The First Surge
The dreamers woke not to song or laughter but to the tolling of bells.
They were massive, carved from starlight and iron, and their deep echo shook the ground itself. Every citizen knew what it meant: invasion.
Kael, Juno, and Talia stood on the balcony of their quarters, staring out at the horizon. Where yesterday had been clear skies and glowing rivers, today a wall of darkness pressed forward. The corruption stretched endlessly, a storm of writhing tendrils that swallowed fields, skies, and even light.
It didn't crawl. It surged.
And leading it was silence—a silence more suffocating than screams.
"By the Beyond…" Juno whispered. Her voice was tight, missing its usual humor.
Kael's hands clenched the railing. "It's worse than yesterday."
"No," Talia corrected, her tone steady but grim. "It's growing. That isn't an army. That's a plague."
They watched as dreamer soldiers assembled below. Millions of them, clad in armor of light, shields shimmering like starlit glass. War horns joined the bells, summoning battalions from every district of the continent.
Above them, the banners of the Eighteen Earth Leaders rose high, each marked with a symbol of their world: flames, oceans, forests, stars.
The leaders themselves floated to the forefront, cloaked in raw Astral Flow that bent the air around them. To see five of them descend at once was rare—legendary. Their presence drew gasps from even the battle-hardened dreamer troops.
Juno nudged Kael, forcing a smirk through the dread. "Hey, at least we don't have to fight alone."
Kael gave a dry laugh. "That's supposed to make me feel better?"
"Uh, yeah? Look at those leaders! They probably bench-press mountains for fun."
Even Talia's lips curved faintly.
Then the gates of the Dream Continent opened.
The dreamer army surged forward like a tidal wave of light, clashing with the corruption at the horizon. The impact was thunder itself—light against darkness, creation against decay.
Kael flinched at the sheer power. He could see it even from here: beams of Astral Flow carving through shadows, corruption retaliating with tendrils that devoured anything they touched.
The battlefield became a storm.
Juno stepped forward, her usual brightness replaced with steel. "We can't just watch."
"No," Talia agreed, her hand tightening around the hilt of her astral blade. "This isn't their war alone. It's ours too."
Kael nodded, though unease gnawed at him. The whispers of corruption from last night hadn't stopped. They lingered in his chest, heavy and cold, reminding him of a truth he didn't want to face.
Still, he raised his weapon. "Let's move."
The trio joined the battlefield, leaping into the chaos.
The ground shook beneath their feet, Astral Flow roaring through their veins as they struck at the corruption.
"As they used Astral Flow to destroy some corruption, more came out…"
Juno groaned mid-fight, slicing through a writhing tendril. "Great! It's like fighting shadow spaghetti that keeps refilling the bowl!"
Kael kicked away another mass, panting. "Less talking—more fighting!"
"Excuse you," Juno shouted back, spinning her glaive into a blur. "Talking is my coping mechanism!"
Talia didn't reply—she was already dashing ahead, her movements sharp, precise. Every strike cut through corruption cleanly, her eyes locked on something deeper.
Then Kael saw it too.
In the distance, a pulsing core glowed faintly within the darkness. The corruption wasn't just spreading randomly—it was emanating from there.
"Talia!" Kael shouted. "The core—!"
She nodded. "I see it. That's our target."
As the three pressed forward, the other five leaders suddenly retreated.
Juno blinked in shock. "Wait—why are they backing off?!"
"They're protecting the city," Talia answered grimly. "If they fall, everything falls. The core is for us."
Kael swallowed hard. He didn't like it, but he understood. Leaders shielded walls; chosen bore burdens.
So they moved closer. Step by step. Strike by strike.
But the whispers grew louder.
Weak. Useless. Pretenders.
They sank into Juno's skull like knives. She staggered mid-swing, her vision blurring. The battlefield tilted around her.
"Juno!" Kael cried, catching her before she collapsed. Her hands trembled violently.
"Voices…" she whispered hoarsely. "They're inside my head—I can't—"
Before Kael could respond, a shadow loomed over them.
A figure emerged from the corruption, dwarfing them like ants.
The Lady.
Her form was no longer a distant threat but a towering presence, draped in darkness that warped the air around her. Her eyes burned crimson as she raised a blade of corruption itself.
"You dare crawl to my core?" Her voice was silk over poison. "Then die here."
She blurred forward—faster than Kael's eyes could follow.
Her blade pierced Talia's side before she could react.
"TALIA!" Kael and Juno screamed.
Talia gasped, blood seeping as she staggered. The Lady ripped her blade free, then spun, knocking Calyx—who had just arrived—off balance with a single strike.
Her gaze fell next on Kael. "You. The failure. I will erase you first."
Rage ignited in Kael's chest.
He gently set Juno down, his eyes burning with Astral Flow. Then he charged.
Every ounce of his power surged into one strike. Astral Flow crackled around him, fusing into his blade as he hurled himself at the Lady.
The impact shook the battlefield.
But when the dust cleared, she stood untouched.
She wiped her cheek mockingly, then struck Kael with a devastating punch.
He spat blood, crumpling to the ground.
"Pathetic," she sneered.
Calyx, regaining his footing, grabbed Juno and fled with her before the Lady could follow.
Kael coughed, forcing himself upright. Through blurred vision, he saw Talia struggling to stand, clutching her wound.
"She doesn't give up easily…" he muttered, his chest twisting.
The Lady's blade glowed, aimed at them both. "Say your last words."
The world exploded in light and darkness.
Kael didn't think—he moved. Grabbing Talia's hand, he forced his Astral Flow into a teleportation spell, warping them away just as the Lady's power detonated.
They reappeared miles away, collapsing in a desolate, cavernous wasteland. The air was heavy with venom, walls lined with snake-like carvings.
Snake Dungeon.
Kael groaned, coughing blood, as Talia slumped against his chest. Her breaths were shallow but alive.
He looked around, fear clawing at him.
Juno and Calyx were nowhere in sight.
Only endless darkness.