The Eternal Rift loomed before them—an endless vortex of collapsing realities, spirals of broken time, and shards of universes long forgotten. Its pull was silent, but absolute, like gravity from a dead star that refused to stop devouring.
Ethan stood at the edge, the unstable pulse inside him thrashing like a caged star.
Lyra swallowed hard.
Eldric steadied his breathing.
Vahl'Serath simply stared into the abyss, unblinking.
Ethan stepped forward.
The Rift reacted instantly.
A deep vibration rolled through the air, shaking everything—
as if the Rift recognized him… and welcomed him.
"Let's go."
With that, Ethan walked into the swirling abyss.
The others followed.
---
The Descent Through Broken Universes
The moment they crossed the threshold, the world shattered.
There was no up, no down, no direction.
They were falling sideways, drifting upward, floating across fractured layers of existence.
Colors bled into each other.
Stars melted and reformed.
Fragments of lost worlds drifted past them—echoes of what once was.
Lyra grabbed Ethan's arm to keep from drifting apart.
"Don't lose focus! The Rift is trying to separate us!"
Eldric raised his staff, conjuring a barrier that wrapped around the group.
"Stay close. The Rift adapts to your fears."
Vahl'Serath's stone body cracked as he forced himself against the gravitational chaos.
"The Sanctum lies deeper. Do not be deceived by illusions."
But the Rift didn't rely on illusions.
It used reality itself.
---
The First Trial – The Hall of Forgotten Starbearers
A flash of white light engulfed them.
When it faded, they stood in a vast hall floating in the void—
lined with towering statues.
Each statue depicted a warrior, a mage, or a cosmic being…
all holding a glowing star-like core in their chest.
Lyra gasped.
"These are—"
Eldric finished her sentence quietly.
"—the Starbearers who came before."
Ethan walked past the statues.
Some looked noble.
Some looked ancient.
Some were barely shaped, like they had never fully awakened.
He stopped at the last empty pedestal.
A nameplate sat beneath it:
"THE FINAL BEARER
UNKNOWN"
Ethan felt a chill.
Lyra's voice trembled.
"That's you…"
Before Ethan could answer, the statues ignited with light.
One by one, their eyes opened.
Ethan stepped back.
Vahl'Serath cracked his knuckles.
"Prepare yourselves.
The Rift never lets a Starbearer pass without proving their worth."
The statues stepped down from their pedestals, moving in synchronized formation—
silent, emotionless, impossibly powerful echoes of past Starbearers.
Ethan raised his fists.
Lyra readied a spell.
Eldric prepared his staff.
Vahl'Serath broke into a grin.
"Good. My strength has not fully recovered. This will help."
The statues charged.
---
The Battle of Echoes
One of the Starbearer statues struck Ethan with a pulse of pure light.
He blocked it, but the shockwave cracked the floor beneath him.
Another statue teleported behind Lyra—
but Eldric intercepted with a shield of golden time energy.
Vahl'Serath clashed with two at once, his molten cracks glowing hotter as he fought.
Ethan ducked under a strike and countered with a burst of Silent Star energy—
a pulse that sent three statues flying.
But something was wrong.
Every time Ethan used the pulse, the pain in his chest worsened.
The unstable energy rattled his bones.
One statue spoke—its voice hollow:
"You awaken too slowly."
Another added:
"Unworthy."
A third:
"You will fail, as we failed."
Ethan's heartbeat pounded.
"Stop—"
PULSE—
A blinding blast erupted from him, destroying three statues instantly.
He gasped.
The pain shot through his chest like a blade of light.
Eldric turned sharply.
"Ethan! Control it! Don't let the pulse consume you!"
But Ethan was shaking.
The Silent Star inside him was no longer just awakening—
it was resisting him.
Another statue approached, eyes glowing.
"If you cannot master the Second Pulse…
the Sovereign will erase all that remains."
Ethan clenched his teeth.
"I won't let him."
He launched forward, fists glowing, and punched the statue with a burst of unstable radiance.
The explosion shattered the final statue into dust.
Silence fell.
Ethan collapsed to one knee, breathing hard, clutching his chest.
Lyra rushed to him.
"Are you okay? Ethan—look at me!"
Ethan nodded weakly.
"I'm fine… I just need to keep moving."
Eldric helped him up.
"The Sanctum is close. Very close. The Rift is clearing the path."
Vahl'Serath looked at Ethan with surprising seriousness.
"You fought recklessly. But you survived. That is all that matters—for now."
The hall dissolved into starlight.
The path ahead materialized, glowing with pure white energy.
Ethan steadied himself, the pulse inside him flickering like a candle in a storm.
"Let's finish this."
And the group stepped forward—
toward the heart of the Eternal Rift…
toward the Starcore Sanctum…
where the Second Pulse awaited.
---