The wind on the ridge shifted.
Sharp.
Cold.
Unnatural.
Aren's instincts pricked instantly.
This wasn't the fog's usual movement.
This wasn't the Remnant approaching.
This was something else.
The Remnant emerged moments later, stepping through a ripple in the fog like it had peeled aside a curtain between worlds.
But today, its runes glowed brighter.
Sharper.
Like warning lights.
"Voidscar bearer."
Aren tightened his grip on the bow.
"You said today's lesson is surviving when the void shoots back."
The Remnant lowered its torso.
"Yes.
You have learned to summon.
Shape.
Aim."
It raised a limb, pointing toward the distant fog-filled valley.
"Now you learn to endure."
Aren frowned.
"Endure what?"
The wind answered.
It screamed.
A pulse of pressure exploded across the ridge—
so sudden the operatives shielded their faces.
Dust spiraled upward.
The fog trembled.
Cracks raced under Aren's feet.
The Remnant's voice deepened:
"Lesson six:
Void Echo."
Aren stiffened.
"…Echo?"
"When you fire into the void…
the void fires back."
The Remnant slammed its limbs into the earth—
BOOOOM—
and the entire ridge turned dark for an instant.
Aren shifted into a combat stance.
"What exactly is shooting at me?"
The Remnant spread its limbs.
Fog tore open.
A thin violet tear hovered in the air.
Small.
Silent.
But terrifying.
A tear in reality.
Aren's pulse spiked.
"A… rift?"
"A scar.
A mirror of yours."
The Remnant's voice shook the ground.
"Fire at it."
Aren hesitated.
Fire at a tear?
At a miniature void crack?
He raised the bow.
"Okay… but what does it—"
"Shoot."
Aren fired.
THRUM—!!
The arrow streaked forward, cutting the fog—
The moment it entered the tear—
The tear shuddered.
The air snapped.
And something shot out.
Something fast.
Something sharp.
Something violet—
just like his arrow.
Aren barely dodged as it flew past his cheek.
SHRRRK—!
The blast shattered the cliff wall behind him.
The female operative paled.
"That almost took his head off!"
The older operative hissed:
"It copied his attack…"
Aren's breath trembled.
"That was—my shot?"
The Remnant answered:
"Yes.
Void Echo returns your intention.
Your strength.
Your flaws."
Aren swallowed hard.
"So I'm fighting myself?"
"In a way."
The tear widened slightly.
Aren felt it react to him—
like a second heartbeat.
"Again."
Aren gritted his teeth.
He drew.
Aimed at the tear.
Fired.
THRUM—
The tear pulsed.
WHIP—!!
A curved echo-arrow shot back—
faster and heavier.
Aren barely rolled aside.
It carved a hole into the ground, spraying debris.
The Remnant spoke:
"If your aim is sloppy—
its return is wild."
Aren wiped sweat from his brow.
"So how do I stop it?"
"You do not stop it."
"You survive it."
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Aren steadied his breath.
Purpose.
Clarity.
Control.
He fired again.
THRUM—
The tear twisted and fired back—
Aren dodged—
but the arrow clipped his shoulder.
Pain flared.
He stumbled, gripping the wound.
The female operative shouted:
"AREN—!"
The Remnant blocked her again.
"He must face himself."
Aren grit his teeth, forcing himself upright.
"I can take it…"
He raised the bow again.
The wound burned.
His arms trembled.
But he didn't stop.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Again.
Again.
Again.
He fired—
the tear fired back—
he dodged, rolled, moved, adapted.
His breathing grew ragged.
His movements became sharper.
His intentions cleaner.
His void arrows more stable.
The Echo became faster too.
But Aren learned its rhythm.
His eyes narrowed.
His stance lowered.
He drew in a long, steady breath.
The Remnant watched silently.
"He is close."
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Aren fired a final arrow.
This one was clean.
Precise.
Purposeful.
The tear responded instantly—
FWOOOM—!!
The Echo-arrow shot back—
straight, powerful, perfect.
Aren's instincts screamed—
DODGE—
MOVE—
RUN—
But Aren ignored instinct.
He lifted his hand.
And caught the returning arrow.
BOOOOM—!!
Dust exploded around him.
Energy scorched the ground.
The operatives stared in disbelief.
The Echo-arrow dissolved harmlessly in his grip.
Aren exhaled, chest burning.
"…Got it."
The Remnant bowed its head slightly.
"Lesson passed."
Aren dropped to one knee, exhausted but smiling weakly.
"That was… horrible."
"Good."
Aren looked up.
"…Good?"
"If you feared the Echo…
you would fear your own progress."
Aren breathed hard, letting the adrenaline fade.
"So what's next?"
The Remnant stepped aside—
fog swirling, clearing a path down the valley.
Its voice rumbled:
"Now that the void can shoot back…"
It pointed deeper into the ravine.
"You will fight something that never stops shooting."
Aren swallowed.
"What is that supposed to mean—?"
The Remnant answered simply:
"Tomorrow…
you face a Voidborn."
Aren's eyes widened.
The operatives froze.
A Voidborn.
A creature created entirely from void energy—
not flesh, not bone, not mana—
pure instability.
Aren exhaled shakily.
"…I'll be ready."
He wasn't sure if it was true
but he would make it so.