THE IMMORTALS (✓)

25. First defeat

!W! Use of strong language. 

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Fifteen minutes in, the stretch of the cavern was filled with dozens of Crystal Flowers of Pain, people around it trying to extract the glow but to no avail.

"How are we supposed to separate it and what exactly happened, Alec? How will a flower help us in defeating Kasper? We're invincible, remember?" Stefan threw the flower he held over the bed of others, a heavy sigh leaving his reddening nose.

"I don't know Stefan, she just said it's possible to separate them and about what the flower is. I know what to do but we need to separate the glow first." Alec said while waving his fingers over a bunch of flowers, only to face the disappointment. He had lent a few of his feathers to the group, hoping the development in his wings could help but that failed as well. Nothing they were coming up with was working.

Simasua had gone back to his meditation in the depths of that cave, leaving them to their struggle so it was evident that his role was over. None of their magic, mundane tricks, or illogical suggestions were helping and their time was running out.

"Alec, I know you're scared but dude, stop overthinking, that weird feeling in your stomach is making me nauseous."  Jace visibility gagged. "Nothing will happen to your husband, okay? He has literally your powers in him, he's much stronger now. So please."

"Sorry." Alec bit his lip and took a deep breath, trying to focus on those flowers. The petals were in the shape of pointed silver crystals, glowing a brilliant amount of shine on their own. The stem had real crystal dust around the surface, leading to the base where the glow begins. Though, there was something about that dust. The way it rose, in a zig-zag pattern as if the writing had been crafted over it. Frowning as Alec brought it closer to his eyes, he noticed that there indeed was a message crafted on it.

~Where purity lies, the crystal complies~

"Um, hey there's a writing on its stem," Alec said, his brain trying to come up with its meaning.

"What does that supposed to mean? And how is that even-"

"You beings are still in turmoil. What seems to be the cause, children?" Simasua's thin figure emerged from the darkness, sprinkling what seemed to be holy water all over the walls.

"We are not able to extract the glow, Simasua." Rosette said in a polite tone. "And this message made it more confusing."

"I don't think it's your job, my child." The old man said after he examined one of the flowers. "The crystal welcomes only the purest soul, it seems. Even if you are pure, it asks for the purest, rarest. And that should be The Silver Angel in your crowd."

"But, I tried everything Simasua." Alec's tone held desperation. Far away in a separate world, his husband's life was in danger and here, he wasn't able to solve a damn puzzle. Every second hung over his head like a swinging sword and he couldn't afford to waste anymore. "Even these tiny crystals."

"It's your soul it needs, child. Not a crystal." Simasua tilted his head, trailing his eyes all over Alec's silhouette as if trying to read him. "Tell me, child, is your soul a whole?"

"What?"

"Your soul, my child. It needs to be a whole in order for the purest touch to work. Do you feel it in you as a whole or a part of it?"