The storm cloud stretched across the northern sky like a massive hand clawing at the horizon.
Coker stood at the edge of the Sanctum, his eyes fixed on it.
It wasn't natural.
Didn't move like real weather.
Lightning flashed inside the cloud, glowing blue, not white.
That was her.
The Second Vessel.
"She's heading west," Elira said behind him, studying the crystal compass in her hand. "If we move now, we can cut her off at the Skyspine Cliffs."
"Cut her off?" Coker asked. "You mean fight her?"
"No," she replied. "But if she's lost control, someone needs to pull her back."
Coker looked down at his hand—his mark still faintly glowing, responding to the presence of another like it.
He swallowed hard.
"She's like me, isn't she?"
Elira nodded. "Same seal. Different god."
They began packing quickly.
Elira handed Coker a thin cloak stitched with protective runes.
"You'll need this," she said. "The closer we get, the stronger her aura becomes. If you don't shield your soul, she could burn through it without touching you."
Coker raised an eyebrow. "You make it sound like she's a walking sun."
"She might be."
"…Great."
As they moved west through crumbled ruins and ancient forest paths, the air grew heavier.
The wind itself carried pressure—like something massive was breathing just beyond the horizon.
And the birds had vanished.
Hours passed. Maybe more. Time felt strange out here.
The further they walked, the more Coker felt it: a pull deep in his bones.
Like two magnets being drawn together.
Elira slowed.
"We're close."
"Can she feel me too?" he asked.
"Yes," she said quietly. "And if she's unstable… that might not be a good thing."
Suddenly, the sky cracked above them.
BOOM.
Not thunder. Not wind.
Just power.
They climbed a rocky ridge overlooking a long valley—and saw the damage.
An entire fortress had been leveled.
Walls turned to dust. Metal twisted. Fires smoldered where towers once stood.
Coker stared down in disbelief.
"Did she do this?"
"Yes," Elira said. "And she's not even trying."
In the center of the crater stood the girl.
White hair soaked in rain.
Blue eyes glowing like wildfire.
A storm spinning around her like a crown.
She turned toward them—slowly. Like she already knew they were there.
"She sees us," Coker whispered.
Elira drew a dagger slowly. "Stay behind me."
But before either of them could move, the wind slammed into them like a wall.
WHOOSH!
Coker hit the ground hard, sliding through mud and stone.
When he looked up—
She was standing right in front of him.
Not floating.
Just... standing.
"You have the mark," she said, her voice distant and cold.
Her eyes burned with energy, but her face was calm. Almost emotionless.
Coker sat up slowly. "So do you."
She crouched down, studying him like a puzzle.
"…You're the first one I've seen."
He nodded. "Same."
A beat of silence.
Then she reached out suddenly—faster than lightning—
and grabbed his wrist.
The moment their marks touched—
FLASH.
A blinding light burst between them.
Coker saw visions.
Chains. Fire. Stars falling. Screams.
He saw her locked away—crying in the dark—forgotten.
He saw the world burning.
Then—nothing.
He pulled his arm back, gasping.
She blinked slowly.
"…Yours is different," she said.
"What did you see?" he asked.
Her gaze sharpened.
"You."
Elira appeared beside them in a blink, blade drawn.
"Let him go."
The girl raised one hand—just enough to remind them she didn't need to move much to destroy everything around her.
But she didn't attack.
"I don't want to fight," she said. "I want answers."
Coker stood slowly. "Then let's get them together."
The girl stared at him for a long moment.
Then slowly, her hand dropped to her side.
"My name," she said softly, "is Naia."
Coker smiled—just a little. "I'm Coker. This is Elira."
Naia looked at the storm above her, then back to them.
"…I've been alone a long time."
Elira relaxed her stance. "You're not anymore."
But far behind them, in the shadows of a broken tower, something else watched.
A demon cloaked in smoke.
Its eyes glowed red, and its voice crawled through the stone.
"Two marks in one place…
The Demon King will rise again."