The humid heat of Recife had always been intense, but that night the air felt different. Heavy. Dense. As if the earth itself were holding its breath.Exactly one week had passed since the global meeting of the guardian families. One week since everyone realized that war was no longer a future possibility… but an unavoidable reality.The mansion of the Brazilian family — the Almeida Bastos, custodians of the South Atlantic sector — stood facing the ocean, protected by ancestral seals and magical technology inherited through generations. It was a fortress disguised as a historic residence.And even so… that night it was going to fall.
The first to notice was Rafael Bastos, the family's tactical chief.He felt a vibration beneath his feet.It wasn't elemental magic.It was something deeper.
"Something's wrong," he said into the communicator. "Activate red protocol."
Magical emergency lights began turning on. Guards armed with minor relics took their positions. Detection seals deployed around the perimeter.
But it was already too late.
The attack wasn't coming from outside.
It was coming from below.
The ground in the central courtyard exploded into a column of earth and stone. Creatures emerged as if the city itself were spitting them out.
They were not ordinary Claimoor.
They were hybrids.Beasts shaped with dark magic and animal essence.
A shadow jaguar tore through the first defensive line.Giant snakes emerged from the cracks.Black birds, far too large to be natural, blocked the sky.
"Protect the relic chamber!" Rafael shouted.
But the enemy knew exactly where to go.
That was the most terrifying part.
Inside the mansion, Juliana Almeida, the family's direct heir, ran toward the underground chamber.
There, the main relic was kept:
A green stone medallion, carved millennia ago.
The relic resonated directly with the bearer.It didn't amplify his power… it stabilized it.
Without it, the global magical balance became more fragile.
"They can't reach it…" Juliana murmured.
When she opened the reinforced door, silence struck her.
An impossible silence in the middle of chaos.
And then she saw her.
A woman stood in front of the pedestal.
Tall. Dark hair. Amber-colored eyes.
On her left arm glowed a mark:
A coiled serpent.
Juliana understood immediately.
"You… you're a guardian."
The woman barely smiled.
"The third one," she replied. "Or at least… I used to be."
The ground trembled gently beneath her feet.
"My name is Iara Nogueira."
The floor rose, forming roots and solid rock around her like living armor.
Behind her, real animals and magical creatures waited in absolute silence, obedient.
Total control.
Earth magic…and dominion over every beast.
"Why are you doing this?" Juliana asked, holding back her fear.
"Because the balance you protect is already broken," Iara replied. "And the bearer will need more than obedient guardians."
She took the medallion.
The relic vibrated violently.
Juliana felt the connection even miles away from the bearer.
As if someone had cut a nerve of the world.
"That will destabilize him," Juliana said. "You could kill him."
Iara looked at her with an expression that wasn't cruelty… but conviction.
"Or make him awaken."
Upstairs, the battle was becoming a massacre.
More than half of the family's men had fallen.Experienced guards were being overwhelmed by impossible creatures.
Rafael fought covered in blood, using the last defensive relic.
"Strategic retreat! Protect the civilians!"
But he knew the truth:
They weren't resisting.They were surviving.
In the chamber, Juliana tried to attack.
She summoned an energy spear.
The earth simply absorbed it.
Iara sighed.
"I didn't come to exterminate you. I only needed the relic."
The walls opened like wet sand.
Animals began to withdraw.The creatures did as well.
The attack stopped as quickly as it had begun.
But the damage was already done.
When Juliana stepped out into the courtyard, dawn was beginning.
The mansion was in ruins.The smell of wet earth and blood filled the air.
Dozens of bodies covered the ground.
Rafael, wounded, approached.
"They took it… didn't they?"
Juliana nodded.
"The serpent guardian."
The silence between them was heavy.
"So this isn't just a war against the Kartnod anymore," Rafael said.
"No," Juliana replied, looking toward the horizon."Now we're divided among ourselves as well."
And far away…
The stolen medallion began to glow.
As if responding to the bearer's presence.
Or as if it were calling him.