Ashblade stepped through the gate.
The light inside flared bright, too bright.
He raised an arm and shut his eyes. It felt like walking into the sun.
The light didn't fade at first. It pressed on him, warm and silent.
Then… it shifted.
The heat changed. The air turned dry.
The smell of dust and cracked ground replaced the sterile scent of the testing chamber.
Ashblade slowly opened his eyes.
He was no longer in a room.
He stood in the middle of a wasteland.
No walls. No floor. No sky dome above.
Just open ground, dry wind, and grey clouds moving slowly over an empty horizon.
He looked to his left.
Then right.
No one.
Whisperlash was gone.
No staff. No cameras. No lights.
Just him.
And then, without warning, two figures appeared ahead of him.
Not from smoke. Not from light.
They were just there, standing as if they'd always been.
Ashblade froze.
He knew them immediately.
His jaw clenched.
His fingers twitched near his blade.
