The path to the Void Sector was unlike anything they had seen before. As Ayan, Rudra, and Zyra moved forward, the bright and glowing beauty of Nexora slowly began to disappear. The sky dimmed, the floating energy streams faded, and the ground beneath them turned rough and cracked, as if the land itself was breaking apart.
With every step, the air grew heavier.
Rudra looked around uneasily. "I don't like this place already," he said. "It feels… wrong."
Zyra walked ahead, her movements more alert than before. "This is where corrupted energy gathers," she said. "When Nexora's balance is disturbed, this is where the damage shows."
Ayan remained silent. He could feel it too.
The energy here was unstable.
It didn't flow like before.
It twisted.
It resisted him.
For the first time since gaining his power, Ayan felt disconnected.
They soon reached the edge of a massive dark zone. A deep crack stretched across the land, glowing faintly with a dark red light. Beyond it, everything looked distorted—shapes shifted, shadows moved without reason, and the sky itself seemed broken.
"This is the Void Sector," Zyra said.
Rudra swallowed. "Yeah… definitely not a tourist place."
Ayan stepped closer to the edge. The moment he did, a sharp pain shot through his chest. He grabbed his shirt tightly.
"What… is this feeling…" he said.
Zyra looked at him. "The fragment inside you is reacting. This place is filled with corrupted Core energy."
Ayan took a deep breath and forced himself forward. "Then we go in."
Without waiting, he jumped across the crack.
Rudra groaned. "Why do we never choose easy paths…" and followed him quickly.
Zyra came last, landing smoothly.
The moment they entered—
Everything changed.
The ground beneath them shifted slightly, like it wasn't fully stable. The air became colder, and strange whispers echoed faintly, as if the place itself was alive.
Rudra looked around nervously. "Did you hear that?"
Ayan nodded slowly. "Yeah…"
Zyra spoke in a low voice. "Do not trust anything you see here. The Void distorts reality."
As they moved deeper, the environment became more unstable. Shadows stretched unnaturally, and distant shapes appeared and disappeared without warning.
Then suddenly—
A sound.
A low growl.
They stopped instantly.
From the darkness ahead, something moved.
Slowly, a creature emerged.
It was unlike the Sentinels. This was organic… but twisted. Its body looked broken and reformed, with dark energy leaking from its surface. Its eyes glowed with a faint red light, but there was no control in them—only hunger.
Rudra stepped back. "Okay… that is definitely not friendly."
Zyra raised her hand, ready to attack. "Void creature. Stay alert."
The creature let out a distorted scream and charged.
Ayan reacted instantly, summoning his energy. But this time, something felt off. The light flickered, weaker than before.
The creature attacked fast.
Zyra moved first, striking it with a sharp burst of energy, pushing it back. But it didn't stop. It recovered instantly and attacked again, even more aggressively.
"It's not slowing down!" she said.
Ayan stepped forward and focused. This time, he didn't force the energy. He let it flow.
A controlled burst of light shot from his hand, hitting the creature directly. It screamed as the light burned through the dark energy surrounding it.
For a moment, it seemed like it would fall.
But then—
It changed.
The dark energy around it grew stronger, adapting, resisting the light.
Ayan's eyes widened. "It's evolving…"
Zyra nodded. "Everything here adapts to survive. We must finish it quickly!"
The creature lunged again.
This time, Rudra picked up a sharp metal fragment from the ground and threw it with full force. "Hey ugly, over here!"
The distraction worked for a second.
Ayan saw the opening.
He stepped forward, focused completely, and released a stronger, concentrated beam of energy.
The light pierced through the creature.
This time, it didn't adapt.
It shattered.
The dark energy scattered and slowly dissolved into the air.
Silence returned.
Rudra exhaled deeply. "I am never coming here again…"
But Zyra was not relaxed.
Instead, she looked around more carefully.
"That was just one," she said.
As if responding to her words—
The ground trembled.
Multiple growls echoed from all directions.
Ayan turned slowly.
In the distance…
Dozens of glowing red eyes appeared.
Watching them.
Waiting.
Rudra's voice dropped. "Tell me those are not all coming here…"
Zyra didn't answer.
She didn't need to.
The creatures began to move.
And this time—
They were not alone.
A strange energy formed behind them.
A shape.
A human shape.
Ayan felt it instantly.
His body froze.
Slowly, he turned around.
Standing there…
was someone who looked exactly like him.
Same face.
Same body.
But different eyes.
Cold.
Dark.
And glowing red.
The figure smiled.
"So… this is the original."
Ayan's heart stopped.