Something was wrong.
Not obvious.
Not loud.
But present.
Like a crack beneath the surface—
Waiting to spread.
Hours after the duel between Kael Varyn and Nero Valk, the headquarters stood in partial ruin.
Reconstruction teams worked nonstop, but even elite hunters struggled to erase the scars left behind.
The air still carried tension.
Residual power.
Something unresolved.
Kael stood alone in a high observation room, staring over the skyline of Astra Prime.
His gaze wasn't on the city.
It was on the sky.
The crack was still there.
Small.
Thin.
But undeniable.
And now—
It pulsed.
"…It's getting worse," Kael said quietly.
"…You feel it too."
Kael didn't turn as Zarek Voidborn stepped into the room.
"…Yeah."
Zarek walked closer, his eyes locked onto the fracture in reality.
"…That thing on the other side…"
"…It's not just watching anymore."
Kael's expression hardened.
"…It's pushing."
Silence filled the room.
Heavy.
Because both of them understood what that meant.
Time was running out.
Far beyond their world—
In a place untouched by light—
Something stirred.
Darkness stretched infinitely.
Alive.
Watching.
A massive presence shifted within it.
Ancient.
Unfathomable.
A single eye opened.
Glowing.
Endless.
Abyssal Sovereign Xal'thur had awakened.
"…So…"
Its voice echoed through nothingness.
"…the heir has begun to awaken."
Power gathered around it.
Vast.
Uncontainable.
"…Interesting."
A fragment of that power broke away.
Condensing.
Forming.
"…Send an echo."
The fragment twisted into shape—
Taking on a humanoid form.
Unstable.
Corrupt.
"…Let us test him."
Back in Astra Prime, night fell.
The headquarters grew quieter, but unease lingered beneath the surface.
Hunters rested, trained, or stood guard.
Yet something moved unseen.
A figure walked silently through the halls.
Unnoticed.
Untracked.
Their presence didn't exist to normal perception.
They stopped in a shadowed corridor.
And smiled.
"…So this is the Blood Ascendants."
Their eyes flickered briefly—
Dark.
Inhuman.
On the training floor, Ragnar Kain and Darius Stone exchanged heavy blows.
Each strike echoed with force.
Nearby, Lyra Frost observed quietly, arms crossed.
Eren Shade remained within the shadows, barely visible.
Selene Virel stood near the wall, watchful.
Everything felt normal.
Until it didn't.
Selene's eyes shifted slightly.
"…Do you feel that?"
Lyra frowned.
"…Feel what?"
Selene's gaze moved toward the entrance.
"…Something's off."
The lights flickered.
Once.
Twice.
Then darkness swallowed the room.
At the same moment, Kael's eyes snapped open in the observation room.
"…There."
He vanished instantly.
Zarek followed.
The lights returned.
But the air had changed.
Heavier.
Colder.
Wrong.
Ragnar stopped mid-motion.
"…What the hell—"
A voice echoed.
"…Pathetic."
At the center of the room stood a figure.
Unfamiliar.
Yet suffocating.
It looked human—
But felt like something else entirely.
Dark energy leaked from its form, unstable and unnatural.
"…This is the strongest of your kind?" it said.
Lyra stepped forward slightly.
"…Who are you?"
The figure tilted its head.
"…I am merely an echo…"
Its eyes glowed.
"…of something far beyond you."
Selene's voice dropped.
"…Abyssal…"
The figure smiled.
"…Correct."
At that moment, Kael appeared.
Landing between his team and the entity.
"…You picked the wrong place."
The Echo turned toward him.
And for the first time—
It reacted.
"…Ah."
A slow grin spread across its face.
"…There you are."
Zarek appeared beside Kael.
"…This thing feels worse than Kaeron."
Kael nodded slightly.
"…It is."
The Echo stepped forward.
"…I've been sent to test you."
Its aura surged.
Darkness flooded the room.
"…Let's see if you're worth the Sovereign's attention."
The floor cracked instantly.
Walls twisted.
Reality warped.
Kael stepped forward.
His aura ignited—
Crimson energy clashing against the darkness.
"…You don't get to test me."
His eyes glowed.
"…You get to lose."
The Echo laughed.
"…Confidence."
It raised its hand.
"…Let's break it."
The room exploded.
Across Astra Prime, a violent surge of energy erupted from the headquarters.
Hunters turned toward it instantly.
Because they felt it.
Something new.
Something worse.
Had arrived.
And this time—
It wasn't here to observe.