The silence after the awakening did not last long.
High above Elyndra, the heavens stirred — an ominous symphony of divine wrath gathering its voice. The skies fractured into seven luminous rifts, each representing a different deity of the High Pantheon. Their radiance fell upon the world like descending spears, and with them came the first waves of divine emissaries — entities neither mortal nor entirely divine, forged to restore the old order.
Samy stood at the edge of the crystalline plateau where the Pilliers had gathered. The golden seal on his palm shimmered faintly, responding to the divine disturbance. His eyes narrowed as the air vibrated under the approach of the first heralds.
> "They didn't waste time," Laura muttered, gripping her twin blades. "Typical gods — act before they think."
> "No," Samy replied calmly. "They think we're still bound by their rhythm. But this time, we'll set the tempo."
The first emissary landed before them — a towering figure of light and flame, armored in celestial steel. Its voice was like the sound of molten metal cooling on stone.
> "By decree of the High Pantheon, mortals bearing divine essence shall surrender their seals and dissolve their heresy."
The being raised its arm, and divine energy spiraled around its hand. The ground beneath Samy cracked, but he did not move.
> "If the gods call this heresy," he said coldly, "then heresy is what the world needs."
The emissary struck, its attack thundering across the plateau. In a single breath, the Pilliers responded — Lyra's aura refracted the beam into dozens of streams, Mira redirected the kinetic shock into the sky, and Laura dashed forward with impossible precision, cutting through the divine current with twin arcs of light.
Selene's voice rose behind them, chanting an incantation that expanded into a dome of pure resonance. The seal on Samy's hand flared, amplifying the rhythm of the Pilliers. For a brief instant, time itself seemed to synchronize with their unity.
The emissary stumbled backward, stunned.
> "Impossible… mortals cannot wield divine synergy…"
> "We can," Samy replied, his tone sharp and steady. "Because we fight for each other, not for thrones."
The second emissary appeared — this one a being of mist and reflection, its face an endless mirror of the souls it confronted. It spoke not through words, but through thought, whispering doubts directly into the minds of the Pilliers.
Mira faltered, her focus wavering as old memories resurfaced — her failures, her fears, the people she'd once lost. The mirror-being whispered her name, over and over, in the voices of the past.
But before she fell, Flora's voice echoed in her mind, gentle yet commanding.
> "Breathe, Mira. Remember who you are. You are not your past. You are the continuation of those who believed in you."
Mira exhaled, her aura bursting outward in a wave of emerald light that shattered the mirror-being's illusion. The fragments turned into motes of silver dust, dissolving into the wind.
Above them, the rifts pulsed again. More emissaries gathered — dozens, perhaps hundreds. The gods were not sending mere warnings now; they were launching a divine siege.
Nymera's voice echoed faintly across the ether.
> "Samy, listen well. The gods are testing more than your strength. They are testing your conviction, your restraint, and your capacity to lead. One wrong choice, and the balance you fight for collapses."
Samy looked up, his expression unreadable.
> "Then I'll make every choice count."
Khaelos' laughter rolled from the heavens.
> "Let's see if your mortal pride can outlast eternity, little hero."
Lightning fell from the skies, splitting mountains, reshaping valleys. The very fabric of Elyndra began to shift under divine interference. Oceans boiled; winds screamed through the canyons like lost spirits. The gods were no longer observers — they were participants.
And yet, amidst the chaos, the Pilliers stood firm.
Laura deflected a storm of celestial spears. Lyra turned sound into force, redirecting each strike. Selene expanded her field of resonance, creating a sanctuary of calm at the plateau's heart. Mira healed those who faltered.
Samy raised his hand, the golden seal glowing brighter than ever before.
> "We don't fight the gods to destroy them," he said. "We fight to remind them what they've forgotten — that power means nothing without purpose."
The seal expanded, projecting a barrier that encompassed the entire region. Every blast that struck it was redirected into the heavens, turning divine energy into light that illuminated the night.
For the first time in centuries, the divine forces hesitated.
Some of them — perhaps not all — began to remember the truth of creation: that the mortal world was never meant to be ruled, but shared.
Siana watched from her divine throne, her expression indecipherable.
> "He is changing the rhythm of the world," she murmured. "Perhaps… even the gods need to remember humility."
As dawn broke, the emissaries withdrew, their presence fading into the fractured sky. The battlefield lay in ruins, but the spirit of the Pilliers burned brighter than ever.
Selene turned to Samy, exhausted but smiling faintly.
> "You've just declared war on the heavens."
Samy nodded.
> "No," he said quietly. "I've declared balance. And if that means facing the heavens themselves — then so be it."
Flora's gentle light enveloped the group once more.
> "Then let this be known — the Age of the Reprisals has begun. The gods will not forgive easily. But neither will you yield."
The golden seal pulsed one last time, sending a wave of radiant energy through the land — a message, clear and undeniable:
The world of Elyndra had awakened.
And the gods were no longer its only rulers.