"Where are we now?"Axel Steele wiped residual blood from his temple. He stood in the middle of a room that had no walls. White light poured from the floor, creating the illusion that they were floating in an endless data cloud. In front of them, a geometric console floated serenely, radiating a blue glow in a rhythm resembling a heartbeat."The central terminal," Zara Blaze responded. Her breath was still ragged. Her fingers trembled as she tried to touch the automatically appearing holographic interface. "Our ship ... The Echo ... is held in the outer layer. We were thrown in here when the transmission peaked.""Look at that, Zara." Axel pointed to the center of the room.The air in front of them suddenly distorted. Particles of light gathered, forming a giant, unstable silhouette. The figure didn't have a distinct face, only a light mask that continuously shifted shape, mimicking a human profile but on a terrifying scale."Welcome, Iteration Twe

The voice was sharp as an ice dagger, plunging straight into Axel's bone marrow. He froze, his eyes locked on the figure behind the cockpit window of a ship that should have been destroyed. That stare, that crooked smile, it was all too real to be dismissed as a mere data hallucination."Leo? No ... it can't be," Axel whispered, his voice almost swallowed by the dying hum of the engines."Axel, focus!" Zara screamed, her fingers drumming against the console, which now sparked with static electricity. "All Stellaris navigation protocols are locked from the outside. The system recognizes The Echo's signal as the primary administrator! We're losing control!""He called me Brother, Zara. You heard it, right?" Axel gripped the edge of the captain's chair, his knuckles white."I don't care what he called you!" Zara turned, her face slick with cold sweat. "If we don't sever this connection in ten seconds, that mysterious ship will pull us into the Primordial Rif

"He’s been waiting for us." Axel looked at Zara, worry evident in his eyes. "He knew we would come here. How?""He got here first, Axel," Zara replied, her fingers moving swiftly over the console. "His signal is too strong for simple long-range transmission. He’s close by."The Stellaris shuddered, its silver aura flickering as it fully exited the warp corridor. Before them, a sight slammed into Axel like an invisible shockwave. The space around them was no longer pitch black.It was a mad kaleidoscope of overlapping colors, like thousands of giant mirrors shattering and merging in the void. Each broken shard reflected a different reality. There were newly formed galaxies exploding in blue light. There were shattered planets turning into slow-moving stardust. Everything spun, collided, then separated again in chaotic, irregular motions."This ... this is it," Zara whispered, her eyes wide. "The Primordial Rift.""I don't understand," Ax

"Zara, say that again." Axel gripped Zara's shoulders, his eyes fixed on the floating cathedral ruins outside the cockpit window. "Who called out to you?""He called my name, Axel. Not Zara Blaze. He used my real name," Zara whispered. Her voice trembled, tears streaking down her pale cheeks. "A name only my father knew before our city was erased ten years ago.""That's impossible," Axel retorted. He looked over at Captain Vahn. "Vahn, prepare the emergency hatch. Zara and I are going in.""Sir, that's too dangerous! The Echo entity might still be lurking inside," Vahn warned, his tone tense."We don't have a choice, Captain." Axel cut him off. "If there's someone alive in there, we have to know who. Zara, are you ready?"Zara nodded slowly, wiping her tears. "I have to know, Axel. That voice ... it feels too real to be just a data trap."Minutes later, Axel and Zara were inside the small launch capsule. With a slight jolt, they launched tow

"Our capsule won't last, Axel! The magnetic pressure is tearing apart the outer hull!" Zara shrieked, her voice high-pitched amidst the deafening screech of metal."Hold onto the Artifact, Zara! Don't let go!" Axel gripped the manual control lever, even though he knew the system was completely crippled.A powerful jolt slammed into them as the capsule was sucked into the airlock of Kaelen's giant organic structure. Outside the window, the view changed into a corridor of glowing purple flesh, lined with silver nerve cables that pulsed in rhythm with a terrifying heartbeat."This isn't a ship, Axel. It's an organism," Zara whispered, her eyes wide with horror as she watched the corridor walls seemingly breathe."Whatever it is, it's taking us straight to Kaelen." Axel stood up, drawing his light sword which vibrated unstably. "Not now, please." His sword flickered dimly, as if its energy was being sucked away by the surrounding room.Crash!Their capsule stopped abruptly with an impact t