The night sky stretched endlessly, silent and untouched—yet something moved within it.
Not like a bird.
Not like a beast.
Something far more precise.
Far more controlled.
A figure cut through the heavens with terrifying speed, the air parting around him as if unwilling to resist. Vast black wings spread wide from his back, each feather edged with something unnatural—sharp, defined, glinting faintly under the distant light of the stars.
They did not flap wildly.
They moved with intent.
Measured.
Efficient.
Maelkris.
His descent from the ruined Xenon Village had been swift, almost instantaneous to the human eye. Fire still burned behind him in the distance, but he did not look back.
There was nothing worth remembering.
"…Pointless," he muttered quietly, his voice barely carried by the wind.
Below him, the world passed like a blur.
Forests turned into dark stains across the land.
Rivers twisted like silver threads.
Mountains rose and fell like silent witnesses.
None of it held his attention.
"…Solarynth…"
The name lingered.
Not with hatred.
Not with anger.
But curiosity.
His hazel eyes narrowed slightly—then shifted.
Darkness swallowed them.
In that moment, the world changed.
Every movement in the air slowed.
Every shift in pressure became visible.
The smallest particles—quarks, leptons, the very fabric of motion—unfolded before him like a perfect equation.
The Eternal Eye.
Everything was predictable.
Everything was clear.
"…A celestial being… walking as a human," he murmured. "You shouldn't exist."
His eyes returned to normal.
The world resumed.
And then—
He descended.
Far beyond the reach of kingdoms…
Past the Red Zone…
Beyond paths known even to seasoned warriors...
There lay a valley untouched by light.
A place where the sun itself seemed to hesitate.
Jagged cliffs surrounded it like the jaws of something ancient.
The air felt heavy.
Still wrong.
At its center
A structure.
Not built with care.
Not crafted with purpose.
But carved.
Forced into existence.
Stone dark as obsidian, marked with scars that looked less like erosion and more like something trying to escape from within. The ground surrounding it bore cracks—old and new—evidence of power that had long settled into the land.
This was no mere lair.
This was a domain.
Maelkris landed at its entrance, his feet touching the ground with a controlled force that still caused the earth beneath him to fracture slightly. His wings slowly folded behind him before dissolving into nothingness, as if they had never existed at all.
For a brief moment—
Silence.
Then—
The massive stone entrance shifted.
It opened.
From within the darkness, figures emerged.
Kneeling.
"…Lord Maelkris."
Their voices were low, overlapping, careful.
Servants.
Followers.
Not bound by loyalty but fear.
Maelkris walked forward without acknowledging them. His presence alone made the air heavier, pressing down on everything around him. Even breathing felt more difficult in his proximity.
Inside, the chamber stretched far and wide.
The walls pulsed faintly with dim, unnatural light, casting shadows that didn't behave as shadows should. The deeper one looked, the more it felt like the darkness itself was watching.
One servant stepped forward cautiously.
"We have gathered information, my lord."
Maelkris stopped.
"…Speak."
"The one you seek… Solarynth," the servant began, his voice controlled but trembling underneath, "has been confirmed his last seen was in the Red Zone. He is traveling with a Spartan captain… and several others."
Silence followed.
Maelkris' fingers twitched slightly.
"…So he moves," he said quietly.
Another servant stepped forward, eager but afraid.
"There is more—"
Before he could finish
Maelkris vanished.
And reappeared directly in front of him.
No sound.
No warning.
His hand gripped the servant's throat instantly, lifting him off the ground.
"Then learn to finish your sentences," Maelkris said calmly.
The servant choked, panic flooding his expression.
"P-Please—!"
Maelkris' nails pressed into his skin.
Just enough.
The moment they pierced—
Something began the servant's body stiffened violently his eyes widened in terror.
A dark, invisible force flowed between them.
"…Ah…" Maelkris exhaled softly, closing his eyes for a brief second.
Time, Life, Essence.
Was Drained.
"…Twenty years," he muttered.
The servant's body weakened instantly, his strength fading as if it had been stolen in a single breath.
Then—
Maelkris released him.
The servant collapsed, gasping, barely conscious.
Alive—
But hollow.
Maelkris rolled his neck slightly, adjusting.
For a brief moment—
A wave of dizziness hit him.
A slight imbalance.
Gone in seconds.
"…Continue," he ordered.
No one hesitated now.
"The group is heading toward the dwarven region," another servant said quickly. "Likely preparing… gathering equipment."
Maelkris turned slowly.
"…Preparing…" he repeated.
A faint smile formed.
"…Good."
From his back—
Something emerged.
Not wings.
Two long, segmented forms pushed outward, each movement deliberate, unnatural. They resembled massive centipede tails, lined with razor-sharp talons that glinted under the dim light.
They twitched once.
Alive.
Then stilled.
"…It wouldn't be entertaining otherwise," Maelkris said quietly.
The room remained silent.
No one dared to breathe too loudly.
"…A being like that," he continued, his voice lowering, "should not exist."
A pause.
"…But he does."
The centipede-like appendages slowly retracted, disappearing back into his body as if swallowed by the void itself.
Maelkris began walking again, passing his servants as though they were nothing more than background noise.
"…Prepare," he said.
That single word was enough.
No one asked questions.
No one needed to.
He stopped near the entrance once more, his gaze lifting slightly—beyond the stone walls, beyond the valley, beyond distance itself.
Toward something far away.
Toward someone's.
"…Solarynth."
A slow smile spread across his face.
Cold and Empty.
Hungry.
"…Let's see what you truly are."
The air itself seemed to tighten.
Far away—
A star continued to learn what it meant to be human.
Unaware
That something ancient…
Something patient…
Something far beyond human
Was coming.
Name: Maelkris
Title: The Devouring God
Height: 6'10" (210 cm)
Apparent Age: 25
Real Age: 2,275 years old