The light of the freed Guardian lingered behind them, its golden spark slowly fading into the Lattice's restored flow. But as the Seraphine's Echo pressed onward, the glow around them began to dim once more. The farther they went, the more the Mind's energy thinned, replaced by a suffocating stillness.
Elyra's hands tightened on the controls. "The signal's faint but steady. The Guardian's residual energy is pointing us deeper—toward the Mind's lower strata."
The Marauder's voice rumbled softly. "Few ever dared to venture that far. The lower strata are the Mind's subconscious—the realm where unfiltered thoughts, fears, and dreams collide. It's where the Void will thrive."
The ship glided into a region where light gave way to endless black tendrils stretching across the horizon. The luminous pathways that once connected the Mind's thoughts were broken, replaced by pulsating nodes of shadow. The energy signature they followed grew stronger, echoing like a heartbeat beneath the corruption.
Elyra stared in awe—and horror. "This isn't just infection. It's architecture."
The Marauder agreed grimly. "The Void is building something—organizing the chaos. A hive."
They emerged into an enormous chasm where the Lattice's energy formed a vast web of dark crystal spires. Between them floated orbs of corrupted data—faces, voices, fragments of memories stolen from across the galaxy. Each orb whispered faintly, caught in eternal replay.
Elyra's pulse quickened. "It's feeding on memories. Turning them into… sentries."
As if in response, several orbs flared red, detaching from the hive. They began to converge, their whispers twisting into shrieks. Tendrils of shadow wrapped around their forms, reshaping them into monstrous constructs of energy and code.
"Contact incoming!" Elyra shouted.
"Do not engage conventionally," the Marauder warned. "They're constructs of thought. Weapons won't harm them—only clarity will."
Elyra closed her eyes briefly, centering herself. The fragment pulsed, sensing her intent. Light surged from the ship's hull, transforming into waves of harmonic energy that rippled through the void. The constructs faltered, their forms glitching as the harmony disrupted their cohesion.
One by one, they shattered—dissolving into streams of blue light that flowed back into the Lattice.
When the last one vanished, Elyra exhaled shakily. "It worked. The Mind is fighting with us."
The Marauder's tendrils rippled in acknowledgment. "For now. But look—at the center of the hive."
Elyra turned toward the heart of the chasm. There, suspended within a web of black crystal, pulsed a massive cocoon of swirling shadow and light. It radiated power—raw, ancient, hungry.
"That's the core of the infection," Elyra whispered. "The Void's nexus."
The fragment pulsed violently in response, its light flaring brighter than before. Symbols appeared across its surface—new glyphs, sharper and more complex.
"It's reacting to the nexus," the Marauder said. "But be cautious. The Void knows we're here. It's using the hive to grow—a single strike could awaken everything."
Elyra stared at the cocoon, her reflection flickering across its dark surface. For the first time, she felt it—not just the Void's presence, but its awareness.
It was watching her.
And it was waiting.
---