Kael Varn had a knack for landing in messes, like the time he bet his ship's fuel on a rigged race and ended up stranded in an asteroid field, but this was a whole new level of screwed. Voryn's surface was a nightmare, canyons crumbling into glowing dust, the sky lit by Coalition ships raining fire. A massive portal swirled at the valley's edge, its black and violet energies crackling like a storm ready to swallow everything. Kael held his sister Mira, her frail body trembling, her eyes flickering with the Devourer's red glow. Zara, bloodied from her near-death sacrifice, limped beside him, her scar-faced determination barely holding. The Devourer's voice, a thunderous growl, shook Kael's skull. "Step through, human. Your fate waits."
Kael's Ascendant power-up, a crystal-fueled boost from the outpost, was gone, leaving him aching like he'd been run over by a freighter. His pulse rifle was junk, and his ribs screamed with every step. "Syl!" he shouted into his wrist comm, dodging a falling crystal spike. "What's this portal? And don't say it's bad news!"
Syl, his ship's snarky AI, buzzed through static. "It's Ascendant tech, linked to the Devourer's prison. Leads to another realm, maybe their origin point. Energy readings are off the charts. Also, Coalition ships are targeting you. Run or fight, Captain."
"Fight's not an option," Kael muttered, his eyes on the portal. Its swirling depths pulsed with stars, like a window to another galaxy. Mira coughed, her voice weak. "Kael, it's calling me. The Devourer wants me through that thing."
Kael's heart clenched. He'd pulled her from stasis, but the Devourer was using her as a key, its power growing stronger. "You're not going anywhere it wants," he said, tightening his grip. Her dark hair clung to her pale face, and she looked so young, like the kid he'd taught to fix engines back home.
Zara scanned the sky, her pistol shaking in her bloodied hand. "Coalition's closing in. We go through that portal, or we're ash."
Kael glanced at her, trust still shaky after her Coalition past. She'd saved his life, taken a hit for him, but her secrets about Voryn's experiments stung. "You sure you're not leading us into another trap?" he asked, voice low.
Zara's eyes met his, raw with pain. "I'm done with their games, Varn. I want this over."
Mira grabbed Kael's arm, her grip weak but fierce. "She's right. The portal's our only shot. But it's dangerous. I can feel it."
The ground bucked, throwing them to their knees. The portal flared, its mist curling like claws. Coalition ships roared closer, their cannons blasting craters. The Devourer's voice laughed. "You cannot escape me."
Kael hoisted Mira, his muscles burning. "Syl, any chance this portal's a one-way ticket to hell?"
"High chance," Syl said, deadpan. "But staying here's worse. I'm picking up Ascendant signatures on the other side. Could be a way to cut the Devourer's link to Mira."
Kael nodded, decision made. "Portal it is." He glanced at Zara. "You ready to jump into the unknown?"
She smirked, wincing from her wound. "Better than dying here."
They sprinted for the portal, the ground splitting behind them. The mist thickened, forming shadowy figures with glowing eyes, smaller than the Devourer's core form but fast. Kael swung a crystal shard he'd grabbed, smashing one, but it reformed, hissing. Zara fired, her shots barely slowing them. Mira clung to Kael, whispering, "It's fighting me, Kael. Don't let it win."
The portal loomed, its energies crackling like lightning. Kael's HUD screamed: energy surge critical. He took a breath, the air tasting of metal and ash, and leaped through, Zara at his side.
The world twisted. Colors bled, stars blurring into streaks. Kael's stomach flipped, like falling through a wormhole with no ship. Then, solid ground. He landed hard, Mira in his arms, Zara sprawling beside him. The air was cold, sharp, smelling of frost and ancient stone. They were in a vast chamber, its walls carved with glowing Ascendant runes, the ceiling a dome of swirling stars. The portal hummed behind them, but the shadows didn't follow.
Kael set Mira down, checking her pulse. Weak, but there. "Mira, talk to me."
Her eyes flickered, red fading to their natural brown. "I'm here," she whispered. "But it's still in me."
Zara staggered up, clutching her side. "Where the hell are we?"
Syl's voice crackled. "Ascendant realm. Energy signatures match their tech, but older. This is their home, or what's left of it. The Devourer's presence is weaker here, but not gone."
Kael scanned the chamber. The runes pulsed, forming patterns that felt alive, like the walls were watching. A platform at the center held a crystal sphere, glowing faintly, surrounded by floating shards. His gut said it was important, and his gut was rarely wrong.
Zara limped toward it, pistol ready. "This looks like a control room. Maybe we can cut the Devourer's link."
"Or make it worse," Kael said, helping Mira stand. Her legs wobbled, but she leaned on him, determined. "Syl, scan it."
"Scanning," Syl said. "Sphere's a nexus, tied to the Devourer's prison. Could sever its hold on Mira, but it needs power. And company's coming."
The portal flared, and Coalition troops poured through, armored and armed with pulse rifles. Their leader, a tall man with cold eyes and a general's insignia, stepped forward. "Varn," he said, voice like steel. "You've caused enough trouble."
Kael raised his crystal shard, ready to fight. "General, you got a name? Or do I just call you Asshole?"
The general smirked. "Call me Torren. Hand over the girl, and you might live."
Mira tensed, her eyes flashing red. The Devourer's voice whispered, "Give in, and I spare them."
Kael's blood ran cold. The sphere glowed brighter, and the chamber shook, runes flaring. Torren's troops aimed, but something else moved in the shadows: a new figure, cloaked in starlight, its eyes glowing white.