The hallway erupted into violence. Renn tore ahead, laughter crackling from his lips as he crashed into the nearest Hollowed — a brute with shoulders like knotted tree trunks and no lower jaw. Lightning burst from Renn's fists, searing flesh and bone. The creature howled, its head snapping back in a plume of burnt gore.
Kael was right behind him, blades flashing. He wove around claws and teeth, knives slicing tendons, gouging eyes. His face was an impassive mask, grey eyes hard, lips drawn in a tight line. Every movement was surgical. When one Hollowed lunged for Zane, Kael drove a knife through its throat, twisting until it collapsed with a wet gurgle.
Zane's shadows writhed outward, lancing into two Hollowed at once, strangling them in coils of inky darkness that smoked where they met infected flesh. Their limbs thrashed wildly before going limp, bones shattering under the pressure. Zane exhaled through gritted teeth, sweat beading on his temples as he forced his powers harder than ever.
Mira, eyes wide with terror, raised trembling hands. Her power flickered like broken glass, then suddenly exploded outward — a pulse of crushing force that hurled three Hollowed into the far wall with enough impact to splinter stone. They slumped, limbs twisted at impossible angles.
Kross planted himself in front of her, axe swinging in savage arcs. Each blow sent sprays of black ichor across the floor. "Stay behind me, Mira! Breathe! You're stronger than you think!"
---
In the chaos, Rix found himself face to face with a towering horror.
It was nearly eight feet tall, skin stretched tight over a ribcage that pulsed with worms of shadow. Its hands were claws like meat hooks, dripping filth that smoked where it hit the floor. It leaned close, breath reeking of rot, empty sockets weeping black tears.
Something primal in Rix's chest screamed to run. But he planted his feet. Power roared through his veins, making every muscle burn. He raised his hands, blocking the first claw swipe, then drove his knee up into its gut. The thing staggered back — surprised, if such a monster could be.
Rix felt something ignite deep inside him. The air rippled. His next punch hit with a sound like cracking timber. The creature's chest caved inward, ribs snapping under the force. It collapsed, black sludge pouring from its mouth.
He stood there a moment, panting, watching steam rise from his fists.
---
Behind them, Veros only laughed.
"Glorious! Look at you all — squandering miracles on survival!" His hands lifted, and arcs of crimson energy lanced from his fingertips, striking two more Hollowed. They convulsed and twisted, bones popping, flesh sloughing away until they stood reshaped — leaner, faster, bristling with hooked spines.
"They're evolving," Kael growled, turning his back to Rix. "Rix, stay close."
But Rix felt a heat building in his gut, like molten iron pouring through his veins. The pedestal still lay behind them, the black glass box thrumming as if it recognized something in him.
His vision blurred — for a heartbeat he saw lines running through the air, threads of color dancing from Veros to the Hollowed, from the Hollowed to every smear of black on the ground. And then he saw how to cut them.
With a snarl, Rix hurled himself forward. His hand closed on one of those shimmering lines — not truly there, but somehow real to his senses now. He yanked. The line snapped.
The Hollowed closest to him shrieked, clutching its head. Black veins split across its skull before it collapsed, twitching violently.
Veros' smile faltered. "What did you just—"
---
Before he could finish, Kael lunged.
His knives plunged for Veros' chest — but the mad scientist twisted aside with inhuman speed, grabbing Kael by the wrist. There was a pulse of red energy, and Kael went rigid, veins bulging dark under his skin.
"Fascinating," Veros hissed in his ear. "You're all on the cusp of something glorious. Let me help you break."
With a roar, Zane's shadows surged. They ripped Kael from Veros' grasp, sending both men sprawling. Renn launched himself bodily into Veros, driving him back through a rack of shattered glass tubes. Electricity snapped and flared, throwing sparks across the walls.
"Get the hell away from my friends!" Renn screamed.
---
The fight surged through the lab like wildfire.
Rix found himself moving almost without thought — grabbing more of those invisible threads, pulling them loose until Hollowed dropped like puppets with cut strings. Mira blasted others with walls of concussive force, her fear transforming into raw, desperate power. Kross roared in savage joy, splitting skulls with his axe.
And all the while, the black glass box on the pedestal pulsed. Each beat seemed to sync with Rix's heart. He realized it was calling to him.
When Veros finally staggered free of Renn's onslaught, bleeding from half a dozen burns and cuts, he pointed at Rix.
"You. You'll be the key. Remember this moment — when the truth finds you, you'll wish you died here."
Then the walls themselves seemed to blur. A rent opened in the air, and Veros stepped through it, vanishing with a crackle of red light.
---
Silence fell.
The lab was a ruin, bodies strewn everywhere. Rix leaned on a shattered table, chest heaving. Kael lay slumped against the wall, gasping but alive. Renn stood grinning through a mask of blood. Zane wiped sweat from his brow, his shadows twitching fitfully.
Mira sobbed, dropping to her knees. Kross pulled her into a tight embrace.
Rix's eyes fell on the black box. It still pulsed, slower now. Waiting.
Kael finally pushed himself upright, met Rix's gaze, and said hoarsely:
"Next time we see that bastard… we finish it. No matter what it costs."
Rix nodded, his throat tight.
And somewhere deep in the ruined building, something answered — a low, echoing throb, like the heart of the world had just woken up.