The safehouse was dimly lit, a single holo-screen displaying the faint tracker signals of Henry's group as they moved deeper into the tunnels.Ronnie sat at the table, arms crossed, his dark eyes locked on the monitor. The signals hadn't stopped moving—but the comms had gone silent.Elara stood by the window, silent as always, but watching him.
Elara: "…Something's wrong."
Ronnie didn't look up.
Ronnie: "They're still moving. But they're deeper than they were supposed to go."
He clenched his jaw, a faint flicker of frustration in his usually composed voice.
Ronnie: "I told them to observe, not provoke."
For a moment, Ronnie's gaze drifted toward the small, framed photo on the shelf—Elion, smiling as a child.
He muttered under his breath, so quietly even Elara almost didn't catch it.
Ronnie (quietly): "If the Black Halo's connected to them… then they are far more dangerous than they already are."
Elara turned from the window, her calm voice breaking the silence.
Elara: "Trust them. You need them."
Ronnie finally looked at her, his expression unreadable.
Ronnie: "I trust what they're capable of. Not what they'll do when they learn the truth."
The tracker blinked again. The group was descending even deeper into the tunnels.
Ronnie leaned back, exhaling through his nose.
Ronnie: "Henry… don't dig too far. Not yet."
Meanwhile, Henry's group reached the bottom of the massive cylindrical shaft.
The new chamber was vast, stretching far beyond what any of them expected.
The ceiling was lost in shadow, while the floor was lined with strange halo-like structures—metallic rings suspended by an unseen force, slowly rotating as if orbiting something invisible.
And at the center was a monolithic black pillar covered in golden inscriptions, pulsing faintly like a heartbeat.
Around it, Halo Disciples knelt in silent prayer, their implants glowing in unison.
Lenny whispered, barely audible.
Lenny: "…This looks more like a temple than anything else."
Emilia scanned the disciples carefully.
Emilia: "Notice how they don't move unless they're directed. It's like they're waiting for a command."
Suddenly, a group of robed disciples entered the chamber carrying a sealed crate similar to the one they saw earlier.
They placed it at the base of the black pillar.
Then they began a ritualistic chant, soft but heavy, filling the chamber with a strange resonance that made the air feel thicker—almost gravitational.Ichiro frowned, his instincts on edge.
Ichiro: "Do you feel that? The air… it's bending."
Henry's gaze sharpened.
Henry: "We're too close to something important. Stay low. Watch."
The crate slowly opened.
Inside was a metallic device shaped like a fragmented halo, floating in midair with a faint gravitational pull distorting the space around it.
The disciples all bowed their heads lower.
One of the robed figures spoke in a calm, reverent tone:"The Ascendants shall soon rise. The Halo is eternal."
Jack muttered under his breath.
Jack: "Okay… I don't like where this is going."
Ritual Leader: "This offering is made in preparation for the arrival of Zorath Veil."
The name hung in the chamber like a weight.
Henry felt his jaw tighten.
Henry (whispering): "So Zorath is coming to this section of the Halo…"
Emilia glanced at him.
Emilia: "Now we know who we're dealing with. But we still don't know what they're doing."
As they observed, Emilia's mist sense suddenly flared—someone was moving behind them.
She turned silently… A single Halo Disciple was creeping toward their hiding spot, eyes glowing faintly.
Before Emilia could strike, the disciple reached for a device on his belt—an alarm trigger.
Henry's reflexes were instant.
He grabbed the disciple from behind and silenced him, but the damage was already done.
The faint hum of the chamber shifted.The disciples below stopped chanting.
Slowly, one by one, their heads turned toward the direction of Henry's group.
And then—they started moving.The chamber went silent.
Hundreds of glowing eyes turned toward Henry's group.
Then—without a single word—the Halo Disciples began to move.
Not running. Not shouting. But marching in perfect unison, their synchronized steps echoed like a single heartbeat.
Henry's eyes sharpened immediately.
Henry: "They know. Formation—back to the wall, don't get separated!"
The first wave hit.
Four disciples lunged with batons.
Jack stepped in front, dragon scales hardening over his arms, blocking the strikes with brutal force.
He countered with a sweeping slash with his scale blade, sending two disciples flying into the halo structures.
Jack: "Come on then!"
Emilia dissolved into mist form, slipping past another attacker's strike, reforming behind them, and severing the implant at the base of their neck.
Ichiro moved with sharp precision, his still-developing wind aura boosting his speed just enough to parry a coordinated double strike before finishing them cleanly.
Lenny stayed near the back, providing quick flash charges to disorient the groups trying to flank.
Henry stayed at the center, intercepting blows and directing the team's flow with calm precision, landing clean strikes that disabled rather than wasted time.
But the disciples were not like normal enemies.When one fell, the others instantly shifted formation, closing the gap seamlessly. Their attacks came from multiple angles simultaneously, like a single coordinated organism rather than individuals.
Emilia dodged a spear strike—but another disciple immediately predicted her movement, forcing her to block instead.
Jack growled as two attackers locked his blades while a third tried to stab from behind.
Jack: "They're reading us—like they already know what we're going to do!"
Ichiro gritted his teeth, kicking one disciple back only to see two more replacing them instantly.
Ichiro: "It's like fighting a hive mind…"
Then more disciples poured in from the opposite side of the chamber, doubling their numbers.
Henry's expression hardened.
Henry: "We can't stay here. Too many."
Emilia shifted close to him, mist flickering as she deflected another strike.
Emilia: "Then we fight toward an exit. We can't let them trap us completely."
Lenny shouted over the chaos, pointing to a narrow side passage at the far end of the chamber.
Lenny: "There! It leads deeper, but it's the only open path!"
Henry nodded sharply.
Henry: "Jack—front. Ichiro—cover the rear. Emilia, stay mobile. We're moving now!"