The storm had calmed, but only on the surface.
Beneath the thin Martian wind, the planet hummed with life — a vibration so deep it rattled through the bones.
The ship's scanners blinked in chaotic rhythm. The readings were beyond comprehension: gravity flux, temperature instability, atmospheric expansion.
Mars wasn't dying — it was evolving.
Luna stared at the growing towers. "They're forming a pattern…"
Kael adjusted the holomap. "Hexagonal alignment. Same layout as the symbols under the ruins. They're channeling energy toward one focal point."
Eris already knew where — the Heart Crater, the place he had first felt the call.
"We have to go back," he said.
Mara looked at him in disbelief. "Go back there? Eris, that's the eye of the storm! Those things are drawing power straight from the sun!"
"Exactly," he replied. "That's where the Gate will open."
He turned toward the main deck, his armor still scorched from the blast. There was no hesitation in his steps, only resolve — a weight that came from knowing this wasn't coincidence. The bleed, the awakening, the voice — it was all connected to his bloodline.
Liora placed a hand on his arm. "If we go in, we might not come back out."
Eris looked at her, his eyes faintly glowing blue. "Then we make it count."
---
The Descent
The hovercrafts roared to life, cutting through the ash-stained air. From above, the Martian surface looked like a glowing web — rivers of light running between colossal towers.
As they approached the crater, they saw it.
A massive ring of black metal half-buried in the dust, large enough to swallow a city. It pulsed with light — rhythmic, alive, like a heartbeat.
Luna gasped. "That's not a structure… it's a machine."
"No," Eris murmured. "It's a door."
When they landed at the edge, the vibration became almost unbearable. Dust swirled upward, and arcs of energy shot into the sky, forming symbols in the air — ancient runes written in flame.
Kael pointed. "Those glyphs — they're coordinates!"
Mara tapped her scanner. "Coordinates… but not from this system. They're pointing beyond the Kuiper Belt. Deep space."
Liora's voice was barely a whisper. "Another world…"
The ground beneath them trembled. The pulse of the Gate synced with the beat of Eris's chest. His veins glowed faintly under his skin.
Luna noticed it first. "Eris — your body's reacting!"
He fell to one knee, clutching his head. The voices returned — louder, clearer now.
> "The Seven must unite… the Heir must ascend… open the path to the Sovereign Realm…"
Images flooded his mind — a black throne surrounded by stars, a blinding figure of light chained by seven sigils, and the silhouette of Asmodeus, laughing from the shadows.
He gasped. "They want me to finish it… to open the realm where the Sovereign sleeps."
Kael drew his blaster. "We're not opening anything until we understand what it does!"
But it was too late. The Gate began to move.
The runes aligned perfectly, spinning faster and faster until the light collapsed inward — forming a sphere of pure energy in the center of the crater. The air turned heavy. Gravity bent.
Luna shouted, "It's generating a wormhole!"
Mara backed away. "No — that's not a wormhole, that's a bridge!"
Eris stood again, his voice low, filled with awe and fear.
"A bridge between realms…"
The sphere expanded, its surface shimmering like liquid glass. Through it, faint outlines appeared — a world of gold and black, with floating monoliths and endless light.
Then, a shadow stepped through.
The crew froze. The figure was tall, cloaked, its body wreathed in flame. It spoke in a voice that shook the air:
> "The Heir of the Seven has awakened. The time of sealing ends. The Sovereign calls for his vessel."
Eris took a step forward. "Who are you?"
The figure lowered its hood — revealing a face half-metal, half-flesh, marked by ancient scars. Its eyes glowed like burning stars.
> "I am the Sentinel of the Gate. And you, Eris of the Seven, are the key to the Realm Eternal."
The crater exploded with light. The Gate fully opened. The red sky turned white.
And Mars, once silent and dead, screamed to life.