Blades clashed against light. The chamber became a battlefield, ancient stone scorched by plasma and kinetic bursts.
Seojun moved with impossible clarity. Every motion felt guided—as if a deeper instinct had awakened. The Seed inside him whispered not words, but motion, warning, memory. His body dodged the blade of a Shadowborn an instant before it struck, then countered with a focused wave of force that sent the creature crashing into a wall.
Nova was already deploying defense nodes. "Establishing a kinetic barrier—buy me sixty seconds!"
Rho fired from above, sniper shots aimed at pressure points in the enemy armor. "They adapt fast. Two already recalibrating to my rounds."
Elias stood back-to-back with Hana. "I miss the days when ancient temples didn't come with death squads."
Hana slashed through one of the creatures with her energy scythe. "Welcome to evolution."
The lead Shadowborn didn't fight like the others. It studied Seojun, circling him as if waiting—for hesitation, for weakness.
"You are not its chosen. You are just a carrier."
Seojun's voice echoed, layered once more.
"I carry more than you realize."
And then the chamber changed.
Not physically—but perceptually. Time slowed. Sound dimmed.
Everyone froze—except Seojun.
His eyes widened as the Seed flooded his mind with memory. Not his own—but someone else's. Cities of glass towers. Oceans in the sky. A woman with silver eyes reaching toward the stars. He was her, if only for a moment.
"This was humanity's first dream…" a voice said within him.
"…and its greatest sin."
He gasped, falling to one knee.
Nova shouted, "Seojun! What's happening?"
But before he could answer, the lead Shadowborn lunged.
A beam of pure light exploded from Seojun's chest—no weapon, just energy. The force flung the attacker backwards, pinning it to the wall with a soundless scream.
The light faded.
Seojun stood, eyes glowing fully now. He turned to the others.
"We have to go deeper. The Seed hasn't finished unlocking. There's something buried beneath this temple. A truth… too dangerous to stay hidden."
Rho nodded slowly. "Then we follow it."
And as the team descended into the heart of the temple, none of them noticed—
—high above them, in the void of orbit, something else was waking up.