "I just need to stop it."
He stepped away from the stone ,cradling Ivy close, his magic flaring with every breath.
As the eclipse reached its peak,bloomed fully around them—its petals, formed from pure light, spinning in the air like a halo. The moon seemed to pause, its blood-red hue softening.
Isen looked down at Ivy. Her eyes were locked on his, filled with tears and love.
"You saved me," she whispered.
"No," he said softly. "You saved me."
The moment sealed. The amulet on her chest shimmered, glowing with both their energies. The bond was complete.
Behind them, the dark altar began to crumble. The king, still bound, screamed in silence as the vines dragged him into the earth, into the void his darkness had summoned.
The temple walls cracked.
But Isen stood tall, holding Ivy as the tower fell around them.
Together, they stepped into the rising dawn.