The chamber was quiet at first. Too quiet. Rei stood before the Sayuri Elders, still raw from Etherfall, still clutching the weight of what he had seen. His Enso pulsed steadier than ever, but his heart thudded with unease.
And then… the voice.
It slid into him like a blade through marrow.
"You tremble, little vessel."
Rei froze. His breath caught sharp. That voice, deep, ancient, absolute, was Raga's. His knees nearly gave before he forced himself to stand tall.
The Elders noticed instantly. Daiken's jaw locked. Kazumi's shadow stiffened. Even the Silent Elder shifted back a fraction, something he had never done before.
Rei tried to speak. "There's… something inside me. A voice…"
And then he lost control.
The ground split beneath him. Darkness spilled across the chamber like a tide of black veins. The torches hissed and died. Silence devoured the air.
Rei's eyes burned crimson, black stripes crawling across his skin. His divine Enso dimmed, swallowed by something colder, older. His mouth curled in a grin that wasn't his.
Raga had taken hold.
The Elders dropped. Not out of reverence, but out of terror. Their bodies buckled under the weight of pure death. Fear rolled through them like poison.
Daiken whispered, breath ragged. "Impossible…"
Raga's laughter poured from Rei's throat, deep and merciless.
"You kneel well. As you should. For you know me."
Shadows writhed around his arm. He reached out and seized the Silent Elder by the head. One hand. Effortless. He lifted him from the ground, fingers pressing into his skull like iron hooks.
The Elder gasped, his void power thrashing wildly, only to vanish in Raga's grasp. He clawed at the hand, but nothing moved. His strength was nothing here.
Raga leaned close, crimson gaze burning like furnaces.
"You call yourselves keepers of balance. You weigh life and shadow. But balance is an illusion. There is only one truth…"
His fingers tightened. Bone cracked. The Elder screamed once before his voice was strangled silent.
Raga's voice dropped, colder than the grave.
"…and that truth is death."
The other Sayuri Elders trembled where they knelt, shadows and storms useless against him. Kazumi's scar quivered as sweat rolled down her face. Even Daiken lowered his head, not in respect, but because he knew resistance was suicide.
Raga's grin widened. "Insects. Pretending at eternity."
The Silent Elder's body dangled limp, death imminent.
And then Rei's voice broke through. Fragile, cracking, desperate.
"Stop… stop it! Please! This isn't me!"
The red in his eyes flickered. His hand trembled. For a heartbeat, Raga resisted, then released.
The Silent Elder fell to the ground, coughing, his face pale as ash.
Darkness peeled back. The torches flared weakly alive. The chamber felt hollow, as if the walls themselves feared what had stood inside them.
Rei collapsed to his knees, gasping, sweat pouring down his face. His fingers shook violently. He stared at them, still curled like claws, like they belonged to a stranger.
"What… what did I just do?" His voice cracked with horror.
None of the Elders answered. Fear bound their tongues.
But Daiken finally muttered, voice like broken stone.
"You carry death."
Rei shook his head, trembling. "No… no, it's not me. It's not me!"
Yet deep inside, Raga chuckled.
"The Dark Elders, hm? Stronger than gods, you claim. I would very much like to see them."
The voice faded, but the fear remained.
Rei wasn't chosen. He wasn't stronger.
He was a vessel.
And every Elder in the chamber now knew it.