The tear in reality widened again.
Not gradually now—
But violently.
Like something on the other side had finally realized it no longer needed to wait.
The Second Breach
The Veyrith stepped back slightly.
Not in fear.
In expectation.
Leila felt it immediately.
"That's not the only one…"
Her voice was low.
Dominic's eyes sharpened.
"What do you mean?"
The answer came before she could explain.
The tear split.
Not into pieces—
But into multiple openings.
Marcus's eyes widened.
"Oh no. Oh no, no, no—why is it multiplying?!"
They Are Coming
From the second tear—
Something else emerged.
Smaller.
Faster.
Swarming.
Not one entity—
But many.
Twisting shapes poured out like smoke given form, each one different, each one wrong in its own way.
The Alpha Killers immediately tensed.
Kael's voice echoed in Leila's mind faintly—
Don't let them spread.
Leila clenched her fists.
"I hear you…"
Even if he wasn't here—
Something of him still was.
The First Wave
The swarm hit the ground.
And moved.
Fast.
Too fast.
Marcus cursed as he swung his weapon.
"Yeah, that's definitely not wolves!"
Dominic lunged forward instantly, tearing through the closest entity.
But instead of blood—
It burst into fragments of dark energy.
Each fragment—
Still alive.
Still moving.
Leila's eyes widened.
"They multiply when broken…"
The old man's voice was grim.
"Don't destroy them individually."
A pause.
"Contain them."
The Alpha Killers Adapt
The Alpha Killers reacted instantly.
They shifted tactics.
Surrounding clusters instead of striking blindly.
Coordinated.
Precise.
For the first time—
They weren't just fighting.
They were thinking.
Marcus blinked.
"…Okay, I didn't know they could do that."
Dominic didn't respond.
His focus was elsewhere.
On Leila.
Because her power—
Was changing again.
Leila's Struggle
Leila stood still.
But her body trembled.
The First Bloodline inside her was reacting violently.
Not to the swarm.
Not to the Veyrith.
But to the tear itself.
"It's pulling on me…"
Her voice cracked slightly.
Dominic stepped closer.
"Don't listen to it."
She shook her head.
"I'm not trying to."
But the truth was—
It wasn't just calling her.
It was recognizing her.
The Third Tear
The ground shook again.
A deeper tremor.
And then—
A third tear opened.
Bigger than the others.
This one didn't release creatures immediately.
Instead—
Something looked out.
A single massive eye.
Unblinking.
Focused.
On Leila.
Marcus froze.
"…Okay. That one is definitely personal."
The air pressure dropped instantly.
Even the Veyrith stepped back further.
The Truth Deepens
The old man whispered.
"This is worse than I thought…"
Dominic glanced at him sharply.
"What is it?"
The old man didn't answer immediately.
Because he was staring at Leila.
At her power.
At her reaction.
"…They're not escaping the seal."
A pause.
"They're responding to it."
Leila's breath caught.
"What does that mean?"
The answer came slowly.
"They recognize you."
Malachar's Shadow
From somewhere beyond the chaos—
A ripple of energy moved through the air.
Malachar.
Watching.
Somewhere far away.
Smiling.
Leila felt it instantly.
Her voice dropped.
"He did this…"
Dominic's jaw clenched.
"He set all of it in motion."
The Alpha Killers fought harder now.
But the battlefield was collapsing into chaos.
The swarm was spreading.
The tears were expanding.
And something worse—
Was building behind them.
The Collapse of Control
The Veyrith moved again.
This time—
Not toward Leila.
But toward the largest tear.
It raised its hand.
And the space around it bent.
Leila felt it instantly.
"It's stabilizing the gate!"
The old man nodded grimly.
"If it completes that process…"
He didn't finish.
He didn't need to.
Everyone understood.
Dominic's Decision
Dominic stepped forward.
"No more waiting."
Leila looked at him.
"What are you doing?"
His eyes were sharp.
Focused.
"I'm ending this before it gets worse."
Marcus blinked.
"With what exactly?!"
Dominic didn't answer.
Instead—
His shadows exploded outward.
But this time—
They weren't just dark.
They were dense.
Heavy.
Different.
Leila felt it immediately.
"…You're pushing your limit."
He glanced at her briefly.
"So are you."
The Bond Strengthens
For a moment—
Their powers aligned.
Not merged.
But synchronized.
Leila felt it.
Dominic felt it.
The Alpha Killers felt it.
Even the swarm hesitated.
Marcus muttered.
"…Okay, that's actually kind of terrifyingly beautiful."
Kael's faint voice echoed again—
Now.
Leila inhaled sharply.
And stepped forward.
The Turning Point
Her voice rose.
Not a command.
Not control.
But something deeper.
"I won't let this world be opened."
Her eyes locked onto the tears.
The First Bloodline surged.
But this time—
She didn't resist it.
She guided it.
Dominic moved beside her.
"Then let's close it."
The Alpha Killers regrouped behind them.
The battlefield shifted.
From chaos—
To focus.
The Veyrith paused.
For the first time—
It looked uncertain.
The War Reverses
Leila lifted her hand.
Dominic did the same.
Their power combined—not as one force—
But as two aligned wills.
The ground beneath them trembled.
The tears flickered.
For a moment—
They began to close.
Marcus stared.
"…No way…"
The old man whispered.
"So it begins…"
But deep within the largest tear—
Something moved closer.
Something massive.
Something that had been waiting for this exact moment.
And it was smiling.