Morning light filtered through the Citadel's narrow cell window, casting bars across Soren's face. The hum roared, a wrathful pulse of dozens of white eyes flaring below, their call—"Unbound, you'll open the gate"—echoing in his mind. His Shadow Echo stirred, crimson eyes glowing, knife gripped tight. The chill of Corruption—now 75%—gnawed at his core, like a void devouring his mother's shadow. The Forgotten are rising. The hum screamed: I'm running out of time.
Veyra unlocked his cell at dawn, her runic armor dented, her Wolf Echo limping. "You're out, but you're watched," she said, her courage frayed by doubt. Mira waited outside, her Lightveil dim, eyes heavy with fear. "Those white eyes… they're calling you," she whispered, her hand brushing his, stirring Lila's fierce loyalty, her pendant heavy in his satchel. Kai, reinstated, stood apart, his journal closed, guilt a sharp note in the hum. Cleared, but not trusted.
Commander Torren gathered them in the Hall of Runes, his scarred face etched with urgency. "The vaults' core is active. The Forgotten's gate is waking. Find it—stop it." His suspicion cut through the hum, lingering on Soren. "Unbound, your Corruption's a liability. Prove you're not the threat."
The vault's core was a chasm of shadow and stone, crimson runes pulsing with wrongness. The air thrummed with wrath, the white shard from the Wraith burning in Soren's pocket. Veyra led, her Wolf scouting, while Mira's Lightveil lit the path, her calm faltering. Kai's owl hovered, its piercing blue eyes scanning, but his rune glowed faintly—crimson. Soren's Echo Pulse sensed a gate—a massive runic arch, its white runes flaring like eyes.
A roar erupted, primal and ancient. A Voidwraith emerged—an Echo of oblivion, its form a swirling vortex of bone and shadow, with glowing white eyes pulsing like voids. Its wrath drowned the hum, mother's shadow twisting—"Soren, fight." Soren's Shadow surged, crimson eyes blazing, but the Voidwraith's claws slashed, knocking him back. Corruption spiked: 80%. It's breaking me.
"Spread out!" Veyra shouted, her Wolf lunging, claws sparking. The Voidwraith's eyes flared, hurling her Wolf into a wall. Mira's Lightveil burned, easing Soren's chill. "Stay with me," she urged, her voice a lifeline. Kai's owl struck, but its rune pulsed crimson, faltering. He's not fighting full strength. Soren used Shadow Bind, restraining the Wraith's claw, but it broke free, its white eyes locking on him.
The hum screamed, mother's shadow pleading—"Hold on." Soren's Echo Pulse found the Wraith's core, a white flame. Shadow Slash struck, carving deep, Echo Ward deflecting a claw. He absorbed a fragment, vertigo hitting, but strength surged, Bone Armor hardening. Corruption burned: 85%. Mira's Lightveil weakened the Wraith, Veyra's Wolf tore its flank, and Soren struck again, dissolving it into wisps. A white runic shard fell, pulsing with wrath.
Soren touched it, his status flickering:
Name: Soren Vey
Echo Affinity: Grief (Tier 2 - Volatile)
Resonance Points: 130/200
Skills: Emotional Echo (Passive), Shadow Slash (Active), Echo Pulse (Basic), Shadow Bind (Basic)
Traits: Bone Armor (+25% Defense), Resonance Sense (Basic), Echo Ward (Intermediate)
Corruption Risk: 85%
Echo Ward strengthened? The hum mapped the gate's runes, but the chill deepened, like a void consuming his mother's shadow. I'm losing myself. Veyra panted, blood dripping. "The gate's active. Someone's opening it." Kai's guilt spiked, his journal trembling. Mira's eyes widened. "The white shard—it's tied to the gate."
Torren arrived, his suspicion a blade. "You stopped it, but the gate's stirring." He seized the shard, glaring at Kai. "You're watched, scholar." Soren's hum screamed: The traitor's closer.
That evening, Soren sat in his cell, the hum a storm. The white shard haunted him—Kai, the gate, the Forgotten. Mira's Stay with me clashed with Lila's pendant. A pulse shook the vault, ancient, commanding. The gate's white runes flared below, and a voice hissed: "Unbound, the gate opens tonight." Soren's Shadow flared, crimson eyes glowing. I'm the key—or the sacrifice.