The abyss convulsed. Prismarine shards, divine halos, and the Source's swirling fragments collided in chaotic torrents. Space itself groaned under the strain, cracks of light and void tearing reality into ribbons.
Vemy's body blazed with Prismarine fire, every shard orbiting him alive, forming weapons of jagged fury. He lunged forward, spear aimed straight at the heart of the Source. Yet each strike was swallowed, reformed, or absorbed, as if the very abyss resisted his defiance.
"You are persistent," the Source's voice hummed through existence. But persistence is a spark, and sparks are fleeting.
The Warden circled him, lightning flaring, cutting swaths through fragments of void, striking at the edges of the Source. "Your shards bend," the Warden shouted, voice urgent, "but do not break its core!"
Vemy's jaw clenched. "Then I'll shatter the edges first."
He spun, Prismarine shards scattering like falling stars, striking at orbiting fragments of the Source, each impact sending shockwaves that rippled across the void. The Source responded, twisting fragments into living shields, morphing constantly. Every shard that hit was replaced by two, then four, until the abyss itself seemed to multiply against him.
Vemy's pulse raced, heart and Prismarine in perfect—yet jagged—harmony. His fire was no longer borrowed. It was him. Each shard moved with intent, a reflection of his defiance.
The Source laughed—or something like it. Child of Prismarine… you burn too brightly. But can you endure the collapse?
Suddenly, gravity inverted. Fragments of reality spun upward and outward. Shards tore from Vemy's ring, some crashing harmlessly, others slicing through void fragments that had once seemed indestructible. The Source's power rippled outward, threatening to erase everything, yet Vemy held firm, spear braced, eyes burning.
The Warden's lightning surged, creating a temporary rift, striking at the Source. "Now, Vemy! Push through!"
He lunged, shards spinning faster, weaving a storm around him. Prismarine fire lanced through the void, shattering a ring fragment, and for the first time, the Source recoiled. A pulse of unstable energy surged outward, distorting space, yet it was incomplete. The balance had shifted, even if just slightly.
Vemy gritted his teeth, voice raw. "I'm not a spark. I'm a storm!"
The shards coalesced, forming jagged weapons around him: spears, blades, and jagged rings, all orbiting, all ready. His wings spread, a prism of shattered fire, and he dove toward the Source's heart, every movement a strike of defiance.
The Source pulsed again, the abyss tearing, the very void screaming under the strain of its awakening.
And for a heartbeat… it hesitated.
🔥 Cliffhanger: Vemy has forced the Source to react—a momentary hesitation in the origin of all Rings. The battle against eternity itself has begun, and the abyss may never recover from the clash of mortal will and infinite power.