Brent's knees hit the ground as the pressure crushed into his chest. His Twilight Paladin core flickered wildly, threads of flame resonance snapping like overstretched cords.
System Alert:
Core integrity: Critical.
External force bypassing resonance shields.
He grit his teeth, forcing himself upright.
Rae collapsed beside him, her Soul Core flashing erratically.
Lysa screamed in pain, emberlight pouring from her eyes and fingertips.
Across the battlefield, the soldiers—their allies—lay paralyzed, overwhelmed by the storm of foreign memories.
"Stop…" Brent gasped, clutching at his chest.
"What… are you…?"
The child tilted her head.
She smiled sweetly.
And Her voice poured through her mouth, like layered echoes.
"I am the Nexus.
I am the womb of worlds.
I am the hunger between gates."
Brent's vision flickered.
He saw not one world—but many.
Stacked atop each other like glass sheets, all connected by thin shimmering threads.
And along those threads… crawled shapes.
Monsters.
Parasites.
Her.
System Warning:
Echo of Her detected.
Last defense protocol: UNLOCKED.
A surge of burning heat exploded inside Brent's chest. His body arched backward, flames ripping through his veins, twisting with the deep shadow infusion at his core.
"I won't…" Brent hissed, his voice shaking,
"I WON'T LET YOU TAKE THEM!"
Rae's head snapped up, her eyes wide.
Lysa's hands glowed, pulsing desperately toward him.
"Brent! DON'T!" Rae cried.
"It could break you!"
But Brent wasn't listening.
He dove inward.
Past his human limits. Past the Twilight Paladin.
Down into the system's heart.
And there—beneath the layers of fire and light—
He found something hidden.
Something old.
Something waiting.
System Final Lock: Disengaged.
Primordial Flame: UNSEALED.
Brent opened his eyes.
The flame was no longer gold.
No longer red.
It was white.
With a scream, he lunged forward—
—slamming his fists into the ground—
—and shattered the pulsing memory storm with a single burst of blinding white fire.
The child staggered.
The smile faltered.
And for the first time,
Her voice cracked.
"Impossible…"
Rae's breath hitched as Brent vanished inside the blinding white inferno.
"No—NO!" Rae shouted, reaching forward, only to be forced back by the searing force.
Lysa stumbled to her side, clutching her chest, eyes wide with terror.
"It's not just him!" Lysa gasped.
"It's pulling the Primordial Nexus itself into him—he's becoming a conduit!"
Rae's mind raced.
If Brent couldn't control the unsealed flame, he wouldn't just burn out—
He'd collapse the entire battlefield, maybe even the local Gate network.
System Advisory:
Emergency Protocol: Soul Stabilization Recommended.
Warning: Failure may result in Nexus Detonation.
Rae clenched her fists.
"Lysa—can you still channel the Emberheart?"
Lysa nodded shakily.
"I—I can try, but only if you anchor us!"
Rae's Soul Core pulsed wildly, drawing in threads of lunar and celestial essence.
She reached deep into her bond with Brent, their Soul Bond flaring so fiercely it felt like her chest might split open.
Soul Bond Access: Engaged.
Dual Anchor Mode: Online.
Initiating Lunar-Ember Stabilization.
Together, Rae and Lysa stepped forward.
Every step closer to Brent felt like walking into a supernova.
Their skin blistered.
Their vision blurred.
But they kept going.
Rae reached for Brent first, grabbing his outstretched hand.
The surge of white-hot flame nearly flung her backward—but she held.
"Come back to us, Brent!" Rae cried, forcing her voice through the howling energy.
Lysa fell to her knees beside them, slamming her palms onto Brent's back. Emberlight and healing threads shot into him, latching onto the core itself.
Brent's body shook violently.
The white flame pulsed again—
—and for a terrifying moment, Rae saw Her shadow peel free from Brent's spine, screaming in rage.
"You will regret this, little bonds…" the echo hissed, before the light flared one final time—
—and then collapsed inward.
When the dust settled, Brent collapsed forward, unconscious but breathing.
Rae slumped beside him, trembling but relieved.
Lysa sobbed softly, her energy drained to the bone.
System Notification:
Primordial Flame Contained.
Unity Core: Stable.
Nexus Integrity: Preserved.
New Trait Unlocked: "White Ember Resonance."
Rae exhaled shakily.
"We did it, Lysa…" she whispered.
"We brought him back."
But even as they embraced, Rae's heart clenched.
Because in the far corner of her vision, standing silently beyond the veil of ash—
was Kalen.
And he was smiling.