CHAPTER 63 — Transcendent
The stone door opened onto a corridor that had no end.
Zayn, Yojuro, and Cynthia crossed the threshold in silence. The air was heavier here, thick with the smell of rusted metal and ancient ash. The torches were sparse, replaced by a bluish glow that seemed to emanate from the walls themselves — a sick, tired light, like that of a fading memory.
"We're inside the prison," Cynthia murmured.
"Yes," said Yojuro. "And it's empty."
He was right. The cells they passed were open, their iron doors torn off, the seals broken. Some still bore scratch marks, others dark splatters that had dried long ago.
"What came through here?" asked Zayn.
"Naraku," replied Yojuro. "Or what he freed."
They advanced. The corridor widened into a circular chamber, high-ceilinged, lit by a single source of light: a large sealed door at the far end, adorned with symbols that glowed faintly.
Shizumi stood before it.
She hadn't turned around. She had placed her hand on the stone, and she was waiting.
"Shizumi," Zayn called. "Don't do this."
She didn't answer.
Around them, the shadows began to move.
They emerged from the walls, the floors, the ceilings — black, fluid, faceless silhouettes that crawled toward them in silence. Dozens. Perhaps hundreds. Their bodies were made of ash and night.
"He set a trap for us," said Cynthia, fists raised.
"He was waiting for us," Yojuro corrected.
Naraku appeared behind Shizumi. He smiled, his red eyes gleaming.
"Welcome to my prison, Paladins."
The shadows surged toward them.
Zayn stepped back, struck an shadow — his hand passed through the ash without touching anything. Cynthia nearly got swallowed; she rolled aside, narrowly avoiding a wave of darkness. Yojuro drew his sword, but every shadow he cut reformed immediately.
"We're surrounded!" Cynthia shouted.
A dull thud echoed.
The ceiling opened.
A figure dropped from the vaulted roof, landing between Zayn and the shadows, arms wide. His white hair was cut into uneven strands. His green eyes — identical to Zayn's.
Ranmaru.
He raised his hands. Giant green Fumetsu forms burst from his palms — colossal, translucent hands that crashed down on the shadows like divine hammers. Each impact scattered the ash, pulverized it.
"Ranmaru!" Zayn exclaimed.
"I came to help you," he said, breathless. "I saw what was going to happen."
"You could have warned us earlier!"
"I'm warning you now."
The green hands kept striking. The shadows retreated, reformed, retreated again.
Naraku turned to Yojuro.
"You're smart. You know this door has to open."
Yojuro didn't answer. He looked at Zayn.
"Zayn."
"What?"
"Blackhowler."
Zayn stared at him.
"What?"
"Use Blackhowler."
"Are you crazy? I'll lose control!"
"You don't have a choice. The shadows won't stop. We can't beat them all. But Blackhowler can devour them."
Zayn hesitated. He felt Borealis vibrate on his wrist. The green runes flickered.
"I don't want to become that again."
"I'll hold you back."
Zayn looked at him. Yojuro wasn't smiling. He wasn't joking. He was serious, as always.
"I promise I'll hold you back."
Zayn closed his eyes. He breathed. He felt fear in his chest, fatigue in his bones, anger in his blood.
Then he opened his eyes. He looked directly at Naraku.
"Hey, you. The Djinn."
Naraku raised an eyebrow, amused.
"Are you talking to me, little Paladin?"
"Yeah."
Zayn smiled. Not a joyful smile. A dangerous one, the smile of someone about to do something stupid and knowing it.
"This is going to go badly for you."
Naraku scoffed. A dry, contemptuous laugh.
"You're funny. You really think you can scare me?"
Zayn raised his wrist. Borealis glowed. He felt the weight of the world on his shoulders. He remembered Rex. He remembered the ash. He remembered the fear in his friends' eyes.
"Because I am transcendent."
Naraku opened his mouth to answer.
"I am transcendent."
Zayn pressed.
Darkness engulfed him.
His body changed. He grew larger, longer, covered in black fur that absorbed the light. His arms became legs, his fingers curved claws. His head… his head no longer had a face. Just a luminous maw, blue-turquoise, with hundreds of translucent fangs that gleamed like a galaxy of teeth.
Blackhowler roared.
A sound that wasn't a cry, but a vibration — a wave that passed through walls, bones, shadows. The ash silhouettes recoiled, shattered, scattered.
Blackhowler made no distinction. It lunged at the shadows, tore them apart, swallowed them whole. Each time it consumed one, its blue light intensified. The chamber trembled.
Naraku stepped back.
"What is…"
"The Primal that eats shadows," said Yojuro, sword in hand. "He's not as kind as we are."
Blackhowler turned toward Naraku. Its maw opened, ready to devour him.
Naraku raised his hand, but his shadows were disintegrating around him.
Yuki appeared behind him, blade in hand. She charged at Blackhowler.
A white light struck her.
Not a Fumetsu light. A pure, warm, blinding light.
Azel stood at the entrance of the chamber, hand extended, eyes cold.
"Enough."
The light beam hit Yuki square in the chest. She didn't have time to scream. Her body disintegrated into a fine dust, a few limbs floating in the air for an instant before collapsing into ash.
"YUKI!" Kage screamed.
He tried to rush at Azel, but Hollow held him back with a black tentacle.
"We're pulling back."
"We can't leave…"
"We ARE pulling back."
Hollow tore a rift in the air. Naraku, Kage, and Hollow disappeared through it. The rift sealed behind them.
Silence returned.
Blackhowler roared one last time, then its body contracted. The black fur disappeared. The claws retracted. The luminous maw closed.
Zayn collapsed on the ground, naked, unconscious.
Yojuro knelt beside him. He placed a hand on his forehead, checked for a pulse.
"He's breathing."
Cynthia approached, trembling.
"They took the prison key."
"They have the key," said Yojuro, looking at the sealed door. "But they won't be able to use it. Not yet."
Ranmaru joined them.
"I saw it. That door will open one day. But not today."
Azel looked at them all.
"Go back to the Academy. Rest. I'll take care of Zayn."
He lifted him effortlessly, carried him over his shoulder.
Zayn didn't move. His eyelids were closed. But his fingers twitched.
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