The atmosphere over Kogane no tori had changed from a vibrant, shimmering gold to a suffocating, ink-black void. Kojo looked around in horror, his heart hammering against his ribs as the very fabric of his world began to tear. Portals were popping up everywhere, like jagged, glowing wounds in reality. One opened in the Upper District, swirling with violet energy; another cracked open the Middle District; and a massive, terrifying one dominated the Lower District. The island of gold, once thought to be eternal, was being swallowed by the purple night.
Scene changes to Lemon and Ato.
The air in the narrow alleys was thick with the smell of ozone and burning minerals. Lemon and Ato were running in the streets of the Lower District, their boots thumping against the gilded stone as they sought a way to stem the tide. While they were running, they saw a portal in front of them, blocking their path with a wall of cold, pulsing light.
They stopped dead in their tracks. The ground vibrated beneath them, and shadow monsters started coming out of the portal. These creatures were long-limbed and eyeless, their bodies made of a substance that seemed to drink the light around them. Seeing this, Ato wanted to punch one of the shadows, putting his full "Beast" strength into the blow, but—his fist met no resistance. Instead of shattering bone or stone, his arm passed right through the creature as if it were made of cold mist.
"What? It went through. My hand went through it!" Ato yelled, staring at his knuckles in disbelief.
Lemon skidded to a stop beside him, his expression hardening as he channeled his inner energy. "Oh, I forgot! Only I can touch the shadows with my technique."
Ato looked over, his brow furrowed in frustration. "What is this technique?"
"My technique name is Naraku no Kobushi," Lemon explained, his hands beginning to glow with a dark, swirling aura. "But I can only push them back. I can't damage them."
Suddenly, a crushing pressure descended upon them. It was a dark, suffocating presence that seemed to originate from the heart of the island. Even though the castle was in the Middle District and they were in the Lower District, the malice was so intense they could feel it in their marrow. They didn't know where this presence was coming from, but they knew it was a threat unlike any they had faced.
Lemon: "Ato."
Ato: "I know. I'm going to the Middle District."
Lemon: "Ok! I will hold them off. Naraku no Kobushi: Thousand Hands!"
Lemon's arms became a blur of motion. He attacked them continuously and pushed them back, his phantom strikes creating a wall of force that kept the shadow horde from advancing.
Scene changes to Faramis.
Faramis sprinted through the echoing, silent corridors of the palace. He was not going out of the castle; instead, he was going to King Luka because he thought Ato and Lemon would be there. His mind raced with the questions he had lost when the Great Library's records began to fade. When he burst into the throne room, he saw no one except King Luka. The King was standing by the massive balcony windows, looking outside in horror at his crumbling kingdom.
Luka: "I'm very sca—"
Faramis: "King!"
Luka: "Oh, Mr. Faramis, what are you doing here?"
Faramis: "I was looking for Ato and Lemon, but it looks like they are not here."
Faramis stepped closer to the throne, his eyes desperate. "It looks like you have many thoughts in your mind, Faramis," Luka said, his voice trembling. "I can answer them."
Faramis: "Who was the God of Creation?"
Luka: "The God of Creation, huh? Raij—"
Before he could finish the name, the massive golden doors were blown off their hinges with a deafening boom. A cold, unnatural wind swept through the hall. A voice came from behind Faramis, smooth and dripping with casual malice:
?????: "How are you doing, King Luka?"
Faramis: "What is that voi—"
He looked towards Luka and saw the King paralyzed. He was scared and trembling so violently his crown rattled against his brow.
?????: "Last time I came here, there was a different king, but it's okay."
Luka: "How do you know my name?"
?????: "Don't you worry about that, King Luka. Now I have to kill you so that I can go back quickly."
Faramis spun around to face the intruder. "Who are you?"
?????: "Oh, me? I'm ZYRREX."
Faramis: "Zyrrex?"
Zyrrex: "Now I have to deal with the King."
Zyrrex sprinted towards the King, who was huddling behind Faramis. Suddenly, a gunshot fires. The crack of the pistol echoed off the high ceilings. Zyrrex stops moving and looks at Faramis with mild curiosity. Faramis has a gun in his hand, his grip white-knuckled.
Faramis: "I'm not letting you touch the King."
Zyrrex: "Oh, then let us play a game. And the game is: I want to play with you."
Faramis: "Huh!"
Zyrrex: "The Trinity of Shadow."
Three black, oily tentacles burst from Zyrrex's back, writhing like snakes. One attacked Faramis with the speed of a whip. Faramis dodged it, his heart pounding against his ribs. He began to analyze the enemy, his mind working in overdrive to find a weakness.
Faramis thinking in his mind: "How can I defeat it? Wait... we were able to sense the presence of Zyrrex, which means the three of them must have also felt the presence of Zyrrex. Kojo is in the Upper District, but Lemon and Ato—from both of them, someone will come because the Lower District is nearer than the Upper District. I have to buy time—"
Another tentacle attacked Faramis, slamming into the marble floor where he had stood a second before.
Zyrrex: "Why aren't you doing anything, you smart brat?"
Before Faramis could react, Zyrrex moved. He grabbed Faramis with his tentacles, the grip cold and unrelenting.
Zyrrex: "Void Grip. Now what are you going to do? You were lost in thought and you couldn't dodge my attack."
Zyrrex began his brutal assault. He was continuously slamming Faramis against the stone pillars and the hard floor. After some time, he stopped, the dust settling around the broken scholar. But when he looked, Faramis wasn't there.
Zyrrex: "Huh."
To his right, Faramis appeared, charging towards Zyrrex with a small, poisoned knife—a final, desperate gamble. He was getting closer, but another tentacle attacked him and pierced him through the shoulder. Faramis was hanging on the tentacle, suspended in the air, and blood was coming out, staining his clothes.
Zyrrex: "Huh, you are not fun. Now I have to finish my work. I have to kill you, my liege."
King Luka looked terrified as Zyrrex stepped toward him. Suddenly, something came from behind Luka, a spike of pure darkness, and it pierced him too. King Luka was dead before he could even scream.
Zyrrex: "Now I ha—"
Before he could finish talking, a roar erupted from the entrance. Someone from the doors shouted a name with such fury that the remaining glass in the windows shattered.
???: "FARAMIIISSSSSSSS!"
Ato was standing there, his Beast Aura burning like a sun. He was angry, wanting to kill Zyrrex in the worst way possible.
Scene changes to Lemon.
In the Lower District, Lemon was at his limit. He was almost holding out against the shadows when suddenly, a big, pale man appeared from the portal. His skin was pale and deathly, just like Zyrrex's and the man with the scythe.
Lemon: "Huh!! Here I am, barely holding against them, and he just comes out of the portal. Worst day ever."
The big, pale man didn't hesitate. He went into combat mode and threw a flying punch toward Lemon. The force was immense, sending Lemon flying through a stone wall. The shockwave of the blow even killed some of the shadows nearby.
Lemon: "What the hell was that?"
Lemon stood up again, wiping blood from his lip. He focused his Abyssal energy into his palm.
Lemon: "Naraku no Kobushi: Abyssal Strike."
His attack punched the big, pale man square in the chest. The giant was knocked back a little, his eyes widening. As the big, pale man was about to say something—
Scene changes to Kojo.
In the Upper District, Kojo was struggling against the scythe man, his body covered in deep gashes.
Kojo: "You are strong. What's your name?"
????: "Gale."
With a cold look, Gale sprinted towards Kojo.
Gale: "Abyssal Slash."
The slash was so fast that Kojo only felt the cold steel after it had already passed through him. More blood came out of his body, and he fell to his knees, coughing blood onto the white marble.
Gale: "You are losing too much blood. If this keeps up, you will die."