Dan and Stella approached slowly, respecting the silence still hanging between Tekio and Amara. When they were close enough, Dan offered a discreet smile, a rare sight on him.
— You did it, man… — he said, his voice deep but filled with satisfaction. — That was incredible.
Stella added, her eyes still misty:
— It wasn't just a victory in battle… it was a victory of the soul. Something no one can take from you.
Tekio took a deep breath, letting those words sink in. His body ached, his mind was exhausted, but deep down there was peace.
— After all this… — Stella continued, glancing sideways at Dan. — We need to talk with you. About some… future matters.
Tekio arched an eyebrow, but the smile on his face was sly, almost mischievous.
— Future matters, huh? You two… — he said, drawing a laugh from both of them.
And the three of them laughed together, breaking for a moment the heavy weight of the darkness still lurking.
Amara watched the scene from a distance. Their laughter seemed… different. Something she had never experienced. She clenched her fists against her chest. Deep down, she wanted to be part of it, but she didn't know how to join. She didn't know if she was worthy.
Her sister's words echoed in her mind: "Fight for your companions. Never alone again."
It was time to try. It was time to stop refusing the light.
Amara opened her mouth, gathering strength to say something—but was interrupted by Dan's voice.
— So… what do we do with her? — he said, turning to Stella.
Stella crossed her arms and nodded, serious.
— I think that's up to you, Tekio.
The young man looked at Amara. There was no judgment in his eyes, only the clarity of one who already understood the answer before the question was even asked. He extended his hand to her, smiling.
— Come.
It was an invitation. But more than that: a north.
Amara blushed, her heart racing. Her eyes reflected a timid, yet intense happiness. Gently, she took his hand.
Tekio nodded.
— She'll stay with us. Trust me… at least until all this is over. After that… you can draw your own conclusions.
Dan and Stella exchanged a look. There was trust in Tekio, but also an unspoken message. When they looked at Amara, their eyes said clearly: "If you break his trust… and ours… we will end you."
Amara swallowed dryly, feeling the pressure weigh on her shoulders. But she accepted. It was fair.
Dan broke the silence.
— So, Karmore…
— Amara. — Tekio interrupted him immediately, serious.
Dan arched an eyebrow, but accepted with a slight smile.
— Right. So, Amara… what happened to your technique? Before, just being near you felt like energy was being sucked away, like a black hole. Now… nothing. You seem normal.
Stella agreed with a nod.
— It's true. The aura has completely changed.
Amara averted her gaze, unsure how to answer. She didn't fully understand it herself. Tekio looked at her, but didn't press.
He thought to himself: "Tsukis release their powers through their personality… Before, she was Karmore, and her powers reflected that. But now, as Amara… what would they be? What power is born from a free soul?"
They would still have to discover that.
Amara then raised her voice, breaking the brief calm:
— I… I would love to stay here, talking with you all. But… — her eyes turned to the horizon. — I think we'd better go check on Mei.
The group followed her gaze. In the distance, a mantle of darkness rose, heavy and suffocating, similar to the Veil they had just passed through.
But corrupted, made not of goodness and justice, but of hatred and destruction.
— Again... — Tekio murmured, once again the Veil was showing its face.
To kill and to destroy.
The joy they had won crumbled in that same instant.
Despair took hold once more.
The group didn't hesitate: as soon as they spotted the new Veil, their bodies launched into a run. Each step echoed like thunder on the broken ground, each heart racing faster than their legs.
Tekio, panting, kept his eyes fixed on that dark mass pulsing before them. His chest felt heavy. "Is it the Abyssal Veil again?"
But a single spark of sensitivity was enough to notice the difference. The cold wasn't the same, the darkness vibrated at a different rhythm.
— No… — he murmured, breaking into a cold sweat. — It's not the same Veil.
Amara, steady beside him, confirmed:
— You can feel a difference, but I doubt it's any less terrible.
Her words fell like stones. Dan and Stella exchanged heavy looks. The inevitable question arose:
— Is it worth going in? — Stella whispered, staring at the darkness that swirled and writhed.
Dan clenched his fists.
— If we go in the middle… we could be crushed. We've seen Dante and Mei's level. They aren't human. They're gods.
An uncomfortable silence followed. And amidst the doubt, only Tekio carried the answer within himself.
He knew. Something inside him screamed that he might be able to interfere. That there was still a chance to save Akira… that he could be useful against the Veil.
But, at the same time, he remembered the scene: Mei had escaped. That could only mean she had found a way to resist, perhaps even to block the Veil. Could she do it alone?
Again?
This doubt pounded in his mind like hammer blows.
They advanced, and soon noticed another change.
The terrain was no longer the same as the last battle. Alien vegetation grew at an insane rate, devouring what was left of the city. Twisted trunks burst from the concrete, roots pierced the fallen buildings. The very earth seemed to be agonizing under this dominion.
In the sky, spheres of negative energy leaped like inverted lightning, painting the horizon with a sickly glow.
And below them, the portal pulsed, more and more intense, like a diseased heart about to explode.
— This… — Dan gritted his teeth. — This battle needs to end soon, or nothing will be left.
Stella turned to Amara, who seemed restless.
— Do you know what's happening?
Amara hesitated. Her voice, when it came out, was low but firm.
— In part. The Abyss was always the goal. The fight you see… is just to buy time. To grow stronger. But… — she closed her eyes for a moment, remembering the weight of the manipulation. — The most dangerous one isn't Dante. Nor Mei. It's Vernasha.
The name made the air around them feel heavier.
— It was her… — Amara continued, with contained tears. — It was her who molded my mind, who made me almost kill Tekio multiple times. She hides her plans even from her allies. I… don't remember everything. But I know the true threat comes from her.
Dan took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay rational.
— It's better than nothing. At least we know who the real head is. Let's go, we have no time to lose.
But then, the ground began to tremble.
First lightly, like a distant vibration. Then, fiercely, as if the planet itself were about to split apart.
The group stopped on the rubble, their breath held.
Stella was the first to feel it: an invisible pressure was approaching, crushing, overwhelming.
— What is that…? — Dan looked down. — Is it him, the portal?
Amara closed her eyes, feeling the weight of the aura.
— No… — she whispered, her voice faltering. — But it's coming from there.
Her words froze them all.
The tremor increased, cracks spread across the ground, and an indescribable aura overflowed like shockwaves.
Something was coming.
Something that shouldn't have emerged so soon.
Amara's eyes widened, her voice choked:
— It wasn't supposed to be now… not like this…
The silence was swallowed by another tremor, stronger, that nearly knocked the group over. The portal roared, spewing energy like a hungry beast.
And they all felt it.
A colossal presence.
Something dragging the essence of the Abyss to the surface.
The tremors intensified, tearing the soil as if something colossal were climbing from within the earth. Each of the four could feel the weight of the presence—suffocating, bestial, impossible to ignore.
And then… silence.
The ground stopped shaking, and the quiet that followed was even worse. Everyone stood ready, eyes alert, muscles tense. The collective instinct screamed: he is here.
Amara narrowed her eyes.
— Now…
At that same instant, the world exploded in wood.
From the ground, sharp stakes and monstrous trunks sprouted at insane speeds, like giant fangs trying to devour everyone there. In seconds, an entire forest was born around them, wild and murderous.
The group's reflexes were immediate. Each used their instinct and body to the maximum, leaping, rolling, dodging as if their lives depended on every movement—and indeed, they did.
They scattered, seeking higher ground, until they found precarious refuge on a ruined structure. From the height, they could see the chaos spreading below: the ground was no longer ground, it was a living mass of roots and wood, pulsing like a beast.
But the forest didn't end there.
A single trunk—thick, gigantic, almost like a column holding up the sky—rose, aiming directly at them.
The attack was far too fast.
Tekio, still debilitated, couldn't jump in time. His body locked up.
But Dan, with the reflexes of a predator, grabbed him by the shoulders and leaped with him, narrowly escaping being crushed.
The trunk grew without stopping, lifting them higher and higher, until they found themselves suspended in the air, hovering nearly a hundred meters up.
There, with no time to breathe, Tekio felt the weight of his own wounded body. But a soft voice echoed inside him:
— I will help you.
Yara.
He closed his eyes, feeling her energy intertwine with his. The regeneration accelerated, tissues closing, muscles repairing. Thanks to Stella's earlier healing, the recovery now flowed like a river in freefall. Tekio would soon be ready to fight.
Meanwhile, Dan and Stella didn't take their eyes off the ground.
Whatever it was… this wasn't a normal attack.
— What the hell is this power? — Dan snarled, keeping Tekio supported.
Stella, her golden eyes shining, added:
— The vegetation… this aura… It's different… but I've seen something like it before.
And then, Amara murmured with a trembling voice:
— Hazau…
The name fell like a sentence.
And before them, from the gigantic trunk that had risen, something began to take shape. The wood split open, cracking like a dissolving cocoon.
A few meters in front of the group, a figure emerged.
Dark hair fell loose, swaying in the ethereal wind. Golden eyes burned like demonic torches. His posture was relaxed, but it carried the weight of an unbearable presence.
And the smile… a sadistic, insolent slash that seemed to mock reality itself.
He opened his arms, as if greeting old acquaintances.
— Did you miss me, brats?
The air around them trembled.
Hazau had returned.
To be continued…