The black crystal pulsed once.
**THUMP.**
It sounded like the heartbeat of a living creature.
The instant it appeared, the atmosphere inside the Eternal Archive changed.
The warm golden radiance that had illuminated the chamber for countless ages recoiled as though it feared the object in Cassian's hand.
Thin strands of darkness spread across the crystal floor.
Not shadows.
Corruption.
The runes carved into the walls flickered violently.
One by one, they dimmed.
The Heart Beneath spoke again, its ancient voice no longer calm.
"...You should never have brought that here."
Cassian smiled.
"And yet I did."
He gently raised the crystal.
"My predecessors searched for this place for nearly three thousand years."
"They failed."
"The generation before them failed."
"But every fortress has a weakness."
"And every prison eventually opens."
Aerion stepped forward, his sword gleaming with silver mana.
"I don't know who you are..."
"...but whatever you're planning ends now."
