The chamber hummed with energy as Aarya stood before the completed painting, its colors shifting like a living thing. Veer remained by her side, his presence steady, while Rhea observed with quiet satisfaction.
Aarya reached out, her fingers hovering over the canvas, feeling the weight of everything that had led her here. The trials, the echoes of her past, the truth buried beneath years of unanswered questions—all of it had guided her to this moment.
Her mother’s voice still lingered in her mind. Now, it’s yours to protect.
The painting pulsed, and suddenly, the room around them shifted. The walls dissolved into pure light, revealing a space unlike any Aarya had seen before.
It was an archive.
Rows upon rows of canvases stretched into infinity, each one holding a story, a soul, a truth that had fought to exist.
Rhea stepped forward. “This is the heart of the legacy—every artist who has ever taken these trials has left a part of themselves here.”
Aarya’s breath hitched. She understood now—this wasn’t just about her mother’s work. It was about preserving the truth of all creators who had walked this path before her.
Veer turned to her, his expression unreadable. “So what happens now?”
Aarya met his gaze, a spark of certainty igniting in her chest.
“Now,” she said, voice steady, “I take my place among them.”
She lifted her hand, pressing her palm against the masterpiece before her. Light surged forward, wrapping around her, binding her to the legacy she had fought so hard to understand.
The trials had tested her.
Her past had shaped her.
Now, her future belonged to the art she had been destined to protect.
As the chamber faded, as the world realigned, Aarya knew—this was just the beginning.
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