The chamber trembled harder.
Stone continued falling from the ceiling.
The giant hand emerging from the portal clawed deeper into the room, tearing apart the air around it.
Its fingers were too long.
Too thin.
Too wrong.
Dark energy leaked from the cracks in its skin like black smoke.
Rive slowly stepped backward.
"…That is the worst hand I have ever seen."
The lead Reaper ignored him.
Its silver mask reflected the portal's growing light.
"Reality contamination level increasing," it said coldly.
"Portal collapse recommended."
Rive blinked.
"…I don't like the word collapse."
The giant hand slammed into the floor.
The impact shattered stone across the chamber.
Lysara immediately moved back.
Purple energy appeared around her fingers like ribbons of light.
"Whatever that thing is," she said quietly, "it's not fully inside our world yet."
Vikram stepped forward.
"But it will be."
The hand suddenly opened.
An eye appeared in the center of its palm.
A giant black eye.
It turned slowly—
And looked directly at Rive.
The air in the chamber became heavier.
Rive felt something inside his chest react instantly.
The same strange energy from before.
The same unstable pull between worlds.
The eye narrowed.
And the creature smiled.
Rive froze.
"…Hands should not smile."
Then the creature attacked.
Its arm shot forward like a spear of shadow.
Vikram moved instantly.
"Stone Wall."
The floor erupted upward in front of them.
A massive barrier of black rock appeared between them and the creature's hand.
The hand smashed through it instantly.
Rive's eyes widened.
"Okay, terrible wall!"
"Not helping," Vikram snapped.
The Reapers moved.
Silver light flashed through the chamber.
One of the Reapers leaped forward and slashed its scythe-like weapon across the giant arm.
The blade cut deep into the shadow flesh.
Black liquid sprayed into the air.
The creature screamed.
But instead of retreating—
Its wound closed immediately.
The Reaper landed back on the ground.
"Regeneration detected."
"Wonderful," Rive muttered.
The giant eye shifted again.
This time it focused on Lysara.
Dark energy surged toward her.
Lysara raised one hand calmly.
"Mirror Veil."
A glowing purple shield appeared around her body.
The dark attack hit the shield—
And instantly bounced back toward the creature.
The giant eye exploded in black smoke.
Rive stared.
"…That was cool."
Lysara smirked slightly.
"I know."
But then—
The smoke reformed.
The eye returned.
Bigger.
Angrier.
"Oh," Lysara said quietly.
"That's less cool."
The creature's second hand emerged from the portal.
The chamber shook harder.
The portal widened.
Behind the giant hands—
Something enormous moved in the darkness beyond.
Something with horns.
Something with too many eyes.
The lead Reaper stepped forward.
"All units. Erasure formation."
The silver symbols on the Reapers' coats began glowing brighter.
Lines of silver energy spread across the floor beneath them.
Rive looked at Vikram.
"What are they doing?"
"Trying to destroy the portal before that thing fully enters."
"Can they do it?"
Vikram looked at the portal.
"…Maybe."
Rive immediately did not like that answer.
The giant creature slammed both hands into the ground.
Dark shockwaves burst through the chamber.
Rive nearly lost balance.
Lysara grabbed his arm.
"Stay focused!"
"I am focused!"
"You're staring at the giant smiling hand again!"
"Because it's smiling!"
Suddenly—
One of the shockwaves hit Vikram directly.
He slid backward across the stone floor.
For the first time since meeting him—
Rive saw blood-like spirit energy running down Vikram's arm.
"Vikram!"
Vikram slowly stood again.
His expression had changed.
He no longer looked calm.
He looked angry.
Very angry.
The air around him grew heavier.
The broken stone beneath his feet began floating slightly.
Lysara's eyes widened.
"…You're using that ability?"
Vikram did not answer.
Dark green energy spread across his arms.
The cracks on the floor glowed.
Wind spun violently around him.
"World Root Authority," Vikram said quietly.
Everything stopped.
Even the giant creature paused.
Roots made of stone and black crystal erupted from the floor.
They wrapped around the creature's giant arm instantly.
More roots exploded from the walls.
The ceiling.
The ground.
They twisted around the shadow creature and pulled it down.
The giant hand struggled violently.
But the roots held.
Rive stared in shock.
"…You had tree powers this whole time?"
Vikram looked at him.
"They are not tree powers."
"They look like tree powers."
"Be quiet."
The roots tightened harder.
Cracks spread across the creature's arm.
Black energy burst outward.
The giant eye screamed.
The lead Reaper immediately raised its weapon.
"Now."
Silver light exploded through the chamber.
All three Reapers attacked at once.
Their blades cut through the restrained shadow arm.
One slash.
Two.
Three.
The giant hand finally broke apart into black smoke.
The chamber shook violently.
The portal became unstable.
The darkness beyond it twisted.
Then—
A piece of the creature broke free.
A smaller shadow shape lunged from the portal directly toward Rive.
Too fast.
Too close.
Rive couldn't move in time.
The creature reached him—
And suddenly—
Everything around him slowed down.
The falling stone.
The moving shadows.
The flickering light.
Everything became slower.
Rive blinked.
"…What?"
He could see the creature's attack in perfect detail.
Its claws.
Its movement.
Its path.
Without thinking—
He stepped aside.
The creature missed him completely.
Rive turned.
And punched it directly in the face.
The shadow exploded backward into the wall.
Time returned to normal.
Everyone froze.
Rive looked down at his hand.
"…Did I just do that?"
Lysara stared at him.
"Future Echo."
Rive looked up.
"What?"
"You saw a few seconds ahead."
"The future."
Rive blinked.
"…That sounds useful."
"It is," Vikram said.
"But difficult to control."
Rive slowly smiled.
"So I can predict attacks now?"
"For short moments."
Rive looked toward the giant portal again.
His expression changed.
More serious.
More focused.
"Good."
The portal cracked harder.
The thing inside was still trying to force its way through.
The lead Reaper turned toward them.
"We require more power."
Lysara raised one hand.
Purple cards of energy appeared between her fingers.
"Then let's stop holding back."
Rive stepped beside Vikram.
The silver light of the Reapers mixed with Lysara's purple energy and Vikram's dark green roots.
For the first time—
They looked like a team.
And above them—
The portal began tearing open even wider.