Silence.
After the cave collapsed and the screams faded, Zero floated once more in the endless void.
This time it was colder. Not the crisp kind of cold that pricked skin, but the hollow, marrow-deep chill that gnawed at his bones and whispered into his soul that nothing mattered anymore. Every breath was weightless, every heartbeat muffled, until even the rhythm of his own life felt like it was dissolving into the abyss.
For a while, he thought this was it. That the darkness had finally claimed him. That Xalvar had been right all along. Maybe it was better this way—better to sink into nothingness than to keep carrying the weight of blood that wasn't even dry in his memory. He closed his eyes, surrendering to the stillness, and for the briefest moment, peace seemed possible.
But then—
A sound broke the stillness.
Not laughter. Not screams.
A single step. Firm. Measured. Its echo rippled through the void as though invisible stone lay beneath unseen feet.
