The rain began slowly.
One drop.
Then another.
Then hundreds.
Then thousands.
At first—
the people of Solmire thought it was ash.
Dark particles drifting from the torn sky.
But when the first drop touched stone—
the ground hissed.
The marble road blackened instantly—
aging—
cracking—
decaying as if years passed in seconds.
A knight raised his arm—
a drop touching his armor—
CRACK
The metal rusted immediately.
"…What the hell—?!"
Then the rain truly fell.
Not water.
Not ash.
Something wrong.
Black liquid descended from the torn heavens—
covering rooftops—
streets—
banners—
people.
And the kingdom changed.
Screams erupted across the capital.
A woman running through the streets suddenly froze—
eyes widening—
Because the buildings around her began whispering.
Not metaphorically.
Actually whispering.
Voices crawled through the walls—
through the rain—
through the air itself.
Look up.
It sees you.
Run.
She covered her ears—
but the voices only became louder.
Nearby—
a knight dropped his weapon—
breathing heavily—
"…Captain…"
His hands trembled violently.
The black rain touched his face—
and suddenly—
the street around him changed.
The monsters were gone.
Instead—
he saw corpses.
Thousands of them.
His squad.
Dead.
"…No…"
A creature lunged at him—
But before it could strike—
A spear of light pierced straight through its skull.
Mira Dane landed in front of him.
Rain evaporated the moment it touched her glowing spear.
"Eyes forward."
The knight shook violently.
"…I—I can't—"
Mira grabbed him by the collar.
Hard.
"Then survive scared."
Behind her—
the Golden Lions continued fighting through the collapsing district.
Their once-golden cloaks stained black by rain and ash.
Buildings burned around them.
The sky screamed overhead.
But they still advanced.
Street by street.
Far above the capital—
the storm thickened.
Aeron Skyvale flew directly through violent currents of distorted aether—
his wind wings tearing apart falling masses of corruption before they could hit the city.
Beside him—
Lyra unleashed sonic bursts—
shattering airborne creatures into pieces.
But more kept falling.
Too many.
"…We can't keep this airspace clear forever!" Lyra shouted.
Aeron looked upward.
The tear in the sky had widened again.
Something moved behind it.
Massive.
Watching.
For the first time—
his usual smile disappeared.
"…Yeah…"
A black mass suddenly descended toward the city—
larger than a tower—
writhing like living flesh.
Lyra's eyes widened.
"…MOVE!"
The two shot forward instantly—
wind and sound colliding—
SKY IMPACT
The explosion lit the clouds themselves.
Shockwaves rolled through Solmire.
Windows shattered across entire districts.
Darius ripped through another monster—
steel claws tearing flesh apart—
but the creature didn't die immediately.
The black rain hit its body—
and it began mutating further.
Bones protruded outward.
Its body expanded grotesquely.
Selene's eyes narrowed.
"…The rain is strengthening them."
Darius spat blood onto the ground.
"…Then we kill them faster."
A distorted scream echoed nearby.
Not monster.
Human.
The two rushed forward—
arriving at a shattered plaza—
where civilians were attacking each other in panic—
hallucinating—
seeing enemies where there were none.
One man pointed upward—
crying.
"IT'S WATCHING US!"
Selene looked at the sky.
Then froze.
For just a second.
Because she felt it too.
Inside a cathedral converted into a shelter—
hundreds of civilians huddled together.
Children crying.
Injured knights groaning.
Fear everywhere.
At the center—
Seraphine Liora stood surrounded by glowing flowers of sacred aether—
healing dozens simultaneously.
But her hands trembled now.
Sweat rolled down her face.
The rain weakened even healing.
Noel reinforced barrier after barrier around the cathedral—
but cracks kept appearing.
"…Captain…"
Seraphine exhaled slowly.
Outside—
something massive slammed against the barrier.
IMPACT
The entire cathedral shook.
Another hit followed.
Then another.
The barriers cracked further.
Noel's eyes widened.
"…There's too many—!"
Seraphine turned toward the doors.
Her gentle expression hardened.
Dangerously.
Sacred flowers bloomed across the entire cathedral floor.
The wounded stared in silence.
Because for the first time—
their captain looked angry.
"…Then we stop them here."
The western district was collapsing.
Literally.
Entire streets floated upward—
caught inside unstable gravity zones.
Buildings drifted into the air—
slowly rotating—
before crashing back down moments later.
Brakus stood beneath a falling tower—
both arms raised—
holding it above dozens of trapped civilians.
Blood ran down his forehead.
His muscles trembled violently.
Talia slammed her hammer repeatedly into the ground—
trying to stabilize the surrounding terrain.
"MOVE YOUR ASSES!"
Civilians ran beneath the tower—
crying—
screaming—
dragging the wounded.
Brakus roared—
veins bulging across his neck.
"FASTER!"
The moment the last civilian escaped—
The tower collapsed.
Dust exploded everywhere.
For a moment—
nothing moved.
Then—
a giant hand burst through the rubble.
Brakus emerged—
bleeding—
laughing.
"…Still standing."
Deep inside the observatory—
Orion Valecrest stared at ancient records floating around him.
Constellation symbols rotated rapidly—
decoding information buried for centuries.
Elise traced rune seals across the floor—
trying to stabilize the room as tremors shook the building.
Then—
Orion stopped.
His eyes widened slightly.
Rare for him.
"…No…"
Elise turned immediately.
"…What is it?"
Orion slowly looked toward the torn sky.
"…The royal family…"
A pause.
"…They were never rulers."
The constellation symbols shifted—
revealing an ancient crest identical to Solmire's royal insignia.
But beneath it—
another symbol.
An eye.
Elise felt cold instantly.
"…What are they?"
Orion's voice lowered.
Almost uneasy.
"…Wardens."
Another tremor shook the observatory.
The sky outside darkened further.
"…And the seal is failing."
At the ruined palace—
Rein faced Nysera directly.
Black rain fell between them.
Cards floated around Rein slowly—
their edges glowing sharply.
Nysera's distorted form flickered unnaturally.
"…You still don't understand what your kingdom protects."
Rein's eyes hardened.
"…Then explain it."
Nysera smiled faintly.
But there was no mockery left now.
Only seriousness.
"…Your bloodline exists to keep it asleep."
The sky rumbled above them.
"…And your sister…"
A pause.
"…was chosen long before she was born."
Rein's expression changed instantly.
Elsewhere—
Rose screamed.
Her body convulsed violently—
black markings spreading across her skin—
forming glowing patterns that pulsed with the rhythm of the sky tear itself.
Sora's flames burned brighter—
trying to suppress the corruption—
but the curse kept evolving.
Behind Rose—
dark wings began forming.
Incomplete.
Broken.
But real.
"…MAKE IT STOP—!"
Her voice overlapped with another.
Something deeper.
Something ancient.
Sora froze for half a second.
Because the second voice—
was not human.
Leonhart stood inside collapsing gravity.
The ground beneath him no longer existed properly—
entire sections floating upward before imploding.
Drogan stepped forward calmly—
black rain sliding off his armor without effect.
"…This kingdom is already finished."
Leonhart wiped blood from his mouth.
Then grinned.
Wide.
Fearlessly.
"…You talk too much for someone who still hasn't put me down."
Flames erupted again—
larger than before—
turning the district into a miniature sun.
For the first time—
even the black rain evaporated before touching him.
Drogan's eyes narrowed slightly.
Then—
the sky moved.
The tear widened.
And within the darkness—
something opened.
An eye.
Massive.
Ancient.
Watching the kingdom below.
The moment it opened—
every living thing in Solmire felt it.
Knights collapsed.
Monsters knelt.
The black rain intensified violently.
And Rose—
screamed louder than ever before.
Sora looked upward—
for the first time since the battle began—
genuinely shaken.
"…What… are you?"
The eye blinked.
And the sky grew darker.