Kenji stood at the vault's highest observation deck, looking out at the city. The pervasive, sickly green glow of the blight was gone.
Replaced by the pale, uncertain light of dawn breaking through the thinning haze. The huge, twisted shape of the Central Spire, where Noxius once was, lay in ruins.
Smoke still curled from its broken top. His System still blared [Corruption Integration: COMPLETE], a chilling, unblinking red.
He felt the Heart of the Eclipse inside him. It was no longer a separate, unpredictable force. Now, it was deeply connected to his very essence. It ached, a constant throb of raw, barely contained power. Victory.
But at what cost? I saved the world, but what did I become? Is this even me anymore? The power… it's a part of me now. It aches.
He clenched his left fist, the Shadow Brand burning like a brand new scar.
Hana stood beside him, her face a mask of weary awe, her eyes wide as she took in the sight.
"The blight is dying back. We're getting reports from all sectors – the air is clearing, growth is reversing. It's… it's really over. We won."
Her voice was filled with an exhausted wonder, a rare crack in her stoic demeanor.
She ran a hand through her short hair, a faint, almost imperceptible smile touching her lips.
Elara stepped closer to Kenji, her Lumina light a soft, concerned glow. She reached out, her hand hovering near his arm, as if unsure if she could truly touch him.
"Kenji… your light… It's so fractured. Are you alright? Can you feel yourself?" Her voice was soft, filled with concern, her eyes searching his face for answers he didn't have.
Kaito, already hunched over a new set of monitors, furiously typing, barely looked up.
"His energy output is still fluctuating like crazy. It's like a supernova trying to contain itself. I can't get a clear read on his vitals. This is… unprecedented."
His voice was worried, a frantic tapping at his console accompanying his words.
"One minute you're saving the world, the next you're a walking cosmic battery on the fritz. Typical."
He let out a nervous chuckle that died quickly.
Kael stood a few paces back, observing Kenji with their helmeted gaze, a silent sentinel.
"The eradication was… efficient. The planet's ecosystem will begin self-repair protocols. A new phase of recovery will commence."
Their voice was calm, analytical, devoid of the emotion that swirled around the others.
Hana turned, a genuine, if weary, smile starting to form on her face.
"We'll begin reclamation efforts at dawn. We'll finally rebuild. A new world for all of us."
The words were heavy with hope, a fragile promise in the scarred landscape.
Just as the faint smile touched her lips, the sky above them, or rather, a distant section of it, tore.
It wasn't a sudden explosion, or a blight anomaly. It was a ripple, a distortion, as if reality itself was being peeled back.
A dark, non-organic void stretched open, growing wider by the second.
Kaito's voice shot up, his previous weariness replaced by stark terror.
"What the?! My long-range sensors… no, that's not a blight signature! That's… a tear! A rip in the sky! It's not from Noxius! Energy readings are… impossible! They're off the charts!"
His voice was a desperate shout, tinged with a new, horrifying kind of fear.
From the widening void, a new entity emerged. It wasn't organic, like the blight. It was immense, geometric, and cold.
Its shape was hard to grasp. It shifted between crystal forms and dark metal plates.
This created a heavy feeling of ancient power. No warmth. No life. Just… pure, unadulterated dominance. Harbinger.
An ancient voice filled their minds. It didn't come through comms. Instead, it gave a cold statement of intent that went past their ears and sank deep into their bones.
"The pestilence is removed. Good. This sector is now available for harvest. Prepare to be assimilated."
The voice was devoid of emotion, a chilling declaration of absolute authority.
Then, the horror truly began. Below them, in the ruined city, the lifeless bodies of Noxius's fallen creations started to twitch.
Not with the wild, natural convulsions of dying blight, but with a cold, precise method. Their eyes, once red or vacant, now glowed with a cold, piercing blue light.
They rose one by one. They weren't reanimated; they were repurposed. Their bodies twisted into chilling automatons under Harbinger's unseen command.
The very blight they had fought and died to defeat, now rose again, soulless, under a new master.
Kenji stared in shock as the Siege-Blight, a burnt ruin moments ago, now stood tall. Its limbs moved silently and precisely.
His mind reeled. No. It can't be. He's… harvesting them. Using them.
His System flared a new, terrifying warning: [Threat Level: CATASTROPHIC! New Domain Detected!]
He felt a moment of crushing despair, a cold wave washing over him. They had fought so hard, bled so much.
He had risked it all and turned into a monster to beat Noxius. Now, this. Another, stronger enemy, arriving to claim the spoils.
But that despair quickly turned to a cold, hard resolve, a burning ember in the center of his shattered being.
He might be a broken tool, but he was still a weapon.
Kenji raised Shadowfang. Its blade glowed faintly with dark energy, pulsing defiantly against the new threat.
His voice was flat, devoid of emotion, but with an underlying steel that chilled Kaito to the bone.
"Another one. He just… took it. Everything. He's not here to spread. He's here to… consume the leftovers."
He looked at Elara, Kaito, then Kael.
"Looks like we have a new problem."
Kael stepped forward, their energy blade active and ready for combat. Their posture remained strong and unwavering.
"Analysis complete. Threat designation: Alpha. Optimal strategy: Confrontation. Direct engagement."
Their voice was calm and precise, but their stance was aggressive. It was a silent challenge to the encroaching horror.
The new war had begun.