The courtyard was deathly silent.
Ethan stood at the epicenter of a scorched crater, steam rising around him as the energy of the Rift dissipated slowly from his reentry. His sword—once silver—was now laced with black runes that glowed faintly. The mark on his chest pulsed beneath his shirt, syncing with each heartbeat like a ticking time bomb.
Kael stepped forward slowly, disbelief painted on his face. "Ethan? That... that power. What the hell happened to you?"
Ethan's voice was deeper now, as if something ancient stirred in it. "I saw the other side. I saw the truth. This curse—it's not just a mark. It's a key. And it's unlocking something bigger."
Zeila appeared behind Kael, blades still drawn. "Are you still you?"
He turned to face her, the mark on his forearm still visible from when it ignited. "I don't know."
She didn't lower her blades.
Neither did he.
But after a beat, she flicked her knives back into her sheath. "Good enough for now. Welcome back."
Commander Veyra pushed through the gathering Hunters. Her armor was splattered with ichor and fire damage, and her left arm was wrapped tightly with bandages.
"You crossed a Rift and came back alive," she said coldly. "And with new powers. Explain. Now."
Ethan met her gaze. "There's another world on the other side. Not just where the beasts come from—it's where they were created. That world is trying to merge with ours, and the Beastmarked are the bridge. They're trying to awaken something."
Kael frowned. "What? A god? A beast?"
"No," Ethan replied. "An army. One that's been trapped for centuries. When the last seal breaks, they'll return. And they'll wipe everything out."
Veyra narrowed her eyes. "And you believe you are the key to stopping that?"
Ethan looked at his hands—burning faintly with dark energy—and said nothing.
---
Later that night, the Iron Sanctuary was quieter, though unease still hung like smoke in the air.
Ethan sat alone in the training hall, his sword balanced across his lap. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw the shadows of the Rift World—twisting, forming, whispering.
The mark on his chest was warm now, no longer burning. It pulsed in rhythm with his breathing, like it had become part of him.
He wasn't just a cursed hunter anymore.
He was becoming something else.
"You're brooding again," said a voice from behind.
Zeila entered the hall, tossing him a wrapped sandwich. "Eat. You'll need your strength."
He gave her a look. "You still trust me?"
"No," she said, sitting down beside him. "But I believe in you. And that's close enough."
They sat in silence for a moment.
Then Ethan broke it. "When I was in that world, I saw... a ritual. I don't think I was born with the mark. I think someone put it on me."
Zeila raised a brow. "You think you were... chosen?"
"More like used."
Zeila's expression darkened. "Then we find out who. And we kill them."
Ethan looked at her, surprised.
She shrugged. "You don't get to brood alone anymore."
---
Far to the east, in a hidden chamber beneath an abandoned cathedral, the hooded Council gathered. Around the crystal altar, the Seers chanted in hushed tones, while a single figure stepped into the light.
The Oracle.
Her eyes were milky white, and her voice was layered—like many voices speaking as one.
"The Awakened has returned."
The others murmured.
"But the path has not changed," she continued. "He must fall. The mark must be torn from him before it reaches full resonance."
Another voice, rough and old, spoke from the shadows. "And if it cannot be removed?"
The Oracle smiled faintly. "Then he will become the Gate."
---
Back at the Sanctuary, alarms suddenly blared—howling sirens that cracked the night.
Ethan and Zeila were already on their feet when Kael burst in. "Rift anomaly detected—south perimeter. It's not opening—it's walking."
"Walking?" Ethan echoed, grabbing his sword.
Kael nodded grimly. "Something's coming... and it's bringing the Rift with it."
They sprinted out together, joining the rest of the Hunters as they mounted the walls. Down below, the southern field rippled. The grass turned to ash. The air twisted, bent like heat off metal.
And then it appeared.
A man.
Tall. Wrapped in bone armor and shadow.
And behind him, dragging from his spine, a tether of Rift energy that pulsed like a serpent.
Zeila muttered, "That's not a beast…"
Ethan's eyes narrowed. "It's a Beastmarked."
The figure looked up—and its eyes were the same glowing blue as Ethan's.
The message was clear.
This wasn't just a warning.
It was a declaration.
The war had begun.
---