Snowstorm winds howled across the Andes cliffs.
Eon led Zahid and Mira down a narrow trail beside a frozen waterfall. The Rift they had just escaped was now sealed behind them, but something felt wrong.
Eon stopped.
His eyes narrowed.
"We're not alone."
Zahid raised his staff. "I feel it too. Something is watching."
Mira, still weak from her awakening, looked nervous. Her white flames flickered around her fingertips.
"Is it more monsters?"
Eon shook his head. "Worse. Conquerors."
Suddenly, black spikes shot from the snow.
Eon pushed Mira down and spun, blocking one of the spikes with a glowing energy shield.
"Scatter!" he shouted.
The mountain around them cracked open.
From deep within the rocks crawled creatures of ash and bone—Wraithborn, servants of the Conquerors. Their mouths were long and twisted, and their eyes burned with sickly green light.
Zahid stepped forward. "I'll hold them off!"
He slammed his staff into the ground.
"Flame Pillar!"
A tower of fire burst up, melting snow and burning the creatures.
But more kept coming.
Mira closed her eyes.
"I can help… I think."
"You must focus," Eon said. "Don't force it. Let your Spark respond."
Mira breathed slowly. Her body shimmered with white fire. She held out her hands.
"Lumen Pulse!"
A wave of light burst from her chest, knocking back the nearest creatures and burning their shadows.
Eon grinned slightly. "She's learning fast."
But the earth shook again.
From the cliffs above, a larger shape descended—a massive Wraithborn Champion, armored in dark stone, its hands ending in serrated blades.
"I'll handle it," Eon said.
He stepped forward, his aura igniting.
"Flame of Ages."
His body lit up with golden fire.
He vanished and appeared in front of the champion in a blink.
With one clean strike, he shattered the creature in half.
The rest of the Wraithborn froze.
Then they hissed and fled into the mountain.
Zahid caught his breath. "That was close."
Mira sat down, trembling.
"Was that… normal?"
"For us?" Zahid said. "Yeah. Get used to it."
Eon looked toward the south.
"We need to get her to the Skybase before another General finds us."
---
Far away in Southeast Asia, Rin stood in front of a Rift entrance shaped like a glowing green doorway inside a limestone cave.
Behind her were three other Sparked warriors:
Jin, a blade dancer from Korea.
Rosa, a shield tank from Spain.
Leo, a lightning mage from the Philippines.
"Alright," Rin said, steadying her breath. "This is a mid-tier Rift. That means stronger monsters and a boss inside."
Jin smiled. "Just how I like it."
Rosa slammed her shield on the ground. "Let's move."
They stepped through.
Inside, the world changed.
They were now in a giant underground jungle glowing with purple mushrooms and vines that moved like snakes. Strange lizard-creatures with armored backs hissed at them from trees.
"Form up," Rin commanded. "Leo, watch the rear."
As they moved forward, one of the lizard-creatures jumped from a tree.
Rosa blocked it with her shield, and Jin sliced it cleanly in midair.
Lightning flashed behind them—Leo zapping a second ambusher.
Rin watched carefully.
"You're all holding well. Let's keep it tight."
They pressed deeper into the jungle.
At the center was a clearing.
A large egg sat on a glowing stone, surrounded by a nest of writhing vines.
"That's the dungeon core," Rin said.
But as they approached, the egg cracked.
A roar filled the chamber.
From inside hatched a creature made of vines, stone, and bone—the Verdant Terror.
"Boss fight!" Jin yelled, rushing in.
The monster swung a massive vine whip, smashing trees.
Rosa blocked the attack, her shield glowing brighter with each hit.
Leo shot bolts of lightning into the beast's body, stunning it briefly.
Rin moved in, glowing with green energy.
"Verdant Surge!"
She struck its chest, sending a shockwave through its roots.
The creature fell back but roared again.
It charged straight at her.
"Verdant Bloom!"
Leaves surrounded her in a glowing shield.
The monster crashed into it—and exploded in a burst of spores and light.
Rin coughed, eyes wide.
"We… did it?"
The others cheered.
Rosa gave her a thumbs-up. "You were born for this."
Rin smiled.
"Let's get the core and go home."
---
Deep beneath the surface of Earth—far below the crust, past the molten rivers and hollow catacombs—there was Voidspace.
It was cold.
Silent.
Waiting.
And something began to wake.
A Conqueror General.
Unlike the others, this one had never walked the surface.
Its name was Draumon, and it was the Whisper Beneath.
It was made of thought, fear, and shifting shadows.
It could twist memories and enter dreams.
As it formed, the air around it bent. Earthquakes rolled through the lower mantle. Rift signals flared in command centers across the world.
Draumon opened its eyes—two glowing holes in a sea of black.
"The Flame rises… but so too shall the Night."
It stretched its will across tunnels, cracks, and caves.
And then, far away, someone screamed in their sleep.
A Sparked child in Canada woke up sweating.
A researcher in Cairo dropped dead with his mind burned away.
A team in China lost contact with one of their base camps.
Draumon had begun its work.
It did not fight with claws or teeth.
It corrupted.
It whispered.
It waited.
And it had already started to spread.
---
Eon and Zahid reached a skyship landing zone near Bolivia.
A group of healers welcomed Mira, quickly taking her to rest.
Zahid watched the clouds move.
"It's getting worse."
Eon nodded. "Yes. A new General has awakened."
Zahid sighed. "Another one?"
"This one doesn't need to fight us face to face," Eon said. "It will come through dreams, through fear… through silence."
"What do we do?"
Eon looked at the rising sun.
"We find the next Spark. Before Draumon finds them first."