The sensation of being pulled through a cosmic needle's eye ended with a violent impact that made Archen Huge’s lungs feel as if they were exploding. He was thrown onto sharp, pale gray gravel ground. The smell of the air here was strange; a mixture of sulfur and a pungent, electric scent of static. "Damn it..." Archen groaned, trying to get up. Every joint felt as if it had been lubricated with sand. Before he could even stand upright, a hoarse roar split the silence. From behind a mound of rocks, three creatures leaped out, looking like nightmares stitched together. They had the bodies of the shadow wolves Archen had fought before, but with the hard crystal shells of Sentinels covering their backs. [Warning: System Amalgamation Detected.] [Category: Transitional Predators.] "You guys again?" Archen smirked wildly, even as blood seeped from his forehead where it had hit the rock. He clenched his fists, summoning

The Synergy Compass in El Joe's palm pulsed with a painful rhythm, as if the object had its own heart in a state of panic. Its blue light glowed intensely, illuminating the long corridor formed by an arrangement of giant circuit crystals. Ahead, Archen Huge strode with tense shoulders. Every time his feet struck the metallic floor, a heavy clang echoed, telling the universe that the pillar of strength was demanding entry."Don't get too far ahead, Archen!" Joe called out, his voice reflecting off the shimmering crystal walls. "This compass is detecting changes in data density around us. This environment is unstable."Archen didn't look back, but he slowed his pace slightly. A black aura of gravity enveloped his fists, making the air around his hands appear distorted. "The guide said the Brain is dying. I don't have time for a leisurely stroll like I'm at your flea market, Commander."Suddenly, the ground beneath them trembled. It wasn't an earthquake's tremor, but a high-frequency vib

The leftover wood from the lab table crackled in the devouring flames, sending orange sparks into the deep purple night sky. Around the makeshift campfire, the silence felt heavy. Archen Huge leaned his back against a cracked concrete pillar, his eyes staring blankly at his palms, which still occasionally sparked with a black glow. Beside him, El Joe was cleaning his iron pipe with a tattered cloth, his movements slow and rhythmic.Dylan Smith sat a bit further from the fire, cradling a crystal device he had scavenged from the remains of a technological cathedral. The blue light from the device reflected off his glasses, of which only one temple remained intact. His fingers moved quickly over the crystal surface, as if dancing with shadows."You've been staring at that thing for two hours, Dylan. Are you trying to get that machine to talk?" Archen broke the silence with his raspy voice.Dylan didn't answer immediately. He swiped a line of light in the air,