Russ didn't have time to think.
The creature—his father's corrupted echo—lunged with terrifying speed, a blur of shadow and crimson energy. Vareon intercepted it mid-sprint, blades flashing from his gauntlets. Steel clashed against warped flesh, sparks lighting the rubble-strewn battlefield.
"Get back!" Vareon roared, pushing Russ and Meryl aside.
But Russ couldn't move.
The creature stood only feet away now—grinning with Quinn Talen's face but empty, void of soul. A mirror reflection with no memory, no warmth, no love. Just hate.
Meryl's voice pierced the haze. "Russ, we need to link! Right now!"
She tapped her wrist console, and a column of blue light shot up around them—a duo-sync field. Russ snapped back to reality and stepped into the circle just as the creature unleashed a sonic blast. The dome absorbed it, barely.
> Duo-Link Initialized: Russ Talen + Meryl Drax
Accessing Mana Fusion Protocols…
Synchronization: 84%
Meryl handed him a glowing rod. "Focus your mana into this. We channel, I stabilize."
Russ gripped it, channeling everything he had. The rod pulsed—then cracked.
Meryl frowned. "That's… impossible. It's rated for Archon-tier mana."
"I didn't push that hard," Russ said.
Or did he?
Across the field, Vareon was losing ground. The creature fought with terrifying precision—like it had learned from countless battles. From his father's memories.
Russ felt the rage boil.
"They stole his mind," he growled. "Twisted it."
Meryl nodded, voice low. "Then let's erase it."
She drew her pulse rifle. "On my mark, channel full output. No holding back."
"Understood."
"Three… two…"
Before she could say one, the creature turned its head—and spoke.
"Russ."
The voice was a perfect match. Not corrupted. Not distorted.
Just… his father's voice.
Russ froze.
"Russ, don't."
"Don't listen!" Meryl yelled, stepping between them.
"I remember you," the creature said. "The way you looked up to me. Your first steps. Your first tears. I remember…"
Vareon stabbed it through the chest with a phase blade.
"No, you don't," he hissed.
The creature staggered, then let out a shriek that shook the skies.
It exploded into black mist—then reformed behind them.
Too fast.
Russ and Meryl spun—just as it fired a pulse of voidlight.
---
> System Alert: Emergency Sync Overdrive Initiated.
Output: 173%
Risk: Terminal Overload
Russ didn't hesitate. He let the energy surge through him.
The air twisted around him as his body glowed with pure azure mana laced with black edges—the Void trying to bleed into his core.
> Skill Unlocked: Null Pulse (Progenitor Variant)
Russ raised both hands and unleashed the pulse.
A blast of compressed void-energy—silent, perfect, absolute—shot forward and collided with the creature.
It screamed as it was ripped apart molecule by molecule, reality itself bending around the pulse. No explosion. No fire. Just... unbeing.
When it was over, there was silence.
Only the crackling of Russ's mana remained. Meryl fell to her knees, panting. Vareon leaned against a broken tower, blood trailing down his arm.
Russ stood in the center of the crater. Alone.
"I didn't kill him," he whispered. "I killed what was made from him."
Meryl looked up. "And that's not your burden."
But Russ wasn't sure.
Because deep inside, something had awakened—something cold and ancient.
And it whispered one word:
"Progenitor."