The Grove pulsed violently as Alex emerged from the Heartwood Archives, his breath ragged, eyes wide, sweat dripping from his brow. The forest around him no longer whispered—but groaned, as if the very trees sensed something had changed.
Eira rushed to meet him, bow drawn. "What happened down there?!"
Alex opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.
Instead, the memory flashed again. That face.
His face.
Older. Twisted. Smiling.
Kairo came up beside her. "You look like you saw a ghost."
"I think I did," Alex finally said. "And worse… he's alive."
"What?"
"I'm not the only reincarnated Guardian."
The air seemed to grow colder as the truth settled in.
Alex sat on a stone outcrop, trying to steady himself. "I saw another me—same eyes, same mark—but corrupted. He said I'd fall… just like he did."
Kairo exchanged a glance with Eira. "You're saying someone like you is already here… and working against us?"
Alex nodded slowly. "And the Forsaken Guardians may already be following him."
Eira's hand tightened around her bow. "That explains the tremors. The seals are breaking faster than we thought."
Suddenly, a loud crack echoed through the Grove. Birds took flight. Leaves trembled.
Kairo turned. "That came from the northern ridge."
Without hesitation, they ran.
As they neared the ridge, the smell of burning roots and iron filled the air. The trees were blackened, carved as though something had ripped through them at an unnatural speed.
In the center of the clearing stood a lone figure—tall, cloaked, back turned to them. Ash drifted in the air.
"Who are you?!" Alex shouted.
The figure didn't turn, but his voice was unmistakable.
"It's strange… hearing your voice outside my head."
Alex froze.
Kairo's hand went to the hilt of his sword.
Slowly, the figure turned.
And it was him.
But not quite.
His hair was longer, wilder, falling over one eye. His armor wasn't Guardian-forged but corrupted—lined with black and crimson veins. And his eyes…
Cold. Empty. Powerful.
"Hello, me," he said, smiling faintly. "Or should I say… the one who was late to the awakening."
Eira stepped between them. "Stay back."
The corrupted version of Alex—Kael, as the system later called him—lifted a hand. Shadows curled around his fingers like smoke.
"I won't fight today," he said. "Not yet. But I thought I'd offer… a warning."
Alex narrowed his eyes. "Why now?"
Kael chuckled darkly. "Because you need time. And I want you strong when we meet again. It's more fun when the prey struggles."
He turned to walk away, but paused.
"Oh… and Alex?"
Alex didn't reply.
"There's a Guardian who still remembers what you did, back in the first era. You'll meet her soon. She hates you."
Then he vanished.
Not into the forest.
But into thin air—ripped away by a blink of black lightning.
Kairo exhaled. "What in the name of the Source was that?"
Alex's jaw was tight. "Me. If I fail."
Eira looked back toward the ridge, her voice soft. "We need to move. If Kael is already walking this world, then others will rise soon too."
Alex took one final glance at the scorched earth.
This wasn't just a war between Guardians and Forsaken anymore.
It was a war between two destinies—his and Kael's.
And only one could remain.