Noah stepped out of his domain and back into reality.
The transition was jarring—perfect light and endless grass replaced by frozen wasteland and the distant sounds of dying combat. His boots hit permafrost that had been churned into slush by sustained fighting. The air tasted like ozone and blood.
Around him, the battlefield had changed. Eclipse recruits were mopping up the last scattered Purge operatives, their movements showing exhaustion but also confidence. They'd held. Actually held against professional soldiers and won. Grey forces had established a perimeter around the facility's main entrance, their formations tight and professional.
But everyone within fifty feet had stopped what they were doing and was staring at the spot where Noah had appeared. More specifically, at the black blood covering his armor, his hands, his face.
Harbinger blood.
Sera's voice crackled through comms first. "Noah? Where did you go? You just—you vanished with the Widow and—"
