The streets of the city were quiet in the pre-dawn hours, the world a canvas of soft grey and deep purple. Null, Kai, and Ashley walked in a determined silence, their footsteps echoing faintly on the empty sidewalks. The crisp morning air was a welcome contrast to the stale, medicinal scent of the clinic, but it did nothing to clear Null's mind. The visions were still there, replaying behind his eyes in a horrific loop. The cracked earth, the blood-soaked sky, the raw agony on his future self's face, the malevolent joy of 666:Satan—it was a new kind of haunting.
He looked at his friends, walking a few paces behind him. They were talking quietly, their voices a grounding reminder that this world, this life, was still real. He knew he was the only one carrying the full weight of the prophecy. He had to be the strong one now. The person who could lead them through a war they didn't even know was coming.
A faint, grinding sound broke the stillness of the street ahead. It was a low, unnatural rumble, like rock tearing itself apart. The sound grew louder, accompanied by a high-pitched, desperate scream.
"What's that?" Kai asked, his voice low.
"Doesn't sound good," Ashley murmured, her hands already glowing with a faint, blue energy.
Null didn't have to guess. He felt it. A faint vibration through the soles of his shoes, a tremor of power that was both familiar and terrifyingly wrong. The power of a Prime Stone. He had felt it in the vision, a fractured, corrupted resonance. This was it.
"Stay back," Null commanded, his voice filled with a sudden, new authority. "It's him."
He ran toward the sound, turning into a narrow alleyway between two storefronts. The scene was a chaotic mess of destruction. The asphalt was torn up, and massive, jagged chunks of concrete floated in the air, spinning slowly as if held by an invisible force. In the center of the destruction, a teenage girl was on her knees, her hands held up as if to push something away. Her eyes were wide with a terror that mirrored Null's own, and she was screaming, a long, high-pitched wail of agony.
This was no monster. This was a victim. Null's vision flashed in his mind—the orb of earth, sprouting black wings and a tail, its power twisted and corrupted. He understood now. The Prime Stones didn't make their users powerful; they amplified a latent, primal power that could either be controlled or consumed. This girl was being consumed.
Null looked at the girl's face. Her beautiful black hair was a wild mess, and her monocle was askew. Her name was Sophie White. He had heard about her from one of the students at his school. A loner. He had felt her power, but it wasn't the kind of power that could destroy. It was the kind of power that could give. And it was destroying her.
"Stop!" Null yelled, but she couldn't hear him. She was lost in the chaos of her own power. More concrete tore from the ground, soaring into the air like weightless boulders.
"We have to help her," Ashley said, her face pale. "She's not a monster. She's just scared."
"She's a Prime Stone user," Null said, his voice quiet but firm. "And we are going to save her." He turned to Kai and Ashley, his golden eyes burning with a new kind of resolve. "This isn't about fighting anymore. It's about taking that damn stone away. We have to get her under control before her power consumes her. And before someone else like one of them finds her first."
The race had begun. The enemy wasn't just a powerful king or a laughing devil. The enemy was time, and the looming corruption that threatened to turn every potential ally into a monster. And for the first time, Null felt the weight of his destiny not as a burden, but as a king. And his purpose was to help the ones lower.
The screams of the girl echoed through the narrow alley, a sound of pure, unadulterated agony. Chunks of concrete floated around her, a chaotic storm of debris. Null knew he didn't have much time. He couldn't just fight her; her power wasn't a weapon, but a raw, uncontrolled force that was destroying her from the inside out. He had to go in. He had to reach the core of the problem, the god in her stone.
"Ashley, Kai, cover me!" Null commanded, his voice a low growl. "Keep that debris away from me, and keep anyone from coming in here!"
Ashley didn't hesitate. She created a shimmering blue barrier around the entrance to the alley, a protective shell that absorbed the impact of the floating concrete. Kai's hands were a blur as he manipulated the air, creating small, focused bursts that deflected the heavier chunks of debris.
Null walked toward the center of the storm, his eyes fixed on Sophie. She was curled in on herself, her body shaking as if she were in the throes of a fever. Null felt the immense, raw power of her Prime Stone—the power of creation, the very essence of Earth, but it was twisted and corrupted. He saw the black wings in his mind again, the tail, the horns. He knew he had to act now.
He knelt before her, placing a hand gently on her head. The moment his fingers made contact, he felt a powerful psychic shockwave, a scream of pure, emotional pain that echoed in his mind. Null grit his teeth and pushed through it, a pulse of dark energy flowing from his hand and into her mind, a tendril of his own power seeking to connect with hers.
The world around him dissolved, the alleyway fading into a swirling vortex of black and green. He was no longer in the physical world, but in a mental realm, a chaotic landscape of raw emotion and power. The air was thick with the scent of ozone and the taste of metallic blood. Null looked around, his body now a semi-transparent, shimmering form of pure shadow. He was inside her.
He saw her, but she was a hollow, empty shell of herself. The girl was floating in the center of a storm of jagged, glowing rocks, her eyes wide and blank. But then, Null saw him. The god in her stone. He was a colossal figure, a mountain of a man with skin the color of deep granite and eyes that glowed with a furious, golden light. He was shouting, his voice a deafening roar that shook the very core of this mental space.
"Let me out! Let me out!" the god, Galeipot, roared, his voice a booming storm of fury. "You are not worthy of this power! Give it to me, you weak, pathetic creature! You broke the promise! You turned your back on the second chance I gave you!"
Sophie's shell of a body flinched, but she said nothing. She was lost in the trauma of her past. Null understood now. This was not a possession. This was a god punishing a mortal. This was a god who was trapped in her stone, feeding off her despair, her guilt, her pain.
Null stepped forward, his shadowy form solidifying as he manifested a form of himself, his golden, cross-shaped eyes burning. "Leave her alone," he said, his voice a low, commanding whisper. "This is not your fight."
Galeipot turned, his furious gaze landing on Null. A roar of pure, unbridled rage tore from his throat. "Who are you? You dare to intrude on my domain? I am Galeipot, God of the Earth! And this weak mortal is my prison! Now, get out before I shatter your soul into a million pieces!"
Null stood his ground. He knew he was no match for this being, but he didn't have to be. He was a key. He was a guide. He had to show Sophie the way.
"I won't leave," Null said, his voice steady. "But I will make you a deal. I will help her, and she will control you. Not the other way around. I'll show her how to use her power without hurting herself or anyone else. But you have to leave her alone."
Galeipot laughed, a sound that was more like a seismic shift than a show of amusement. "You think you can teach her to control my power? She is broken, boy. She is nothing."
Null didn't respond. He simply looked at the god, his face an impassive mask. He knew this was a bluff. Galeipot was trapped. Null had the power to make him a weapon, and he knew it. He saw the fear in Galeipot's eyes, a flicker of uncertainty that he quickly masked.
"I'll give you a chance, boy. Show me your power," Galeipot said, his voice now a low, dangerous rumble. "Show me that you are worthy of my time."
Null didn't respond with words. Instead, he reached out, and his shadowy hand phased through Galeipot's chest. Null was now touching the Prime Stone itself. He pushed, not with force, but with the intent to sever the connection between the god and the human, to create a space for Sophie to take control.
The god roared in fury, a sound that shook the very foundations of the mental realm. He was a prisoner, and Null was the warden. The battle wasn't one of strength, but of will.
End of chapter 45.
See you again