The Construct Reality technique was feared and respected across both humans and Izigans. It was one of the rarest abilities in existence, granting its wielder control over alternate realities and the power to manipulate them. Few could even comprehend it, and Ryan was among the handful capable of bending dimensions to his will.
Red flames surrounded the bank, creating the illusion of a massive blaze. From the outside, the building looked engulfed in fire, yet there was no heat, no smoke just a ghostly inferno. People swore the bank was both there and not there at the same time.
An Illusion that allowed the eye to see what it should see.
Crowds gathered behind police barricades, officers and civilians alike staring helplessly at the phenomenon. Everyone knew an Izigan was behind this.
"What the hell are they doing this time? Just looking at it gives me chills," one policeman muttered, leaning against his car.
"Don't overthink it. It's an Izigan. We'll never understand their logic. Their powers don't follow the rules of reality," his partner replied, never taking his eyes off the burning structure.
As always, bystanders raised their phones, recording what they thought was only a spectacle. None of them realized the nightmare unfolding inside.
"Wh-what is this?" one of the Peacemakers whispered, his voice breaking as he dropped to his knees. His eyes were wide, pupils constricted, body frozen in terror. He could feel his heartbeat pounding in his throat, so strong it felt as though his heart was about to leap out of his mouth.
The civilians inside the bank had changed. Their forms were no longer human, skin dripped and warped into red, molten flesh. Their faces were eyeless voids, with gaping mouths stretched where their eyes should have been.
Even when fear claimed their bodies, they picked up their guns and fired repeatedly at the grotesque humanoid beings in front of them.
Bullets riddled their bodies, but each shot left no mark, leaving the creatures unfazed.
The bank itself had shifted into something unrecognizable. Black stone walls replaced the once white walls, the tiled floor replaced with jagged rock. The air was heavy, thick with a suffocating pressure that burned their lungs with every breath.
The Peacemakers attempted to run for their dear lives, but the slimy, faceless monsters were quick.
Their elongated hands extended like whips, catching them like prey in a trap and dragging the victims toward themselves. They screamed as they were pulled into their grasp. Once touched, flesh dissolved like wax under flame. Guns were useless; the only option was to run.
Meanwhile, three Peacemakers, oblivious to the events above, moved toward the vault holding the cosmic core. The endless attempt to break through the gate was futile, but they had other options.
"Quick, the dissolver," one ordered.
A teammate pulled a cylindrical canister from his pack, coating the gate in a thick, colorless liquid. The metal hissed and melted, opening a way through.
But something was wrong.
The vault they had planned for months to breach wasn't locked. The door stood slightly open, white light leaking from the gap.
"Wait. This feels off," the woman in their group said, her eyes darting around. "It could be a trap."
"Trap or not, we're here. Stop overthinking." The impatient one shoved her aside and pushed the vault open.
In that moment the door went open, and the world shifted instantly.
Metal walls vanished. The air grew toxic and hot, the floor turning into barren red rock. Overhead, winged beasts circled in a blood-colored sky.
They stood helpless and confused, watching as the world changed around them until one noticed that the ground beneath them shook like it was alive.
Slimy arms shot from the ground, clamping around their legs and pinning them in place.
They were forced to look at something ahead of them.