"...Run."

Nobody moved immediately.

Mostly because the thing above the capital was impossible to process.

The massive chained figure continued dragging itself through the fracture in the sky while silver light spread across the heavens like cracks through broken glass. Temple bells rang wildly across the city below.

People screamed in distant streets, Soldiers shouted from palace walls.

And the thing smiled directly at Mason.

Which felt deeply personal and extremely rude.

Athlian’s fear slammed through him hard enough to tighten his chest painfully.

Mason swallowed carefully. "Athlian..."

She didn’t answer.

That terrified him more than the giant cosmic horror currently breaking into reality.

Draca reacted first.

His hand closed firmly around Mason’s wrist before pulling him backward away from the balcony edge. "Inside. Now."

The command snapped everyone back into motion instantly.

Seraphine barked sharp orders toward nearby guards while palace soldiers rushed across the outer walls below them.

"Seal the upper sanctums!"

"Evacuate civilians from the northern districts!"

"No one approaches the fracture!"

Honestly excellent instructions considering the circumstances.

Mason stumbled slightly as Draca guided him back toward the war chamber doors.

Not because he couldn’t walk.

Because the pressure coming from the thing in the sky kept increasing every second.

It felt heavy and wrong, like reality itself disliked the creature’s existence.

Zereth remained near the balcony edge longer than everyone else.

Silver eyes narrowed upward thoughtfully.

"You recognize it," he said quietly toward Assura.

The ancient being did not deny it, which immediately made everything worse.

Assura’s crimson gaze remained fixed on the fracture above the capital. "I recognize the chains."

"That is not reassuring."

"No," Assura agreed calmly. "It is not."

Another crack split across the heavens.

The giant chained figure forced one arm fully through the fracture at last.

Massive broken restraints dragged behind it while silver lightning spread outward across the clouds.

The city panicked harder instantly.

Mason could actually hear the screams from here now.

The group finally moved back inside the war chamber while guards sealed the balcony doors behind them.

Unfortunately the silver light outside still illuminated the entire chamber through the shattered windows.

Nobody looked comfortable anymore, not even Assura.

That alone felt catastrophically important.

Mason immediately pointed at him. "Okay, the ancient terrifying man officially looks worried now and I deeply hate that."

Assura finally looked toward the room.

"For once," he said quietly, "your concern is reasonable."

"That sentence somehow made this worse."

Draca released Mason’s wrist slowly once they reached the center of the chamber.

Warmth lingered anyway, which Athlian noticed immediately despite her fear.

’You held his hand back.’

"I was being dragged to safety."

’You still held back.’

Traitorous goddess.

Seraphine moved toward the war table sharply. "What exactly are we dealing with?"

Assura remained silent briefly.

Too briefly for comfort.

Then finally he finally broke the silence.

"A failed execution."

Silence filled the chamber instantly.

Saleem looked horrified. "Execution of what?"

Assura’s gaze shifted slowly toward the silver light outside.

"Something Heaven could not destroy."

Nobody liked that answer.

Mason especially didn’t like that answer.

"Right," he said carefully. "And naturally that impossible cosmic nightmare has now arrived directly above our capital."

"No," Zereth corrected quietly from near the shattered windows.

His silver eyes remained fixed upward. "It arrived above him."

Silence followed.

Oops.

Athlian froze instantly inside Mason.

Draca’s attention shifted sharply toward Zereth.

Seraphine frowned deeply. "Explain."

"Gladly," Mason interrupted immediately.

"He’s wrong," he added.

Zereth ignored him completely. "The fracture followed Athlian’s resonance from the moment the mirror activated."

Athlian’s emotions twisted uneasily.

The ancient being spoke before Zereth could continue.

"The mirror accelerated the search."

Interesting wording, not confirmed or

denied.

Mason appreciated that immensely.

Seraphine crossed her arms tightly.

"Search for what?"

Nobody answered quickly enough.

Because there was no safe answer.

Saleem nervously adjusted several scattered scrolls. "Perhaps our immediate focus should remain survival?"

Honestly the smartest thing he had said all night.

Draca nodded once immediately. "Agreed."

Practical king.

Future king emotionally maybe.

Nope, not unpacking that.

The commander turned toward the others calmly despite the chaos outside.

"We secure the inner palace first. Seraphine, move archers to the eastern walls. Zereth, I need barrier assessments across the upper districts."

Zereth raised an eyebrow slightly. "You assume I’m staying."

"You are."

Tiny silence followed.

Then surprisingly...Zereth smiled faintly.

"You’ve become bold recently, Commander."

"We are beyond formalities tonight."

Interesting tension there.

Former lover tension maybe.

Athlian noticed Mason noticing.

’You’re curious.’ she asked.

"I’m surviving."

’Same thing again.’

Absolutely not.

Outside, another violent tremor shook the palace.

Silver light flashed through the broken windows hard enough to blind several nearby guards momentarily.

A scream echoed from somewhere below.

Then another.

Seraphine immediately moved toward the windows again. "Report!"

One guard hurried into the chamber breathlessly moments later.

"Commander! The northern barrier collapsed!"

Saleem nearly dropped dead on the spot emotionally.

"The entire barrier?!"

"No, Just the outer district sanctums!"

"Oh good," Mason muttered tiredly. "Only partial catastrophic collapse. Very reassuring."

Nobody laughed.

Cowards.

The guard continued quickly. "Something is descending from the fracture!"

Athlian’s fear spiked again.

Mason felt it hard enough to hurt.

Draca noticed his expression immediately. "Masom."

"Still alive."

"You’re pale."

"Cosmic horror tends to affect people negatively."

Fair statement honestly.

Assura suddenly stepped toward the broken windows himself.

Crimson light flickered faintly beneath his robes again while reality distorted slightly around him.

Always concerning behavior.

"What is it?" Seraphine asked sharply.

The ancient being stared upward silently for several long seconds.

Then he responded. "It should not be awake."

Mason immediately hated that sentence deeply.

"What exactly keeps waking up tonight?!"

No one answered.

Outside, the silver fracture widened further across the heavens.

The giant chained figure had descended lower now.

Close enough that Mason could finally see details clearly.

Its body was covered in pale markings beneath the chains.

Not wounds but thousands of symbols...moving slowly across its skin like living scripture.

Absolutely terrible design choice.

Zereth’s expression darkened slightly.

"Those marks..."

Assura noticed immediately. "You recognize them."

"A little."

"That is unfortunate."

Mason pointed between them tiredly.

"Could everyone please stop having mysterious ancient knowledge for five minutes?"

"No," Assura replied immediately.

Honestly expected at this point.

Athlian finally spoke again inside him.

Weakly.

’Mason.’

Relief hit him instantly. "There you are."

Her emotions trembled strangely now.

Fear mixed with memory.

’I know those chains.’

That definitely sounded horrible.

"How?"

Silence followed, then quietly...

’They were used against gods once.’

Mason stared blankly at the sky creature outside.

"...That feels like information we should have discussed sooner."

’I did not remember until now.’

Not very reassuring.

Seraphine suddenly looked toward him. sharply.

"You’re reacting to something."

Oops.

Mason immediately recovered. "I’m reacting to the giant chained apocalypse outside the window."

"That is not what I meant."

Sharp woman...dangerously sharp woman.

Before she could press further, another soldier rushed into the chamber.

This one looked significantly worse.

Bleeding from one arm.

"Commander!"

Draca turned instantly. "Report."

"The fractures are spreading across the western sky now!"

Everyone went still.

Saleem looked close to emotional death again. "Spreading?"

"Yes, Commander. Smaller tears are opening across the outer districts."

Mason blinked rapidly. "...Can the sky legally do that?"

"No," Zereth answered quietly.

Wonderful.

Athlian stirred uneasily inside him again.

’It’s searching wider.’

"For me?"

No answer.

Draca moved toward the chamber doors immediately. "We cannot allow panic to spread further."

Seraphine frowned. "You intend to go outside?"

"The soldiers need visible command."

Reasonable and dangerous...very Draca.

Mason reacted instantly. "Absolutely not."

The commander looked back toward him calmly. "We do not have a choice."

"Yes we do. The choice is not walking directly toward eldritch sky monsters." Mason retorted.

"Eldritch?"

"Terrible things from beyond human understanding. Focus."

To Mason’s frustration, Draca actually looked slightly amused again.

Tiny amusement but still counted.

Athlian warmed softly despite the fear.

’You like when he looks at you like that.’

"I like competent leadership."

’Liar.’

Draca stepped closer toward him again.

He’s always closer lately.

"The capital trusts Athlian," he said quietly.

He continued "If fear spreads unchecked..."

"Political collapse follows," Mason finished tiredly.

He hated that Draca was right.

Extremely inconvenient man.

Seraphine suddenly straightened sharply near the shattered windows.

"...Something changed."

Everyone turned immediately.

The chained figure in the sky had stopped moving completely, Its massive head tilted slowly downward toward the palace itself.

Toward this chamber.

Mason felt cold dread crawl through his chest instantly.

"Oh no."

The silver markings across the creature’s body suddenly ignited brighter.

Then all at once...every temple bell across the capital stopped ringing.

Silence crashed over the city.

Wrong and heavy silence, the kind that made instincts scream.

Athlian froze completely inside him.

’Impossible.’

Then the chained figure spoke.

Not loudly, It didn’t need to...because

Its voice echoed across the entire capital anyway.

"We hear the fracture."

The palace shook violently.

Several guards collapsed instantly clutching their heads.

Silver cracks spread across the chamber walls.

Mason staggered backward hard enough to hit Draca’s chest again.

Strong arms steadied him immediately.

Protective instinct undefeated apparently.

Outside, people began screaming again, but louder this time.

The chained figure slowly raised one enormous hand toward the palace.

Toward the goddess.

And suddenly...something answered from beneath the city.

A deep metallic sound echoed upward through the ground below them...chains dragging.

Everyone in the chamber froze.

Assura’s expression darkened instantly.

"No." he muttered.

Mason stared at him rapidly. "Why do you keep saying things that make reality worse?!"

Another chain-dragging sound echoed beneath them, it was closer now.

The floor trembled beneath their feet.

Zereth’s shadows exploded violently across the chamber floor.

"There’s something underground."

Athlian’s fear surged so hard Mason almost lost balance again.

Fragments flashed across their shared thoughts suddenly; A sealed door, silver chains wrapped around stone pillars, someone is crying.

Then golden eyes opening in darkness.

The vision vanished instantly.

Mason grabbed his head sharply.

"Okay! Absolutely terrible timing for mystery trauma!"

Draca steadied him again immediately.

"Mason." he muttered softly so that only he could hear.

"I’m fine."

Seraphine stepped backward from the windows slowly.

Her grip tightened around her spear. "The palace foundation..."

Another violent tremor interrupted her.

CRACK.

A massive fracture split directly across the war chamber floor.

Silver light burst upward instantly.

Guards shouted.

Saleem screamed something religious.

Mason honestly respected the reaction.

The crack widened further, and from somewhere deep beneath the palace...something laughed.