Skybound Odyssey – Chapter 33: Abyssus Beckons
The sky was silent. The winds were still.
But below the surface of the world—something ancient stirred.
Deeper than the deepest trench.
Darker than any night.
And older than any Citadel that walked the earth.
Abyssus, the sixth and final Reclamation Citadel, was not buried… it was submerged.
And it was calling only one name:
> "Stormheart…"
---
Aboard the Skywing Falcon – Over the Inkdeep Trench
Juno adjusted the submersible conversion array. "Pressure's rising. Depth scanners can't read beyond six klicks."
Sena grimaced. "That's not water down there. It's liquid silence."
Lyra, sharpening her blades, muttered, "So what are we diving into?"
Ryo stood at the hull window, his reflection nearly lost in the void. His sixth sense—it wasn't just reacting to the Citadel. It was reacting to himself.
"I think…" he said slowly, "I've been here before."
---
Flashback: The Drowning Chamber
Years ago, during the Empire's experiments, there was a place called The Black Vault—a chamber filled with simulated abyss pressure.
Only one child survived more than a minute inside it.
Ryo.
He remembered darkness. Voices in water. Something touching his mind when no one else could.
Something… watching.
---
Descent into the Abyss
The Skywing Falcon dove.
Beyond light. Beyond sonar. Past crushed wrecks of forgotten civilizations and skeletons of ancient sea beasts.
Finally, a shape.
> Massive.
Circular.
Organic…
Not a tower.
Not a mech.
But a living shell of obsidian, coiled like a sleeping god.
Abyssus.
---
The Final Test
As Ryo approached the throne chamber through an airtight dive suit, the others held back. The throne was protected by a psychic seal. Only he could pass.
Inside…
A single platform. A core glowing faintly violet.
And in the shadows… a figure.
Ryo stepped forward. His breath caught.
The figure turned.
It had his face.
But older. Cold. And covered in circuits and coral.
> "I am Stormheart," it said.
"I am what you become when the world breaks you."
---
The Reflection Trial
Abyssus didn't test strength.
It tested truth.
Memories flooded Ryo's mind.
His mother—smiling, then screaming.
The lab.
The escape.
Kael.
The pain.
The rage.
The fear that he was just… a weapon with dreams.
"None of this was your choice," the shadow whispered. "So why pretend to be a hero?"
Ryo clenched his fists. "Because I made one choice that changed everything."
He stepped into the throne.
"I chose to fight for more than myself."
---
Abyssus Awakens
> "Final Sync Accepted."
"Abyss Protocol Unlocked."
"Truth Protocol: Initiating…"
The Citadel trembled.
Not just from the sync.
From the data hidden within it.
Suddenly—screens lit up. Holograms flared.
Schematics. Star maps. Blueprints for the Citadels… and something beyond.
> "The Reclamation Protocol…" Sena gasped over the comms.
"It's not to rebuild Earth's empires."
"It's to prepare for an invasion."
From outside this world.
---
The Final Revelation
The Citadels were not humanity's legacy.
They were keys—not to power… but to a lock.
A prison.
Something ancient and cosmic had been buried beneath this planet.
The Citadels?
They were meant to be guardians.
But if all six were synced by one bloodline…
> The seal would open.
And now, Ryo Stormheart had done just that.