The violet sky above them dimmed, flickering like a dying light bulb. Each star that vanished left behind a smudge of blackness that seemed to spread, crawling across the cosmos like a living infection.
Lyra, Kaelen, Rhyss, and Ceyra stood in uneasy silence on the barren plain. The Architect's defeat had bought them no comfort—only dread.
Elsewhere: The First to Fall
Light-years away, on the lush moon of Serath, a thriving city hummed with life. Floating gardens, crystal towers, and the laughter of children echoed through its streets.
Then, without warning, the air turned cold.
A shadow spread across the city—no ships, no invaders, just a suffocating absence. Citizens looked up to see the sky crack, a jagged black fissure forming above them. From it, something dripped—not liquid, but pure darkness.
The first to touch it froze in place, eyes turning obsidian, veins glowing faintly blue. Then they moved—not as themselves, but as extensions of something greater.
A broadcast flared across the moon, hijacking every screen and every mind.
"I have awakened," the Architect's voice intoned. "And I am hungry."
Back on the Barren World
Ceyra flinched violently, clutching her head. "It's spreading. The Bound Half… is reclaiming worlds."
Rhyss swore under their breath. "Then we're out of time. The Nexus is our only shot."
"The Nexus?" Kaelen asked.
"A convergence point," Rhyss explained. "A living network older than the Architect. If we can reach it, we might find a way to cut it off before it consumes everything."
Lyra looked at the others, determination hardening in her chest. "Then we find it. Whatever it takes."
From behind them, a low hum grew louder—engines. They turned to see a sleek, angular ship descending, its hull marked with the emblem of the Veyr Coalition, a notoriously secretive alien alliance.
Rhyss's eyes narrowed. "I didn't call them. Which means…"
The ship's ramp lowered. A figure emerged, tall, robed in black and silver, face concealed behind a mask of flowing light.
"Kaelen Drax. Lyra Solenne. Ceyra Veylan," the figure said, voice neither male nor female. "The Nexus awaits. But you will not all survive what lies ahead."