Snow swept across the mountain as the convoy left the Origin Facility.
Black armored SUVs cut through the white landscape in complete silence.
No headlights.
No unnecessary radio chatter.
Only one destination.
The Sanctuary.
---
Inside the lead vehicle, Artyom sat beside Viktor.
Neither of them spoke.
The events of the last few hours weighed heavily on both of them.
---
Finally, Viktor broke the silence.
"Are you afraid?"
---
Artyom looked out the window.
"Yes."
A pause.
"But not of what I'll find."
---
Viktor turned toward him.
---
"I'm afraid of what I'll lose."
---
For a moment, Viktor reached over and gently covered Artyom's hand with his own.
No words.
No promises.
Just quiet reassurance.
---
In the second vehicle—
Roman studied an old leather-bound journal.
Valentin sat beside him.
"You've seen that symbol before," Roman said.
---
Valentin nodded.
"The eclipse."
---
He closed his eyes briefly.
"I prayed I'd never see it again."
---
Across the convoy—
Dmitri monitored encrypted signals.
His laptop suddenly beeped.
---
"I found something."
---
Nikola looked up.
"What?"
---
Dmitri enlarged an old classified document.
---
PROJECT ECLIPSE
STATUS: ACTIVE
---
Yelena frowned.
"I thought Origin was their final experiment."
---
Dmitri slowly shook his head.
---
"No."
---
"Origin was only Phase One."
---
Silence filled the vehicle.
---
Meanwhile...
Thousands of kilometers away...
Inside a hidden underground command center...
Rows of massive screens displayed live satellite feeds.
Every movement of the convoy.
Every heartbeat tracked.
---
A man stood before them.
His silver mask hid everything except his eyes.
---
One of his officers approached.
"They've left the facility."
---
The masked man nodded.
"As expected."
---
"And the heir?"
---
"He accepted the path."
---
A faint smile appeared beneath the mask.
---
"Excellent."
---
He placed a hand on a sealed metal case.
Its surface bore the same symbol.
A black eclipse.
---
"Wake them."
---
The officer hesitated.
"All of them?"
---
The masked man's voice was emotionless.
---
"Every Eclipse Unit."
---
Far below the command center...
Steel doors unlocked one after another.
---
One chamber.
Then another.
Then dozens more.
---
Inside each chamber—
A sleeping figure.
Men and women dressed in black tactical uniforms.
---
Their eyes opened simultaneously.
---
Cold.
Empty.
Perfectly disciplined.
---
Back in the convoy—
Caelum suddenly looked toward the sky.
His expression changed.
---
"They've awakened."
---
Lucien closed his eyes.
"So soon..."
---
Artyom looked between them.
"Who?"
---
Caelum answered quietly.
---
"The people created after my family disappeared."
---
"The successors to the Custodians."
---
"They call themselves..."
---
"The Eclipse Order."
---
At that exact moment—
Every GPS device inside the convoy shut off.
---
Every radio died.
---
Every vehicle stopped.
---
The mountain road ahead...
had disappeared beneath a wall of black armored trucks.
---
Dozens of figures stepped into the falling snow.
Each wore a black mask marked with a silver eclipse.
---
The leader raised one hand.
---
"Artyom Sokolov."
---
His voice echoed across the valley.
---
"Come with us."
---
"Or everyone behind you dies."
---