The sky hung black, consumed by shadow. An entire city floated unnaturally above the ground, groaning under invisible pressure. panic erupted.
Screams echoed. Buildings crumbled. Streets split apart.
A young boy stood frozen in the chaos, staring wide-eyed at Floris, who hovered at the center of the maelstrom, her silhouette outlined in dark mist.
Suddenly a car flipped, hurling toward him like a missile.
"WATCH OUT!" Kochi swung in, chains snapping, grabbing the child just in time.
"You alright?" she asked, breathless.
"My baby!!" his mother cried, rushing in to hold him. "Thank you!" she said to Kochi, clutching her son to her chest.
"I'll go evacuate the civilians," Mira said, sprinting into the fray.
"No," Floris whispered.
Everything stopped.
Mira froze mid-step unable to move.
Floris turned to her, eyes glowing with lethal focus. "Didn't I say… I'm killing all of you?"
Before anyone could react, a blast of dark energy fired from the sky, aiming straight for Mira.
Mira thrust up her arms, forming a glowing force field just in time. The impact hit and the sheer pressure shook the city's foundation.
"AHHH!" Mira screamed, knees buckling as she strained to maintain the barrier.
"How long do you think that'll hold?" Floris asked coldly, still keeping the beam going.
"Tch she needs help!" Kochi shouted, trying to leap forward but her limbs locked up.
"Dammit!" Rowan gritted his teeth and fired his gun, bullet shrieking toward Floris.
But she only grinned.
"You're not the only one with fancy tricks."
She snapped her fingers.
A cube of translucent black energy appeared midair, trapping Rowan inside. The bullet froze mid-flight, dissolving into shadow.
Rowan slammed his fists against the walls. "MIRA!"
Outside the cube, Mira's force field cracked.
Then shattered.
The beam consumed her.
Silence.
Just a smoldering crater remained.
"MIRA!" Rowan screamed, raging, his voice echoing off the walls of the cube.
Floris hovered overhead, smiling softly. "Don't bother. She's gone. No body… no spirit… I erased her from existence."
Kochi's eyes shook. Her lips trembled. Then her rage exploded.
"I'm… I'm gonna RIP YOU APART!" she shouted, foaming at the mouth, her chains lashing wildly.
"Try," Floris said with a smile like a guillotine.
-
Far away, Banid stood on a distant skyscraper, the horror plain on his face.
(They need me… Kochi, Rowan… everyone.)
He jumped his body instantly encased in a sleek tech suit, its jet thrusters activating. He shot through the sky toward the floating city
but the ground erupted beneath him.
A massive worm, colossal and furious, burst from below. Its neck arched toward the sky, blocking his path like a wall of flesh.
"Shit," Banid muttered, stopping mid-flight.
The worm shrieked a horrific, piercing sound that rippled through the clouds.
-
Somewhere deep within…
Inside floris' mind, submerged in a pool of blood Floris gasped.
"Hughh!" She coughed, dragging herself out from a pool of red. Her lungs wheezed, desperate for air.
She collapsed on the floor, shivering.
"Where… am I?" she whispered, looking around the void.
From the darkness, a soft whistling.
A girl leaned against a wall
She smirked.
"You're finally awake… my friend," she said.
Floris' eyes widened.
"It's… you."