The air in the Swiss bunker grew heavy, not with mana, but with a Higher Logic. As Ethan Vance prepared to stabilize the "Anti-Mana" canister, his eyes—enhanced by his own technological genius—suddenly saw the truth.
He didn't see a hero in Marcus Thorne. He saw indigo-gold threads woven directly into Marcus's spine, extending upward into a rift that existed only in the sub-atomic spectrum.
"Marcus... stop," Ethan whispered, his hands shaking. "This isn't a weapon to save Earth. This is a Beacon. You're not fighting Fang Yuan... you're calling Something Else in."
Thorne turned, his face a mask of perfect, terrifying calm. "The Weaver, Fang Yuan, is a virus, Ethan. To kill a virus, you sometimes need to burn the entire forest. The Rank 4 Sovereign has promised us a new world. All we have to do is open the door."
At that moment, a swarm of violet nanobots coalesced in the center of the room. Fang Yuan manifested, his Rank 2: Silicon-Weaver form pulsing with an angry, rhythmic light.
"So," Fang Yuan's voice was a chilling hum. "The Dimension Walker from the Golden Ocean didn't just watch me fall. He followed the scent of my soul to this desert."
He looked at Marcus Thorne, then at the trembling Ethan. "You fools. You think a Rank 4 entity wants to 'save' you? To him, this planet is just a battery. He's using your 'Heroic Resistance' to bypass the Earth's natural order."
Fang Yuan stepped forward, the gravity in the bunker doubling instantly. "Ethan, give me the canister. If that 'Anti-Mana' is released under his frequency, the Earth's atmosphere will ignite. If you give it to me, I will use it to shield this world—and then I will hunt the god you've invited to dinner."