"Man, this guy just doesn’t quit, huh?" Ethan muttered, exasperated. "What is he, Klorvax’s damn lapdog?"
They’d jumped through who knows how many spatial rifts—so many that even Ethan had lost track of where they were. And yet, sohow, this turtle freak still managed to intercept them.
Seriously? What kind of cursed luck was this?
"This is ridiculous..."
"Get lost!" Ataneya didn’t waste ti complaining. She launched herself forward without hesitation.
BOOOOM!
A violent surge of energy exploded from her, crashing straight toward the massive turtle.
"Wait—Ataneya, you—!"
Grithokk clearly hadn’t expected her to strike so suddenly. Caught completely off guard, half his body was obliterated in an instant, reduced to nothing but smoke and void.
"AAARGH!"
His scream echoed across the lake, raw and agonized.
"Ataneya! You’re one of us! You’re from the Citadel of Shadows! Why are you doing this?! Why are you siding with an outsider?!"
Grithokk’s voice was full of disbelief and frustration, like he was still trying to talk her down.
But Ataneya just scoffed.
"Please. Don’t lump in with you freaks. We’re not the sa. Now shut up."
With a flick of her wrist, she hurled another blast of energy at him.
BOOM!
Ethan let out a long sigh. "Okay, okay, hold up. Before you blow him into turtle soup, I’ve got a question—how the hell did he know we’d show up here?"
"No need to ask, My Lord," Ataneya said, rolling her eyes. "I already know."
"That beetle bastard? He’s the Citadel’s spatial controller. Every single node in this world is marked by him. Doesn’t matter where we jump—he can track us anywhere."
"No matter how far we run, he’ll always be able to find us."
"So basically," she added with a shrug, "we’ve only just barely shaken him off."
"A spatial controller?" Ethan groaned. "Seriously? That’s a thing?"
"Yup," Ataneya said, totally unfazed. Then she pointed toward a small island in the distance, just barely visible through the mist.
"But don’t worry. I’ve got a plan. See that island? My sister lives there. And she’s Klorvax’s worst nightmare. If we can convince her to help, we can kill him."
Ethan’s eyes lit up. "Your sister? She that strong?"
Ataneya shook her head. "Not exactly. She’s not super powerful in the usual sense. But her ability... it’s unique."
"Unique how?"
"She sings," Ataneya said, a sly smile tugging at her lips. "And her voice can control most creatures in the Dark World. Like a siren from the old sea legends. If we can get her to sing, she can lock Klorvax down—and then we finish him."
Ethan blinked. "Wait, seriously? That’s a thing?"
Before he could say more, a familiar chi rang in his ears.
Ding!
Congratulations, player Valkarion, for triggering a hidden quest: Seek out the Primordial Tide Siren, Namyanna!
"Well, would you look at that," Ethan grinned. "We’ve got ourselves a quest."
And judging by the system’s tone, it was a big one.
"Let’s go et your sister."
Without wasting another second, he and Ataneya blinked through space again.
WHOOSH!
WHOOSH!
WHOOSH!
...
In the blink of an eye, they landed on a small, isolated island nestled within the lake’s spatial fold. The place was barren—just a stretch of pale sand and a single lonely coconut tree swaying in the breeze.
"This is it?" Ethan asked, glancing around. "Doesn’t look like much."
"Where is she—?"
Before he could finish, a low hum began to vibrate through the air.
Whummm... whummm... whummm...
The surface of the water nearby began to bubble and churn. Then, with a splash, a fish leapt out of the lake.
At first glance, it didn’t look like anything special.
But then Ethan noticed the scales—each one shimred with a strange golden light, and every scale was etched with intricate runes, packed so tightly they looked like ancient script.
And those runes... they pulsed with a living, breathing darkness.
Not just magic—sothing deeper. Sothing alive.
"Ssssss..."
Just as Ethan stepped forward, the fish suddenly sprang into the air. Its mouth stretched open to an impossible size—dozens of tis larger than before—clearly trying to swallow him whole.
"Whoa—!"
But Ataneya was faster.
Whoosh!
In a blink, she snatched the fish by the tail and whipped it through the air like a ragdoll, slamming it down hard beneath the lone coconut tree.
"You trying to die or what?" she snapped, glaring down at the flailing creature. "Seriously? You didn’t see standing here? You think you can just open your damn mouth and eat whoever you want?"
"You’re... Ataneya?!"
The fish froze mid-flop, its body trembling as it thrashed helplessly in the sand.
"I-I didn’t see you! I swear! You know I’m blind—I didn’t know it was you! Please, have rcy!"
"Hmph." Ataneya snorted coldly.
She raised her foot and stomped down on the fish’s body. A surge of intense fla erupted from her, instantly engulfing the creature.
"You things are either eating people or getting eaten yourselves. Might as well let finish the job."
SSSSSSHHHH!
The fire roared, and in seconds, the fish was reduced to ash.
"You just killed it like that?" Ethan asked, a little stunned. "Who even was that?"
"My Lord, it was just a fish," Ataneya said with a shrug. "No big deal."
Then she added, almost casually, "That was an Ashscale Snapper from the Dark Sea. Their bodies are packed with potent energy. Want to try it?"
Ethan blinked. "Wait... eating it makes you stronger?"
He hesitated for a mont, then shrugged. "Screw it. Worth a shot."
He picked up what was left of the roasted fish and took a bite.
Ding!
Notice: Congratulations, player Valkarion. Your Strength attribute has increased slightly.
"...No way. It actually worked?" Ethan’s eyes lit up. "Alright, I’m in."
He dug in with renewed enthusiasm, devouring the rest of the fish like it was the best al he’d had in weeks.
Splash!
Suddenly, the sea nearby erupted again. Waves crashed against the shore, and dozens of golden-scaled carp were flung onto the island by the force of the tide.
Then, rising from the water with slow, graceful steps, ca a figure.
A woman—no, a siren.
She had the sleek, elegant form of a sea creature, her skin shimring with a faint iridescent glow. Her body was flawless, her movents fluid and srizing. She looked like sothing out of a dream—or a nightmare, depending on which side of her you were on.
Ataneya’s eyes lit up. She leapt forward and threw her arms around the siren.
"Namyanna! Sis, you’re finally here!"
"We’ve been waiting forever! And we’re starving!"
Namyanna smiled warmly, gently stroking Ataneya’s head like a doting older sister. "I only just sensed your presence, little one," she said softly. Then she turned and waved her hand, gathering the golden fish scattered across the beach into a neat pile.
But before anyone could relax—
WHOOOOOM!
A massive wave surged in the distance, and a towering figure appeared above the ocean’s surface.
This ti, it wasn’t a physical body—it was a projection, a phantom image. But even as a projection, the figure radiated arrogance and fury.
"Ataneya, you traitor! And you, filthy outsider!" the voice bellowed. "How dare you invade the Citadel of Shadows?! By order of Lord Klorvax, I’ve co to destroy you both!"
The voice was loud, commanding, full of nace.
But no one looked particularly impressed.
"You’re loud," Namyanna said flatly, standing up.
She reached down, scooped up a handful of sand, and casually tossed it into the air.
Shhhhhh...
At first, the grains floated like ordinary sand.
But then, midair, they began to shimr—absorbing the energy in the air, drawing in the surrounding darkness. The grains fused together, forming a massive, glowing longsword suspended in the sky.
VMMMMM!
The pressure it gave off was imnse—like a tidal wave of raw power.
"You’re just another one of Klorvax’s little worms," Namyanna said coldly. "And you think you can throw your weight around on my island? Cute."
"Let’s see how you handle this."
"Go, Sirenblade."
SWOOSH!
The sword shot forward like a bolt of lightning, slicing through the air with a deafening roar. The mont it struck the projection—
BOOOOM!
The entire image shattered into nothingness, erased by the sheer force of the attack.
Ethan sucked in a sharp breath. "Holy shit..."
He hadn’t expected that. Not from a siren. Not from soone who looked like she belonged in a painting, not a battlefield.
He quickly pulled up his system interface to scan her stats. There was no way he was letting soone that powerful go unexamined.
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