The return to the Source Cave after the activation of the Echo was marked by a mixture of triumph and exhaustion. The success of the mission was undeniable: the Primeval Beings' fleet, which until then had moved with flawless precision, was now plunged into chaos. Ships collided, their suppression beams flickered, and the uniform metallic chorus of the Primeval Beings broke into dissonance. However, the werewolves were exhausted, and Lyra, Kaelan, and Seraphina felt the weight of the psychological effort.
Seraphina immediately lay down, her body trembling, and the silver streaks on her fur pulsed. The struggle to regain her freedom and repel the Primeval Beings' renewed attempt to take control had cost her enormous energy. Lyra, though tired herself, watched over her, a healing Song of Balance flowing from her hands.
"It worked," Kaelan whispered, looking at the chaotic images on the holographic map, displayed by Elara, who was receiving signals from spy satellites. "We introduced chaos into their order. But what now?"
This was the crucial question. The activation of the Echo was only the beginning. Lyra knew that the Primeval Beings would not give up so easily. Their pursuit of order was deeply ingrained, and such a disruption would only… annoy them.
From the depths of the Source Cave, Aeris's voice resonated, carrying a new truth.
"Well done, Luna. You have activated the Echo. But remember, the Song of Balance not only awakens. It also restores. Chaos is merely a transitional state. The Primeval Beings will strive to restore their order, but now they will have a harder time. Their system is wounded."
Lyra felt Aeris guiding her to a new path. "We must use this chaos," Lyra said to Kaelan and Elara. "Now that their system is disarranged, this is our chance to reach more Anomalies. Seraphina is the key."
Seraphina, despite her exhaustion, raised her head. Her gray eyes were now more focused. "I feel them," she whispered. "Many of them. Millions of souls, trapped in this chaos, awakening. But the Primeval Beings… their main mind… is creating a new pattern. More aggressive. They want to annihilate all sources of emotion that have escaped them. They want to destroy this world to make an example for others."
This was a terrible truth. They had activated chaos, but it had provoked the Primeval Beings into even more radical actions. They no longer just wanted to suppress – they wanted to erase.
"We must contact these awakening Anomalies," Lyra said. "We must give them the Song of Balance. We must teach them how to live with the chaos of emotions, not to fight it. Only they can change their race from within."
This was a new phase of the war. A war on an informational, emotional, and spiritual level. The werewolves had to become carriers of the Song of Balance throughout the cosmos.
Seraphina, though weak, began to focus her efforts on contacting the awakening Anomalies. It was like trying to find individual sparks in a vast, incandescent mass. Sentient Unit 734, weakened by its role in the disruption, still sent subtle signals, acting as a guide for Seraphina.
Elara, on the other hand, thanks to her sensitivity to the Song of Life, tried to create communication channels, amplifying Seraphina's signals. It was like building invisible bridges of Song that were to reach distant points in the cosmic fleet of the Primeval Beings.
Kaelan, Varg, Boreas, and Karkan focused on defense. They knew that the Primeval Beings, though in chaos, were still powerful. They had to defend the Source Cave, which had now become the target of their "final correction." They fortified positions, teaching their warriors how to absorb and transform attacks, rather than block them, which was a new, difficult art.
Throughout the werewolf world, bastions that had previously been suppressed began to regain their colors, though the Song within them was still quiet and trembling. This was a sign that the Echo of the Cosmos had begun to work. But the Primeval Beings, in their desperation, began to create new, more malicious forms of suppression – instead of indifference, they tried to instill a sense of hopelessness and apathy.
Lyra, seeing the growing challenge, understood that they could not just defend. They had to be proactive. "We must send messengers," she said at the New Council. "Werewolves who are most adept at the Song of Balance must travel into space to reach the awakening Anomalies. They must teach them how the Song of Balance can save their race from self-destruction. This is our new mission."
This was a risky plan. Sending werewolves beyond their world was unprecedented, but Lyra knew it was the only way. A mission to spread the Song of Balance throughout the cosmos.
Lyra looked at the Blood Moon, which still hung in the sky. She knew that the battle for the universe continued, and they, the werewolves, were its heart. Their Song was the echo that was to awaken the cosmos to life.