The deeper they moved into Site Epsilon, the less the world made sense.
The air grew colder, heavier. The walls seemed to breathe—each step echoed strangely, as if reality itself was thinning.
Nam led the way, Shard in hand, every nerve on fire.
Behind him, Lan and Bao flanked the rescued scientists, weapons raised. Minh kept scanning the area, fingers flying across his tablet to jam any sensors and isolate hostile signals.
"There's something wrong," Lan whispered.
"I can feel it."
Nam nodded grimly.
"It's close."
They descended a wide, spiraling ramp that led into the bowels of the facility.
At the bottom was a massive, circular chamber.
And in the center of that chamber floated... something.
A monolith, cracked and ancient, hovering above a pool of black liquid. Runes crawled across its surface like living worms, shifting faster as they approached.
The survivors gasped, backing away.
Nam stepped closer, heart pounding.
The Shard on his back pulsed so violently it hurt.
Suddenly, the pool below the monolith began to bubble.
Something rose from the depths.
At first, it was just a silhouette—long, twisted, impossibly tall. Eyes like burning coals opened in the darkness, fixing on them with a gaze that froze the soul.
The Harbinger.
Minh cursed under his breath.
"That's no Voidborn. That's something... older."
The Harbinger's voice filled the room—not through sound, but through raw thought, slamming into their minds.
"You dare bring the Light here?"
Nam staggered, fighting against the crushing pressure.
The Shard flared, forming a protective barrier around him and the team.
Lan gritted her teeth.
"Orders, Nam?!"
Nam's instincts screamed at him to run. But he forced himself to stand tall.
"Form up!" he shouted.
"Focus fire on the target! Don't let it reach the monolith!"
The Harbinger moved—fast, faster than anything its size should be capable of. Its clawed hand lashed out, and Bao barely dodged, his armor screeching as it grazed him.
Lan unleashed a barrage of plasma rounds. Minh activated drone turrets that hovered and fired suppressive blasts.
Nam charged forward, Shard glowing like a star.
He struck—the energy from the Shard slamming into the Harbinger's arm, searing through its defenses. The monster howled, a thousand voices screaming as one.
But it didn't fall.
Instead, it split—its body fracturing into multiple twisted copies that rushed them from all sides.
"This is bad!" Minh shouted. "It's adapting!"
Bao swung his cannon, smashing two copies into smoke, but more kept coming.
Lan fired precision shots, taking down three more.
Nam realized what the Harbinger was doing: stalling.
Stalling for the monolith to fully awaken.
"If that thing activates," he thought grimly, "it's over."
"Minh!" Nam yelled. "Shut down the monolith! Now!"
Minh sprinted toward the control station near the edge of the chamber, dodging blasts of black energy hurled by the Harbinger's clones.
Lan and Bao covered him, bodies moving with practiced efficiency, but it was clear they were being overwhelmed.
Nam faced the original Harbinger, who towered above him, the monolith's dark power swirling around its form.
"You should not exist," the Harbinger rumbled.
Nam smiled grimly, raising the Shard.
"Neither should you."
He leapt, striking with everything he had.
Light and shadow clashed violently in the heart of Site Epsilon.
Across the room, Minh reached the control station. His fingers flew across the corrupted console, bypassing locks, injecting override codes.
The monolith shuddered, runes sparking and fading.
Almost there—
The Harbinger roared, sensing the danger.
It sent a wave of black force toward Minh.
Nam saw it. He ran. Faster than he thought possible.
He threw himself between Minh and the wave, the Shard flaring to full power, absorbing the impact.
The force slammed into him, driving him to his knees.
But he held.
Minh shouted, "NOW!"
He slammed the final command into the console.
The monolith exploded in a burst of blinding white light.
The Harbinger screamed—a sound of rage and terror—and began to disintegrate, its body unraveling into tendrils of black mist.
The clones collapsed into ash.
Silence returned.
Nam struggled to his feet, breathing heavily. His armor was scorched, cracked, but he was alive.
Lan and Bao moved to his side, faces grim but victorious.
Minh gave a weak laugh, wiping sweat from his forehead.
"Remind me... never to do that again."
Nam looked at the ruined chamber, then at the Shard, still glowing faintly in his hand.
"This was just a messenger," he said quietly.
"The real war is still coming."
Lan nodded.
"Then we better be ready."
They turned and began the long, hard climb back to the surface—knowing that from this moment on, nothing would ever be the same.