The air was thick with the smell of burning stone and iron. The battle outside had not ended; if anything, it had only grown louder. Each tremor beneath their feet carried the sound of destruction, like the earth itself was cracking apart.Lena’s chest rose and fell in short breaths. She pressed her back against the cold wall, her palms still raw from the last clash. Every muscle in her body ached, but she forced herself to remain standing. They couldn’t afford weakness now—not with so many eyes on her.Kai stood close, his blade still dripping with the dark blood of the enemy they had just struck down. His face was hard, but his hand brushed against hers, steadying her for just a heartbeat. That touch was enough. She clung to the strength he gave without words.The Zero Child hovered near the doorway, his glowing eyes watching the shadows like a sentinel. He was quiet—too quiet—but Lena sensed the storm building in him. Power rolled from him in waves, shifting the air like invisible

The silence after the last explosion felt louder than any sound. Dust hung thick in the air, drifting down like ash. The ground was no longer shaking, but cracks spread across the floor and walls like black veins. The chamber felt wounded, as if it might collapse at any second.Lena’s chest rose and fell quickly, every breath sharp and full of grit. Her throat burned. She clutched her arms to steady herself, but her eyes stayed on the woman who stood in the middle of the chaos as if nothing around them mattered.That woman—the one who had spoken with such calm power—remained untouched. Her long dark hair floated as though caught in some invisible current. The glow from the broken pillars wrapped around her like ribbons of light.Kai was already pulling Lena behind him, his body tense, his movements sharp. His eyes never left the woman. His hand was clenched, his knuckles white, but his voice was low and steady.“Stay back, Lena. Don’t let her near you.”Lena didn’t argue. Her body scr

The silence in the ruined chamber was heavy, broken only by the faint hum of power lingering in the walls. Dust floated in the air, glowing faintly in the light that still pulsed from the cracked crystal at the center. Lena stood in the middle of it all, her chest rising and falling quickly, her eyes fixed on the woman who had caused so much chaos.The woman—her presence sharp and commanding even now—was kneeling, one hand pressed against the floor, her eyes filled with something Lena could not fully read. It was not fear, not completely. There was a strange calmness about her, as if she had expected everything to fall this way.Kai moved to Lena’s side, his arm brushing against hers. She felt his warmth and his steadying presence, and it anchored her even as her mind raced. The Zero Child stood just behind them, silent, their expression distant, eyes locked on the woman.“Why are you still here?” Lena asked, her voice low but sharp. She had to force herself not to shout. “You had you

The storm outside the ruins had not stopped. Rain pounded the shattered walls, dripping into every crack of the broken structure where Lena, Kai, and the Zero Child had taken shelter. The chamber they had escaped into wasn’t much safer than the collapsing halls behind them, but at least the ceiling hadn’t given way yet.Lena leaned against the wall, her chest rising and falling fast. The cuts across her arms burned, but she didn’t care about them. What haunted her most was the image of the woman—the shadowed figure who had spoken in riddles as the chamber collapsed. Her words still echoed inside Lena’s head.“She is far too important for that.”Lena closed her eyes for a moment. Important. Why? Every time she thought she was close to an answer, another mystery appeared.The Zero Child sat nearby, hugging their knees to their chest, their glowing eyes dim. The strange blue energy that always lingered around them flickered weakly, like a candle fighting against the wind. They looked so

The storm had not passed.Outside the fractured walls of the chamber, the earth groaned like a wounded beast. Dust fell from the ceiling in thick clouds, and cracks spread like veins across the stone floor. The air itself vibrated with the force of something old and alive, something that had been waiting for centuries to awaken.Lena held her breath, clutching Kai’s arm tightly. She could feel his muscles tense under her fingers, as though he too was bracing against a wave they could not see. The child between them—pale, silent, but burning with strange light—stood unmoving, his eyes fixed on the woman in black.That woman had not flinched once. Her dark gown swayed with the wind rushing through the collapsing room, her hair whipping around her face, but her smile did not falter. It was the kind of smile that promised knowledge and destruction in the same breath.“You feel it, don’t you?” she said softly, her voice carrying even through the thunderous cracks overhead. “The chamber was