Suddenly, the floating rocks beneath us jolted forward, speeding straight toward the crimson serpent's open mouth. The pull came out of nowhere, one second we were drifting slowly, and the next, the air around us felt like a raging current dragging everything in.
"What the hell!" I shouted, trying to balance myself.
The force grew stronger, pulling at our bodies. My rock scraped against invisible resistance, the edges cracking, breaking pieces off into the red void. I tried pushing back with Essence, but the suction only got worse.
Up ahead, the serpent's massive form moved in slow circles around the crimson sun. Its scales shimmered between red metal and burning flesh, twisting endlessly.
A voice echoed through the void.
"The greater the sacrifice… the closer you are to survival."
Every sound seemed to die after that.
The words crawled into my mind and stayed there.
