The sound was not a normal noise. It was a massive, breaking thunderclap that echoed from the very center of Frank Williams’s shattered chest. It was so incredibly loud that it made the dark, spongy red walls of the Inner Sanctum vibrate. The sixty-foot-tall Amalgamation stopped. The giant monster's massive hand, made of petrified black wood and melted gold, was only inches away from Frank’s bloody shirt. It hesitated. The thousand weeping voices inside the monster’s mind went perfectly quiet. The ancient machine did not understand the sound. It did not understand what was happening to the dying boy on the floor. Frank lay in a growing puddle of his own dark red and glowing golden blood. He was drowning. His right lung was punctured. His ribs were crushed. His right leg was snapped completely backward. He was taking his very last breath. But the System inside his brain refused to let him die. The alien parasite wanted to harvest him. It wanted to plug him into the wall and use his

[ EXECUTING. ]Instantly, the magic on Frank’s right hand changed. The hand was still buried deep inside the monster’s solid chest. But it was no longer made of intangible, ghostly light. Frank’s hand turned back into solid, heavy, physical human flesh and bone. The monster shrieked. Suddenly, there was a solid, physical object lodged deep inside its internal organs. Frank’s real, human hand was grabbing its corrupted heart. The monster thrashed wildly, its massive body shaking in pure panic. But Frank was not done. "Now," Frank roared, his voice tearing through the cavern. "Expand the Phantom Limb!"He did not create the Phantom Limb on his left stump this time. He channeled every single remaining drop of the Omega Protocol’s explosive power into his solid right hand, which was buried deep inside the monster. KABOOOOOM!The magic exploded inside the beast. A massive, crackling arm of pure blue and gold kinetic energy rapidly expanded outward from Frank’s hand. But there was

The explosion that destroyed the Amalgamation was over. The blinding, pure white light faded away into the dark shadows of the cavern. But the sky inside the massive room was still falling. Huge pieces of the giant, sixty-foot monster rained down from the air. Heavy blocks of dark steel armor crashed against the soft, squishy red floor. Giant chunks of sharp white bone splintered into a million pieces. Thick, hot, glowing golden blood fell like a terrible, sickening rainstorm. The pieces of the nightmare splashed and sizzled all over the Inner Sanctum. High up in the hot, humid air, Frank Williams hung suspended for one single, quiet second. He was in his Phase-Shift form. His entire body was made of pure, crackling, translucent blue and gold energy. He had no weight. He had no solid shape. He was just a ghost made of starlight and magic. But the Omega Protocol was completely finished. The magic had burned itself out. The Echo Core inside his chest was utterly drained. There was

Frank’s face was completely gray. It was the color of old ash. His lips were dark, bruised purple. His jaw was locked tight, and thick, dark red blood bubbled aggressively around his teeth, spilling down his chin and pooling in his ears. His eyes were wide open, staring blindly at the dark ceiling, filled with broken, bleeding red veins. His body was locked perfectly stiff in an agonizing muscle spasm. "Frank! Oh, gods, Frank!" Elara sobbed loudly. She reached her hands out, but she did not know where to touch him. Everywhere she looked, he was broken. If she touched his chest, she might crush his lungs more. If she touched his arm, she might hurt his burnt stump. She gently placed her trembling, blood-stained hands on both sides of his face. His skin was incredibly cold. The fever heat of the magic was completely gone, leaving only the freezing chill of death behind. "Frank, look at me," Elara cried. Tears poured down her face, washing clean lines through the dirt and monster blo

The ceiling of the colossal Inner Sanctum was falling. Massive blocks of solid black stone, each one the size of a large house, plummeted from the high dome. They crashed into the squishy, dark red floor with deafening, thunderous explosions. Giant clouds of white bone dust and hot yellow steam blew across the ruined room. Elara dragged Frank Williams across the bloody floor. Her dislocated left shoulder burned with blinding agony, but she did not let go of his torn shirt. She looked up through the falling rocks. Her goal was the giant, white metal elevator shaft at the back of the room. The green holographic screen was still glowing brightly, promising a rescue fleet. It was their only way out. "Help me!" Elara screamed over the roaring destruction. Through the thick, choking dust, a large figure ran toward her. It was Kael. The broad-shouldered man dodged a falling piece of ancient steel armor. He reached Elara and immediately grabbed Frank by his heavy leather boots. "I have h