The Girl Who Shouldn't Exist
Leo and Max followed Lyra through the twisted forest of the Broken Realm.
Trees floated. The ground bent like rubber. The sky flickered between day and night every few seconds.
Max whispered: "Bro… this whole place looks like someone broke reality with a hammer."
Leo nodded. "It feels wrong. Like the air is alive."
Lyra didn't turn around. "That's because it is alive."
Max frowned. "That's not comforting!"
Lyra kept walking.
"You two entered this realm without permission. Normally you would be erased instantly. But something protected you… a strange force wrapped around your bodies."
Leo tensed.
A force?
Was it the same power that awakened inside him earlier?
He didn't understand it.
He didn't control it.
But it saved them.
Lyra stopped suddenly.
Leo and Max nearly bumped into her.
"We're here."
They stood in front of a massive floating stone shaped like an eye. Cracks covered its surface, leaking white light.
Max whispered: "Is that… safe?"
Lyra smirked. "No. Nothing here is safe. But this will keep the Hunters of Ruin away."
Leo felt the air change.
Quiet.
Heavy.
Cold.
Almost sacred.
Lyra sat on a broken pillar and crossed her arms.
"Now talk."
Leo blinked. "Talk? About what?"
Lyra pointed at Leo's chest.
"That thing inside you."
Max's jaw dropped. "You can SEE it too? What is it?! Some kind of demon egg??"
Lyra sighed. "No. It's not demonic. It's worse."
Leo's breath tightened. "What do you mean?"
Lyra leaned forward, her black eyes glowing faintly.
"That fragment in your soul doesn't belong to this universe.
Or any universe."
Leo froze.
"What…?"
"It's a piece of Nothingness," Lyra continued. "A power that existed before gods, before creation. If that fragment awakens, this realm will start to collapse."
Max screamed: "LEO IS A WALKING BOMB?!"
Leo glared. "Shut up, Max!"
Lyra stood up.
"You two need answers. Sit."
---
The Truth of the Broken Realm
Leo and Max sat on a floating stone. Lyra drew a circle in the air, and glowing images appeared.
A broken world.
Shattered cities.
Fragments of floating time.
Masked Hunters ripping through the sky.
Lyra spoke softly:
"This realm used to be beautiful. But one day… something tore through it. A force so strong it broke our laws, our sky, our souls."
Leo swallowed. "What force?"
Lyra shook her head. "No one knows.
But the Hunters of Ruin came right after the destruction. They serve a higher power… something unknown."
Leo remembered the masked leader's words:
"You carry the scent of Nothingness. You must not meet the Absolute Path."
His chest felt cold.
Max looked at Leo nervously. "Bro… why does everything dangerous want YOU?"
Lyra answered instead.
"Because Leo isn't normal. He carries a mark. A signal."
Leo frowned. "A signal for what?"
Lyra pointed at the sky.
"For someone… or something… far beyond creation."
Leo's heartbeat stopped for a moment.
Someone was watching him.
Someone powerful.
Ancient.
Silent.
But who?
---
The Girl Who Shouldn't Exist
Before Leo could ask more, the sky cracked.
CRRRAAAACK!
A massive tear opened, glowing red. Wind roared like a storm. Max covered his ears.
Leo stood up quickly. "Not again—!"
Lyra stepped back, fear in her eyes. "No… this isn't the Hunters."
From the tear, a young girl floated downward — fourteen maybe, silver hair flowing, pale skin glowing like frost.
But her eyes…
Both were pitch black.
Empty.
Void-like.
Max whispered: "Bro… she looks like a final boss from a horror game."
Lyra stepped forward, trying to stay confident, but her legs trembled.
"That girl… sh-shouldn't be here."
Leo asked: "Who is she?"
Lyra whispered:
"She's a Null Reaver."
Leo froze. "The what?"
Lyra's voice cracked.
"A creature born from reality glitches. A being created when worlds collapse. They don't make decisions. They just follow one rule…"
The girl landed gently on the ground, staring at Leo with emotionless eyes.
Lyra whispered the rule:
"Erase anything touched by Nothingness."
Max screamed: "LEO SHE'S HERE FOR YOU—AGAIN!"
Leo stepped back, heart racing.
The girl moved.
FAST.
She flickered like a glitching shadow, appearing right in front of Leo. Before he could react, she touched his chest with a single finger.
Leo gasped as the fragment inside him trembled violently.
Lyra shouted: "GET BACK!"
Leo pushed forward, a wave of silver energy bursting out of his body.
The Null Reaver slid backward, stopping only when she hit the floating stone.
She stood up.
No injury.
No emotion.
Her eyes locked onto Leo again.
This time, she spoke.
"Target confirmed. Nothingness fragment detected."
Leo clenched his fists. "I'm tired of being hunted!"
The girl raised her hand.
Reality cracked around her.
Lyra screamed: "LEO! RUN! YOU CAN'T FIGHT A REAVER!"
But Leo didn't move.
He felt the power inside him awaken again.
Surging.
Growing.
Responding to danger.
Silver sparks filled the air.
Max stood beside him, terrified but stubborn.
"I-I don't know what's happening, but I'm not leaving you, bro!"
Leo smirked weakly. "Idiot."
The Null Reaver began to charge an attack — a glowing sphere of void energy forming in her hands.
Lyra shouted:
"LEO—IF THAT HITS YOU, YOUR SOUL WILL BREAK!!"
Leo inhaled deeply.
His instincts whispered:
Fight.
He didn't know why, but he lifted his right hand — and the silver fragment answered.
A blade of pure light formed in his grip.
Everyone froze.
Lyra whispered, stunned:
"That's… impossible."
Leo tightened his hold on the light-blade.
No more running.
No more fear.
He glared at the Null Reaver.
"Come."
The girl blinked once.
Then—
SHE ATTACKED.
And the Broken Realm shook.