Dren wiped sweat from his brow, his breathing ragged. "If we are, I'm putting in my resignation."
Myne, however, remained tense. She scanned the battlefield with narrowed eyes, her senses still on high alert. "Sothing's off," she muttered. "Varian was strong, but he wasn't the true source of this abyssal corruption."
Aiden turned to her, frowning. "Explain."
She knelt and placed a hand against the cracked ground. A pulse of shadow energy rippled outward, scanning the terrain. A second later, her expression darkened. "This whole area is tainted. The Abyss didn't just send Varian—it's been seeping into this land for a long ti. We might have cut off one limb, but the body is still alive."
Rick let out a groan. "Great. So, we're still in the middle of a disaster zone?"
Aiden nodded grimly. "Which ans we don't have ti to rest."
Before they could continue their discussion, a sudden shift in the air made them all turn sharply. A low, guttural growl echoed through the battlefield, resonating deep in their bones. The sky darkened again—not from abyssal fire, but from sothing else entirely.
Dren swore under his breath. "What now?"
From the far side of the battlefield, a rift split open. Not like the abyssal flas that Varian had wielded—this was sothing different, sothing ancient. The air itself trembled as a monstrous presence erged.
A figure stepped through.
Tall, draped in tattered black robes, with burning violet eyes that held the weight of countless eons. Unlike Varian, this being didn't exude raw fury or reckless power. No, this one was different—controlled, calculating, and far more dangerous.
Aiden's grip tightened on his sword. He could tell imdiately. This was no re warrior. This was sothing worse.
The figure tilted its head slightly, as if observing them with mild curiosity. When it spoke, its voice was layered—like multiple beings speaking in unison.
"You should not be here."
The air around them turned cold. Aiden, for the first ti in a long while, felt an instinctive warning deep in his soul.
This enemy was beyond anything they had faced so far.
Aiden's body tensed instinctively, his muscles coiling as his battle-honed instincts scread at him. The entity standing before them wasn't just powerful—it was sothing far beyond the scope of an ordinary enemy.
Rick, ever the tactician, subtly shifted his stance, preparing to unleash a barrage of energy blasts at a mont's notice. Myne's shadowmancy flared around her, tendrils of darkness coiling in anticipation. Dren cracked his knuckles, his aura surging as he prepared for a fight that none of them were sure they could win.
The being took a slow step forward, its robes flowing like liquid shadow. The weight of its presence bore down on them like an unseen force, thick and suffocating. Its burning violet eyes locked onto Aiden.
"You are not ready," it said, its voice reverberating through the battlefield. "And yet, you stand here, defiant."
Aiden exhaled, steadying himself. "Who are you?" he demanded, gripping his sword tighter.
The entity tilted its head ever so slightly, as if contemplating the question. "I am the Herald of the Abyss."
Dren swore under his breath. Rick clenched his jaw. Even Myne, who rarely showed visible emotion, narrowed her eyes in alarm.
Aiden's mind raced. He had heard whispers of a being like this—an existence that was neither fully abyssal nor entirely independent. The Herald was said to be an enforcer, a force of destruction sent only when the Abyss deed sothing to be a true threat.
And now, it stood before them.
"This battle was insignificant," the Herald continued. "Varian was a pawn, nothing more. But you…" Its gaze bore into Aiden. "You are an anomaly."
Aiden didn't flinch. "I've been called worse."
The Herald let out sothing that almost resembled a chuckle—a hollow, distorted sound that sent a shiver through the air. "Indeed."
Without warning, it raised a hand. The air around them twisted violently, and an overwhelming force pressed down on them like a collapsing star. The ground cracked, and a pulse of abyssal energy surged outward.
Aiden barely had ti to react before the force slamd into him, sending him skidding backward. Myne's shadows coiled around her, absorbing the brunt of the impact, but she was forced to retreat several steps. Rick's energy shield flickered under the imnse pressure, and Dren had to brace himself to avoid being knocked off his feet.
This was bad.
Aiden dug his heels into the ground, raising his sword. The golden light around him flared defiantly, pushing back against the oppressive darkness. He t the Herald's gaze head-on.
"We're not going down that easily."
The Herald regarded him with sothing almost akin to amusent. Then, in a movent so fast it was almost imperceptible, it vanished—only to reappear directly in front of Aiden.
Aiden's instincts scread at him as he barely managed to raise his sword in ti. The clash of their forces sent shockwaves rippling through the battlefield. The sheer impact drove Aiden back, his feet digging trenches into the earth.
Rick and Dren moved to flank the Herald, but with a flick of its hand, a surge of abyssal energy erupted outward, forcing them back. Myne's shadow tendrils lashed out, aiming to ensnare the Herald, but they dissipated the mont they touched its robes, as if absorbed into the void.
Aiden gritted his teeth. This wasn't a battle they could win conventionally. They had to find another way.
The Herald lood over him, abyssal energy coiling around its form like living tendrils. "Your struggle is futile."
Aiden's grip tightened on his sword. "Maybe. But I've never cared much for fate."
He summoned every ounce of power within him. If they were going down, they'd go down fighting.
Aiden's aura flared as he unleashed a surge of golden energy, clashing violently against the Herald's abyssal force. The sheer pressure of their powers colliding sent shockwaves across the battlefield, tearing through the already shattered landscape.
Rick, gritting his teeth, charged forward, his energy blades humming with raw power. "Cover !" he shouted.
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