The world had grown heavier since the battle with the Guild hunters the air itself thick as though the land remembered the clash of stars shadows and chains and recoiled from it The valley where they had fought still carried the stench of broken steel and blood and yet Koda and his companions did not linger They pressed onward their bodies weary but their resolve unshaken
The bounty would spread Koda knew it The hunters who fled would not remain silent Their Guild would whisper into the ears of kings mercenaries assassins desperate men who would trade their souls for a chance to grasp the Nexus Koda had felt their hunger in the clash their voices dripping with greed They would come again and again like waves against rock
But he would endure
The four of them left the valley behind and moved into harsher lands a wasteland of black stone jagged cliffs and rivers of ash that glowed faint with dying fire Once this place had been a mountain range proud and vast now it was only a wound carved by the Abyssborn centuries ago The air tasted of soot the ground cracked beneath their steps and the sky above was dim even as day stretched across the world
Ryn walked at the front despite his battered frame fists clenched as always his grin stubborn though the blood on his knuckles never seemed to fade
Ryn : Hah some welcome to our new world ashes and broken teeth fits me fine I suppose
Lyra followed close behind her silver hair pale against the soot her eyes scanning every shadow her hand never far from the veil of darkness that followed her her voice sharp as always
Lyra : Do not waste your breath with jokes the Guild will not stop and if the Crownless King stirs then every step matters
Aria walked at the rear her hands faintly glowing as she pressed against Ryn's arm steadying him each time his strength faltered though she never complained her voice was softer though no less steady than the others
Aria : The land itself resists us these stones bleed as though they were once alive the world suffers from the rifts and it will only grow worse
Koda walked at the center his blade strapped to his back his chest still burning with the faint glow of the Nexus his eyes fixed forward He listened to his companions the banter the warnings the quiet truths and yet within him the voice of the Gatekeeper still echoed
Voice : Your greatest enemy will be yourself
Koda's hand brushed against the mark on his chest he could feel the fire inside shifting not calm not steady but restless a storm waiting to break he wondered how long before it consumed him how long before he became the very Reaper he had glimpsed in the trial
The wasteland stretched endless cliffs rising like broken walls around them forcing them into narrow paths where the air grew tight and shadows lingered The sound of distant echoes haunted the canyons not footsteps not wind something deeper the land itself whispering
Lyra halted her shadows tightening around her
Lyra : We are not alone
Ryn cracked his fists blood dripping from his knuckles his grin unfaltering
Ryn : Good I was getting bored
Koda drew the blade the fractured stars within it flickering to life arcs of faint light spilling against the stone Aria moved closer her hands glowing brighter prepared for what was to come
From the cliffs above shadows shifted not the Abyssborn but men cloaked in ragged armor their faces hidden by masks carved from bone bows drawn spears raised mercenaries not hunters yet their intent clear Greed burned in their stance their voices rang down like snarls
Mercenary Leader : Nexus bearer surrender and we may let the others live
Koda raised the blade high his voice unyielding
Koda : I will not bow not to Abyssborn not to kings and not to you
The mercenaries roared charging down the cliffs their weapons gleaming with oils that shimmered unnatural Aria gasped as the air grew sharp with poison Koda swung his blade arcs of starlight tearing the path before them Lyra's shadows rose like walls piercing through the first wave Ryn charged his fists breaking through spears even as blood spilled anew from his wounds
The canyon became a storm men screaming steel clashing light burning shadows devouring Aria moved between them mending torn flesh shielding against blades that slipped past Lyra's veil or Ryn's fury each touch steadying Koda when the fire within him threatened to scorch his veins
But the mercenaries were endless wave after wave pouring from the cliffs their numbers greater than the hunters their greed fiercer Koda fought until his arms ached his breath ragged his chest searing with the weight of the Nexus yet he refused to falter The blade cut through dozens but more rose always more
Ryn staggered his grin finally faltering his strength burning his body nearly broken
Ryn : Hah damn it they just keep coming
Lyra's shadows cracked under the strain spears of darkness shattering as her breath grew shallow sweat dripping from her brow
Lyra : They want us exhausted they want him bound not dead
Koda's chest seared the mark burning brighter than before his vision blurring the fire inside demanding release he stumbled gasping his knees trembling
Koda : I cannot hold it back much longer
Aria rushed to him her hands pressing against his chest her voice desperate but steady
Aria : Koda you must not let it take you the Nexus will devour you if you give in
But the fire roared the whispers within louder than ever fragments of voices endless
Voices : Devour erase endure break become become become
Koda screamed his blade flaring arcs of fractured stars tearing the canyon itself apart the mercenaries thrown into the air erased from existence the cliffs shattered stone raining down the very earth breaking beneath his power
When the storm ended silence fell the canyon split in two mercenaries scattered broken those who still breathed fleeing into the shadows Koda fell to his knees his chest burning his breath ragged his eyes wild the blade dim once more
Aria knelt beside him her hands glowing soft her voice sharp with worry
Aria : You cannot lose yourself not now not ever
Koda clenched his fists the mark still glowing faintly his voice hoarse
Koda : If I must break to endure then I will but I will not be erased
Lyra stood nearby her shadows fading her eyes locked on him sharp yet unreadable
Lyra : You walk a line thinner than a blade one step too far and you will no longer be Koda
Ryn staggered to his feet laughing weakly though his blood stained the ground
Ryn : Hah if he breaks then we break with him because that is what it means to fight together
Koda looked at them his companions battered yet unbroken and he felt the storm within calm just enough for him to breathe he rose slowly his blade heavy but steady his voice low but firm
Koda : Then we endure together
They pressed on the wasteland stretching further the rift above pulsing wider each heartbeat darker the world unraveling thread by thread
Far away in the throne of shattered crowns the Crownless King sat unmoving yet smiling his hollow eyes burning brighter
Crownless King : Good let him fight let him bleed let him burn the brighter the fire the sweeter the feast
Armies stirred banners of broken kingdoms raised drums thundered across plains the Crownless King's will spreading like plague across the land and the hunt for Koda the bearer of the Nexus had only just begun
But in the wasteland beneath the broken sky four souls walked together their bond forged in battle their path endless their hope fragile yet unyielding They were hunted by kings gods and nightmares yet they walked and with each step the fire of destiny burned brighter within them
Koda clenched his blade his eyes fixed forward his voice whispering against the silence
Koda : No matter the storm no matter the hunger no matter even myself we endure
And the wasteland carried his words like a vow against eternity