Smoke and fire stitched the battlefield into a portrait of madness. Hollowspawn rampaged like unleashed nightmares, their tendrils and fangs soaked in blood. The cries of dying men mingled with the screeches of burning goblins. And at the center of it all stood Reed, eyes fixed on the altar, where Shia knelt in a pool of her own blood.
Her body trembled, charred and broken. The wound from Kheldrin's blade had cut deep. But she had bought him time. Reed clenched his jaw, his fingers tightening around the hilt of his blade until his knuckles turned white.
"Shia... Hold on."
A wave of pain surged through his chest, not from injury—but from the countdown.
00:00:26
The Soul Anchor flared. The bond tethering them shimmered with golden veins of energy, unstable, cracking. It was fraying fast. Reed could feel her thoughts in flashes: pain, rage, love, defiance.
Twenty-six seconds left.
He turned away from her and faced the approaching figure—the coalition's leader, Lord Helcran. His armor was forged obsidian, each movement a hymn of power. His blade radiated divine authority, anointed with the blood of saints and sinners alike.
"You think this corruption can win?" Helcran's voice boomed, unshaken. "You defy the Domain. You mock the System."
Reed spat blood. "The System's broken. I'm just the error it made."
They charged.
Steel met steel in a violent clang. Helcran's first strike shattered a boulder behind Reed even though he dodged. The second cut grazed his ribs. The third, he parried with brute force, staggering under the impact.
00:00:17
Flashback: A boy with broken ribs crawling through ash, dragging his sister's body.
Reed screamed and launched forward, breaking into the Lord's guard with a brutal low slash. His blade kissed Helcran's thigh—blood. Not much, but enough. Reed pressed harder. His movements weren't elegant; they were feral. Each strike was an act of survival, of desperation.
Helcran faltered. Not from pain—but confusion.
"What kind of training is this?"
"It's not training," Reed growled. "It's dying again and again until you forget what fear tastes like."
They clashed again. Sparks rained. The ground cracked beneath them.
00:00:09
Shia's body twitched. Her mouth opened—no sound. Her eyes locked on Reed.
The Soul Anchor surged.
In that moment, Reed felt her strength pour into him. Bones healed. Muscles braced. Pain dulled.
Shared Protocol: Dual Instinct Mode Activated
His eyes turned gold.
Reed exploded into motion. He feinted high, then twisted into a spinning slash aimed at Helcran's exposed ribs. It hit. Deep.
Helcran coughed blood. Snarled. Grabbed Reed by the throat and lifted him. "You will break."
"Already did," Reed hissed.
He slammed his blade into the Lord's chest point-blank. Blood gushed. Helcran staggered.
00:00:02
Reed collapsed. The Anchor pulsed red.
Shia moved. Barely. Her hand twitched toward her fallen blade.
Helcran raised his sword one last time.
Shia's voice—shaky, raw—"Now, Reed."
Reed's eyes snapped open. One second left.
He roared and drove his dagger—coated in Hollowspawn toxin—into Helcran's eye.
Helcran screamed.
The System glitched.
> CRITICAL STRIKE: SYSTEM BREACH
The Lord's body convulsed and burst into golden flame.
Reed fell to his knees.
The battlefield went silent for a breathless moment.
Then chaos returned—Hollowspawn tearing through remaining soldiers, the Domain fracturing.
Stability: 17%
Shia was still breathing. Barely. Reed crawled to her.
"Don't die," he whispered.
Her lips curled into a weak smile. "Not yet. You still owe me a drink."
And then a voice, system-born and soulless:
> WARNING: FINAL PROTOCOL ENGAGED.
> ENTITY: GODSEED DETECTED.
From the cracked altar, something began to rise. A being of light and glitching shadows. Taller than giants. Eyes like code unraveling.
Reed turned, covering Shia with his own body.