The moon finished bleeding.
The last red tear fell from its crimson surface and disappeared into the Veil below. For a moment, everything was still. Silent. The Pool chamber held its breath.
Then the sky split.
Not metaphorically. Not gradually. The actual sky tore open like fabric being ripped apart. A massive crack appeared directly above the bleeding moon, spreading outward in jagged lines that looked like lightning frozen in place.
"Get down!" Astro pulled me toward the ground as the chamber began to shake.
The marble beneath us cracked. The Pool's water churned violently, black waves crashing against the edges. The seven chalices on the table shattered, their pieces scattering across the floor.
Through the split in the sky, I saw something beyond. Not stars. Not space. Something else. A void so deep and dark it made the Pool's black water look pale by comparison.
And from that void, something was coming.
