The world dissolved into sound and color.
A whisper rose beneath the hum of the shrine — ancient, resonant, threaded through the pulse of the earth itself. Light gathered around him until the edges of the shrine blurred. The Gaia Tree's breath filled his lungs, and he stepped blindly into a vision.
It was the same burning world he had once glimpsed in fragments. Cities crumbled into ash, skies bled with fire, and oceans frothed with darkness. Before, the shifting link with Gaia had blurred the vision, making it hazy and broken. But now, with his new realm resonating in harmony with the planet, the veil was gone. Emery could feel Gaia in every heartbeat, in every flicker of light — the bond was clearer than it had ever been.
The primordial wisp itself had descended, its intent carved into his mind with flawless clarity: a warning of the calamity to come.
