The battlefield was silent after the Architect's fall. Its cosmic blood still rained in shimmering fragments. Selene stood alone amidst the ruins, breathing softly, her silver eyes glowing like cold moons.
She thought she was alone.
Until she heard footsteps.
A woman emerged from the mist. She was… different. Short white hair. Crimson eyes like fresh blood. Dressed in a black-and-red combat suit that shimmered with unfamiliar symbols. A long blade rested casually on her shoulder.
She smiled. Not kindly.
"So, you're the rogue Core."
Selene tilted her head. "And you are?"
"Lyra." The woman's smile widened. "Your big sister."
Selene blinked. "…I don't have a sister."
Lyra stepped closer, dragging the tip of her blade across the cracked ground, sparks following every step.
"Oh, but you do. You're the younger Core. I was implanted first. And now I've been sent to bring you home."
Selene's fingers twitched, her imagination already stirring. "You think you can take me?"
Lyra raised the blade—and the entire sky split into scarlet threads.
"Yes."
The Duel of Cores
They clashed instantly.
Selene unleashed her nightmares—armies of faceless beasts, spirals of collapsing reality, mirrored dimensions full of death.
But Lyra cut through all of it.
Her blade wasn't a normal weapon. It didn't slice matter. It cut concepts. With one swing, she severed Selene's control over a whole section of reality, making her creatures dissolve instantly.
Selene's eyes widened. "You're… undoing my thoughts?"
Lyra smirked, spinning her blade effortlessly. "I don't imagine things, Selene. I erase them."
Selene summoned storms of glass, oceans of black feathers, endless mirrors—but Lyra weaved through them like a phantom, her blade humming with a low, deadly sound. Every slash erased entire nightmares in one move.
Then Lyra struck Selene herself.
Blood sprayed. For the first time, Selene stumbled backward.
Lyra appeared behind her in a blink. "You're strong. But sloppy. Like a child playing with fire."
Selene gritted her teeth. Her silver eyes flared. She imagined herself invincible.
And for a moment, she was.
But Lyra's blade gleamed brighter. She whispered a single word—
"Null."
And everything Selene imagined just… stopped.
Her creatures froze midair. Her reshaped battlefield reverted to ruins. Her power felt like it was being locked away.
Selene gasped. "Wha—what are you—?"
Lyra appeared in front of her, pressing the blade gently to her throat.
"End of the line, little sister."
Selene lunged anyway. Lyra's eyes flashed crimson. The blade moved.
And Selene collapsed.