The stars hadn't stopped moving since the Loop Eater died.
They rearranged faster now—like they were being rewritten mid-thought. Every constellation shimmered with purpose, each light pulsing in sync with something vast and intelligent beyond the veil of known creation.
Valerian stood alone on the cliff overlooking the newly forming valley below. It hadn't existed a day ago, but now it pulsed with rivers of light—anomalous terrain formed from the death of the Loop Eater. Wild data flooded the soil, rewriting the physical laws of the space it occupied. Nothing was stable. And yet, it breathed.
He could feel it again.
Another presence.
Not a monster this time.
Worse.
Intention.
Behind him, the others approached.
Kael was grumbling. "You sure you felt something this time? Because the last 'presence' threw me into a dimension made of teeth and childhood trauma."
