The Gate pulsed like a living wound in the fabric of reality. Brent stepped forward first, Rae on his left, Lysa to his right. Their bond shimmered—a threefold tether that hummed against the howling pressure of the rift.
As they crossed the threshold, the world inverted.
Colors bled upward. The ground beneath them became transparent, then smoky. For a breathless moment, they floated in formlessness—until it snapped into place. The Hollow World greeted them not with silence, but with a scream.
A massive, decayed coliseum towered before them. Ruined statues of long-forgotten warriors loomed, each bearing marks similar to the glyphs etched into Brent's core. A trial site. A battlefield.
System Notification:
Trial of Dominion Initiated Survive the Echo Phantasm. Time Limit: 10 minutes.
The ground quaked, and shadows peeled from the broken arches, forming a singular shape.
A reflection.
Of Brent.
It bore his face but not his heart. Its core blazed with corrupted fire, twisted with shadow.
"Echo Form," Rae breathed, her stance lowering.
Brent's copy charged, its weapon—a mirror of his Flame-Twilight blade—screaming through the air. The impact cracked the air like thunder. Brent parried, flames spraying in arcs. He ducked, spun, and slammed his heel into the echo's side, only to be flung back by a reverse wave of darkness.
Lysa created a dome of radiant fire, shielding Rae as she unleashed her Soul Arrows. The echo snarled, shifting form rapidly—now Rae, now Lysa, now Brent again.
"It's learning," Rae said grimly.
"Then we teach it pain," Brent growled.
He activated Twilight Nova, surrounding himself in a storm of fused flame and voidlight. The shadow screeched, staggering back. Rae's core pulsed—activating Lunar Judgment—chains of pure moonlight shackling the phantom's limbs.
Lysa moved next, her palms flaring. Ember Sigil: Phoenix Mark. A blazing glyph seared across the echo's chest, setting off a detonation that shredded half its form.
It regenerated.
But slower this time.
"Now!" Brent roared.
They attacked in unison—blade, soul, and flame. The echo tried to mimic, but the tri-bond's resonance distorted its form. Brent drove his blade through its heart, Rae channeled light through him, and Lysa sent the final spark through the shattered core.
The echo imploded.
System Notification:
Trial Complete. Brent: Level Up – 14Rae: Level Up – 13 Lysa: Level Up – 11
A door of obsidian cracked open at the arena's far end.
But something else stirred.
Above them, in the sky that pulsed like a living eye, a presence awoke. Not Vaelrick. Not Kalen.
Her.
The Hollow World shuddered in response.
And Her voice, ancient and cold, whispered:
"You've come far... but not far enough."
The obsidian door yawned open, revealing a staircase spiraling downward into an unseen abyss. Flickers of ancient fire lit the stone walls, illuminating runes long buried in the echoes of forgotten tongues.
Brent stepped first, senses sharpened by the aftermath of the Echo battle. Rae followed, her expression focused, her Soul Core still thrumming with residual resonance. Lysa moved beside her brother, the emberlight from her palm glowing brighter as they descended.
"This place," Rae whispered, brushing her fingers over a carved symbol, "it's reacting to our cores."
Lysa nodded. "It's more than just a Gate. It's feeding off us—and teaching us."
As they reached the bottom, a chamber unfolded before them. Vast. Circular. At its center stood a pillar of glowing flame—twisting upward into the ceiling, coiling like a serpent of light.
System Notification:
Welcome to the Ember Nexus.Synchronization Chambers Detected. Commence Bond Stabilization.
Three stone platforms emerged around the central flame. Brent, Rae, and Lysa stepped onto them instinctively. As their feet settled, a surge of warmth swept through their bodies.
The flame responded, splintering into three trails—one toward each of them.
Brent's trail surged into his chest. His core flared.
Core Integration Complete.
Flame Resonance: 100% Twilight Paladin Core: Stable Shadow Infusion: 38% New Trait: "Ashen Halo" — Temporarily enhances defense and healing based on nearby allies' injuries.
Rae's Soul Core shimmered with violet light.
Soul Core Stabilized.
Lunar Aspect: 67% Celestial Bond: Active New Technique: "Resonant Flare" — Reflect incoming magic as light-infused bursts.
Lysa trembled as her Ember Sigil pulsed.
First Trail Completed.
Emberheart Ignited Soul-Fire Lineage Recognized New Ability: "Kindle Field" — Heals and fortifies allies within range when Lysa is critically wounded.
Their vision blurred as a memory not their own poured into their minds.
A woman clad in armor of starlight stood before an ancient Gate. Her eyes—Her eyes—were the same shade as Rae's.
"The last Gate will not protect the weak," she had said. "Only those who understand suffering and still choose to rise."
Then came the vision of Vaelrick.
Standing in a void. Hands stained black with flame.
A figure beside him.
Kalen—but twisted. Rebuilt. The cloned body no longer held his old soul. It held a fragment of Her.
"She's anchoring herself through him," Brent muttered, his voice dark.
"We have to sever it before it grows stronger," Rae added.
System Notification:
Final Training Cycle: Engaged Tasks: • Survive three Gauntlets of Flame • Face the Bound Warden • Stabilize Core Fusions • Unlock Unity Form
The chamber shifted again, the platforms lowering into new arenas of fire and shadow.
Above them, the flame twisted into a doorway.
The Second Gate was awakening.