Mark's eyes snapped open to a sky the color of a fresh bruise.
His body screamed. Every muscle burned like he'd been dipped in acid and set on fire. The commander's last punch had cratered his ribs—he could still feel the phantom impact, the way his organs had *splashed* against his spine.
He rolled onto his side, spitting blood.
The training grounds were empty.
Not just quiet—*abandoned*. The dirt was torn up in great gashes, littered with shattered weapons and discarded armor. The five hundred squad leaders, the jeering crowd of Mortal-ranks—gone. Only ten figures remained, clustered near the far wall.
Ren stood at the center, his black blade dripping something thick and dark. His knuckles were raw, his breathing ragged, but his eyes were sharp. Alive.
The others looked worse.
A woman with a broken spear, her left arm bent the wrong way. A kid—couldn't have been older than sixteen—clutching a bleeding gut wound. Seven more, all battered, all staring at the eastern gate like it was salvation.
Mark forced himself up. His katana lay a few feet away, the steel dull with dried blood.
**"Ren."**
His friend turned. **"Took you long enough."**
**"Where the hell is everyone?"**
**"Went home,"** Ren said, jerking his chin toward the gate. **"Commander got what he wanted."**
Mark's demon eye pulsed. **"Which was?"**
**"You."**
A beat of silence. Then—
The air *ripped*.
A portal tore open ten feet away, black as a starless night. It didn't just appear—it *unfolded*, like reality was paper and something had just sliced through it.
The kid screamed first.
The portal *lunged*, swallowing him whole. The woman with the broken spear turned to run—too slow. It took her next, her outstretched hand vanishing into the void.
Ren's sword flashed. Useless. The darkness wrapped around him like smoke, dragging him backward.
**"MARK—"**
Then he was gone.
Mark moved without thinking. His body was broken, his vision swimming, but he *ran*, katana gripping, lungs on fire.
Too late.
The portal snapped shut just as his fingers brushed the empty air where Ren had stood.
Silence.
Mark was alone.
**Ren,** Mark dropped to the ground and scream.
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