Unable to tear her gaze away, Tee found herself paralyzed as she witnessed the possible cruelty to someone she had spent over a month with.

  Lilith crouched down to meet Saeda's level as she sank to her knees. Their conversation remained inaudible to Tee, standing far away, her heart heavy with anguish. She considered using Lilith’s distraction to drive a sword through her head—but then a loud scream in Miko’s voice stopped her.

  Her heart pounded relentlessly against her ribcage. The pillars had diminished in height by then, allowing Tee to witness Miko lying near Legion, a sword handle pinned on top of her hand, tethering it to the ground. Legion raised a sword, its tip aimed towards Miko's other hand, which he held firmly in place by pressing his boot down upon it, before ruthlessly impaling it.

  Tee averted her gaze from the heart-wrenching scream, causing a misty film of tears to cloud her eyes. The relentless onslaught of horrifying sights kept unfolding before her, leaving her unable to shut her eyes tightly. Inadvertently, her eyes caught sight of the bandaged figure, slowly traversing a heap of shattered pillars. There was no sign of Zod.

  The bandaged creature shifted its attention towards Tee, its gaping mouth wide open, while Lilith, having abandoned Saeda, also set her sights on her. However, before the sprinting skeleton wrapped in tattered bandages could draw closer, Lilith extended her palm towards Tee.

  In a stark contrast to previous encounters, something crimson radiated from Lilith's outstretched hand, signaling that the impending blast would differ from the ones before. Unaccountably, it reminded Tee of the searing lasers of Priman soldiers—lasers that had the capacity to burn through metal.

  Reacting instinctively, Tee raised the hilt of her sword just as the blast struck. Although her sword shattered upon impact and sent her staggering backward, the deflected blast found its mark, striking the translucent purple force shield surrounding Sade.

  The walls of the ethereal purple bubble crumbled under the assault, and a surge of lightning surged forth from the fragment, striking Sade along with the blackbird perched on his shoulder. The force propelled him with such velocity that he collided forcefully with the mountain's base. The ground above him cascaded downward in a miniature avalanche, burying him, while the avian companion disintegrated into a swirling mass of black smoke.

  Tee wasn’t sure if she had imagined all her previous encounters with Sade. But it seemed he was on the wrong side, so she had no reason to feel anything for him. He hadn’t been there to watch her get beaten, but she knew he was well aware. Served him right. That was personal.

  In the blink of an eye, darkness materialized before her, swiftly followed by a skull-crushing impact upon her head. The searing pain emanating from both sides of her neck jolted her into a scream, tears streaming uncontrollably down her cheeks.

  Her legs gave way beneath her, causing her to collapse onto her back, and a metallic tang filled her mouth as blood gushed forth. The crimson fluid constricted her airway, forcing her to cough and sputter, struggling to breathe through her mouth.

  The unyielding hardness of the ground beneath her back felt cruel and unforgiving. Squinting her eyes against the harsh glare of the sun, she glimpsed two figures looming over her, their presence momentarily shielding her from the blinding rays.

  Through strands of lashes sticky with blood, she saw Legion and the bandaged creature looming over her. The bandaged being stretched its mouth wide—a gaping maw larger than her own head—moving closer. Then, it dissolved into a swirling cloud of black smoke. She blinked several times, unsure if it had truly vanished.

  “Now you’ve done it,” Legion said, his voice carrying an air of ominous finality.

  “I’ll never beg!” Tee shouted, her voice cracked and hoarse, though the throbbing pain in her chest made her question her defiance.

  Unaware of her words, Legion fashioned two swords, plunging one into the ground. A sharp jolt of pain shot through her hand, forcing a gasp she couldn’t hold back. Tears streamed relentlessly down her face, mixing with the taste of anguish in her mouth.

  Legion drove more swords into the earth, pinning her limbs to the unyielding ground. Each wave of pain seemed to echo with the mocking laughter of MG officials, pressing her further into despair.

  Legion stepped back, admiring his macabre creation. "There, now you will have a front-row seat to face what you’ve unleashed," he proclaimed, his words laced with a sinister satisfaction. “Or… face the defense’s reset. Not even you Sentinels could endure it. All matter—every trace—erased without mercy.”

  Those were his final words before departing from her. Tee struggled to comprehend that it was over, her mind fixating on the haunting final words she had heard. What did Legion mean by facing what she had unleashed? And what was a reset?

  The belief that the Harbingers had spared Tee’s life had been nothing more than wishful thinking. She lay flat on her back, motionless, swords spearing through her hands and legs, pinning her to the unforgiving ground like a specimen under glass. Every nerve in her body burned. She clung to a single hope—that she might open her eyes and find herself back in the infirmary, safe beneath cool sheets, the nightmare dissolved.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  Desperation clawed at her. She imagined a vortex ripping open above her, a legion of Primus soldiers pouring through with ice-cold water and potent painkillers. She’d even throw her arms around Elder Caledor in gratitude.

  Drawing slow, ragged breaths, she tried to steady herself against the agony. The sun’s heat pressed down on her face like molten metal, merciless and unrelenting.

  Her body was a map of wounds. Cuts and bruises throbbed in unison with her pounding heartbeat—others seemed to pulse erratically, like fiery insects crawling under her skin.

  Then she felt it. A hard pressure at her spine, insistent and rising, lifting her slightly off the ground. Bound and helpless, she couldn’t shift to see what it was. Fear crept into her bones, a cold thread winding through the blaze of pain.

  With excruciating effort, she twisted her neck to the left, forcing her eyes open—and froze. The ground nearby was littered with strange, cone-like shapes jutting from the earth. At first, she thought they were debris. But as her mind caught up, horror struck.

  They weren’t cones. They were pillars—buried deep, now resurfacing in a pattern, like some monstrous mechanism winding to life. She was caught in its path, a pawn in some elaborate cruelty.

  The column beneath her spine pressed harder as it rose. It wasn’t sharp enough to impale her directly—but the swords binding her hands and feet would tear through her flesh if she didn’t move. She imagined it happening, the steel ripping free of her body as the pillar lifted her higher. Her pain was already unbearable. The thought of enduring more sent a shiver of determination through her.

  Sade had pulled himself out of the dirt heap, joining Lilith and Legion on the elevated terrain. They watched the fragment rise, lightning bolts radiating from it in every direction. Sade knew it was as good as gone.

  In the distance, the sky darkened into a sickening black-red, as if something were devouring it, leaving only void. Of the three moons overhead, only two remained. One had been consumed.

  A reset was coming. Soon everything before them would be swept away, including the pesky Sentinels. But first, they had a little surprise. Their gaze shifted to the ground where the fragment had emerged—and a monstrous head began to rise.

  The head revealed itself gradually. A single eye opened, its pupil larger than any of theirs, encircled by a vivid green sclera. Bone structures, enormous and jagged, formed around its skull.

  A deafening, piercing shriek tore from its mouth, shaking the ground and sky alike. The Sentinels who could hear it trembled in fear.

  What was that? They were all thinking the same thing.

  The creature struggled free from the hole—a gateway to some underworld. Its teeth gnashed at the air while countless eyes darted wildly in their sockets, restless and chaotic. The massive chains that had bound it snapped. Six enormous wings unfurled and flapped, lifting the behemoth into the air.

  Its shadow blotted out the sun, giving Tee relief from the blinding light—but not from the fear that gripped her. What the hell was she looking at?

  The sky darkened further, sections dissolving into pitch-black void. A sick feeling twisted in her stomach.

  Then, shock. Parts of the creature began to disintegrate as it flew too high into the devouring void. It shrieked in pain, flailing wildly, relying on only three wings on one side to stay aloft. The fragment vanished into a swirling white hole.

  Terror seized Tee, fearing the creature might fall on her.

  The Harbingers, having seen what they needed, departed through a red vortex, leaving the Sentinels trapped in the pocket world—facing annihilation alone.

  Seeing that monster pushed Kie to do the impossible. He called on his god-like powers and his healing ability. With a surge of strength, he pulled one hand free, wrenching the swords that pinned him from the ground.

  Gritting his teeth against the pain, he freed his other limbs. He had to reach his team and figure out their next move. There was no time to hesitate.

  Tee needed to move. Her gaze settled on the handle of a sword, its long blade buried beneath the earth.

  Recalling the immense size of Legion’s blades—longer than her body—she wondered how she could possibly pull it free from her awkward angle.

  Suddenly, a voice crackled through her telecom, cutting through the roar of winds and the creature’s shrieks.

  “Is anyone there?”

  It was unmistakably Kie’s voice, echoing in her mind. Was she hallucinating? Of all the voices, why did it have to be his?

  “I don’t see any signs of the Harbingers,” Kie continued, his breaths labored but steady. Activating the telecom required skin contact, which meant he was free—unlike her.

  Panic surged. The unyielding pillar beneath her back shot higher, lifting her abdomen off the ground. Her muscles screamed in protest, straining to keep her spine from slamming against the stone. Meanwhile, the swords ripped deeper into her hands and legs, leaving fresh agony in their wake.

  Fear of humiliation flared higher than the pain itself. The thought of Kie finding her like that, trapped and vulnerable, was unbearable. The idea of being the first to fall—and having Kie come to rescue her—was unacceptable. She refused to give him that satisfaction.

  Clenching her jaw, she closed her eyes and summoned every ounce of strength in her left hand to grasp the sword’s hilt. The blade remained stubbornly fixed in the earth. A frustrated sigh escaped her lips.

  “I’m coming. Just hang on,” Kie’s voice rang through the telecom again.

  The horrifying possibility that he meant her—that he could find her in that state—made Tee cry out, “Nooooo!” Her resolve hardened. She pressed harder against the hilt, and slowly, the sword began to shift. Gradually, its full length emerged from the ground.

  The pillar pressing into her spine shifted in response, and her right hand, still trapped by a blade above her wrist, dragged her sideways. To free it, she would have to endure the excruciating task of cutting through her joint.

  Frustration surged, but she turned her focus to her left hand, using it to pull the sword from her right hand. Finally free of the blades, she leaned forward, her back scraping against the ascending pillar.

  Wind from the creature’s flapping wings whipped her hair as its shriek sent shivers down her spine. There was no time to hesitate. She ripped the swords from her feet despite the searing pain, forcing herself to stand.

  Walking wasn’t an option. Her watery eyes scanned the surroundings. Pillars waist-high stretched across the area, and the creature loomed above, otherworldly and terrifying. Sections of the sky were pitch black, and only one moon remained.

  Impossible.