The moment Mason stepped through the gateway, he knew something was wrong.
The air felt different.
Heavy.
Cold.
Unnatural.
The golden light of the Crossroads vanished behind him as his boots touched solid ground. For a brief moment, everything seemed normal.
Then he looked up.
The sky was dying.
Dark clouds stretched across the horizon like spreading ink. Crimson lightning flashed within them, illuminating distant mountains and shattered cities.
The world before him looked beautiful.
And broken.
Massive silver trees towered overhead.
Crystal rivers wound through ancient forests.
Floating islands drifted high above the landscape.
Yet scars covered everything.
Entire sections of forest had turned black.
The rivers glowed with strange dark energy.
Several floating islands had already crashed to the ground.
The Void was here.
And it was winning.
Mason slowly turned.
The gateway behind him shimmered.
Aurelian and Lyra stepped through moments later.
Both immediately became serious.
The playful attitude Lyra normally carried disappeared.
Aurelian looked toward the dark horizon.
"The corruption is spreading faster than expected."
Mason frowned.
"What exactly does the Void do?"
The old Gatekeeper pointed toward a nearby tree.
The once-beautiful silver bark had begun turning black.
Dark veins spread through its surface.
The leaves withered.
Then the entire tree crumbled into ash.
The process took seconds.
Mason stared.
"What was that?"
"The Void consumes possibility."
The answer came from Lyra.
She looked unusually grim.
The former Gatekeeper knelt beside the ashes.
"When the Void touches something..."
A pause.
"It removes what it could become."
The explanation made no sense.
At first.
Then realization struck.
The tree hadn't died.
It had been erased.
Its future.
Its growth.
Its existence.
Gone.
The thought made his stomach tighten.
"That's impossible."
Aurelian nodded.
"Exactly."
The old warrior looked toward the darkened sky.
"The Void doesn't obey normal rules."
Several hours later, the group reached the outskirts of a ruined city.
The sight stopped Mason in his tracks.
The city stretched across a massive valley.
Or at least it once had.
Now most of it lay in ruins.
Collapsed towers filled the streets.
Ancient bridges had fallen.
Entire districts had vanished beneath black corruption.
The damage looked recent.
Fresh.
The battle had clearly happened within the last few days.
Mason walked slowly through the shattered streets.
The silence felt wrong.
No people.
No animals.
No sounds.
Only the distant crackling of corruption spreading through the city.
Aurelian crouched beside a section of damaged stone.
The old Gatekeeper studied it carefully.
Then his expression darkened.
"What?"
Aurelian stood.
"Someone fought here."
Mason looked around.
"Obviously."
The city was practically destroyed.
The old warrior shook his head.
"No."
He pointed toward a massive crater nearby.
"This wasn't caused by the Void."
A chill ran down Mason's spine.
The crater stretched nearly two hundred feet across.
The surrounding stone appeared melted.
Not broken.
Melted.
Something incredibly powerful had created it.
Then Lyra found something.
The former Gatekeeper slowly lifted an object from the rubble.
A helmet.
Ancient.
Damaged.
Covered in strange symbols.
Her face immediately lost color.
"No."
Aurelian looked over.
His expression changed instantly.
Mason frowned.
"What is it?"
Neither answered.
The silence itself became terrifying.
Finally Lyra spoke.
"This belongs to a Guardian."
The words hit hard.
A Guardian.
Another protector.
Another hero.
Mason's pulse quickened.
"Where is he?"
The former Gatekeeper slowly looked around the ruined city.
The answer came quietly.
"I don't know."
That frightened him more than anything.
Because if a Guardian had fallen here...
Then the enemy was far stronger than expected.
As night approached, the group entered the city's central district.
Ancient towers surrounded a massive plaza.
Most remained damaged.
Some had collapsed entirely.
Others leaned dangerously.
The corruption covered nearly everything.
Yet something still remained untouched.
The palace.
Mason stopped.
The structure towered above the city.
Silver crystal walls reflected the fading sunlight.
Massive banners hung from its towers.
The building looked ancient.
Powerful.
Defiant.
The corruption surrounded it.
But somehow hadn't entered.
Aurelian immediately noticed.
"Interesting."
The old Gatekeeper began walking toward it.
The others followed.
As they approached, Mason felt something.
A presence.
Watching.
The sensation grew stronger with every step.
Then a voice echoed through the plaza.
"Stop."
Everyone froze.
The voice belonged to a young woman.
Strong.
Confident.
Dangerous.
Mason turned.
A figure stood atop a nearby wall.
Silver armor covered her body.
A glowing spear rested in her hand.
Long dark hair flowed behind her.
Bright blue eyes studied them carefully.
The woman looked exhausted.
Yet powerful.
The kind of person who refused to quit no matter how impossible the situation became.
She pointed the spear directly at them.
"Who are you?"
Aurelian stepped forward.
"We're here to help."
The woman laughed.
The sound carried absolutely no humor.
"That's what the last group said."
Mason immediately noticed.
The spear never moved.
Not even slightly.
The woman clearly didn't trust them.
And given the state of the city, he couldn't blame her.
Aurelian slowly raised his hands.
"No hostile intentions."
The warrior's eyes narrowed.
Then suddenly widened.
Recognition flashed across her face.
The spear lowered slightly.
"No."
The woman stared at Aurelian.
Then at Lyra.
Then back again.
The disbelief was obvious.
"That's impossible."
Aurelian smiled faintly.
"We hear that a lot."
The woman jumped from the wall.
Landing lightly in front of them.
She looked directly at Lyra.
"You died."
Lyra nodded.
"Technically."
The woman blinked.
Then looked toward Mason.
The symbols hidden beneath his skin glowed faintly.
Her expression immediately changed.
Shock.
Confusion.
Recognition.
"What are you?"
The question felt familiar.
Mason sighed.
"I've been asking the same thing."
For the first time, the woman almost smiled.
Almost.
Then the smile vanished.
Because a roar echoed across the city.
A deep.
Terrifying.
Inhuman roar.
The sound shook buildings.
Windows shattered.
The ground trembled.
Everyone immediately turned toward the horizon.
The corruption moved.
Not spread.
Moved.
Like a living creature.
A massive shadow emerged from within it.
Hundreds of glowing crimson eyes opened simultaneously.
The woman gripped her spear.
Fear filled her expression.
Real fear.
"Ashkar."
Aurelian frowned.
"Who's Ashkar?"
The answer came immediately.
"The thing that killed our Guardian."
Silence.
The shadow continued rising.
Growing larger.
Taller.
More terrifying.
The battle for Elyria was about to begin.
And Mason's first mission as a Guardian had suddenly become far more dangerous.