The Void was changing.
Every day, it twisted a little more—colors bending, terrain fracturing, reality itself glitching like a corrupted screen. Where the plains once stretched endlessly, now towers of shattered stone drifted weightlessly in the air. The ground would hum beneath our feet, then ripple like water, as if the world was trying to rewrite itself.
It used to shift maybe once every few Days. Now? Every few hours.
And with every change, the enemies got stronger. The air was thicker. The whispers were louder.
We didn't need Blaze to tell us what that meant. The Void was becoming unstable.
We had to get out—fast.
Our destination was RimScape, a half-collapsed sector Blaze and I used to scavenge in before all this started. Back then, it was just another forgotten region filled with old loot and half-functioning portals. But now, Blaze believed one of those portals could still work—if we could find a way to reactivate it.
It was a gamble, but it was all we had.
We stopped to rest inside what was left of a hollowed-out building—its walls cracked and half-floating, but stable enough to keep the storm winds out.
SK set up the fire while I secured the perimeter sensors. The faint hum of Blaze's armor echoed nearby as he inspected his sword, the blue light running through its edge pulsing faintly with every breath he took.
For once, I thought we might actually get a quiet night.
But of course, Blaze had other plans.
"Get up," he said suddenly.
I blinked. "What?"
He stood and grabbed his sword, resting it across his shoulder. "You two think we can just sit around while the Void evolves?" His tone was calm but firm. "Even while we're moving, we train. No excuses."
SK groaned, half-laughing. "Sir, we literally just sat down."
"Good," Blaze said, smirking. "Then your muscles are still warm."
I sighed, already knowing there was no point arguing. "You never change."
He smirked. "Wouldn't be any fun if I did."
We trained under the flickering glow of the Void sky.
The air shimmered around us as SK and I sparred—rifle versus scythe, movement against movement. Sparks burst with every clash, the metallic ring echoing through the ruins. Each strike reminded me of our battles against the Shards—how fast, how relentless they were.
Even in mock combat, it was hard not to imagine one of those things lunging out of the shadows.
"Keep your stance tighter!" Blaze called out. "SK, stop overextending. Ryze, use your reach advantage—don't waste energy on fancy shots!"
"Yes, sir!" SK shouted back between swings.
After several rounds, our breathing grew ragged. My arms ached. SK's cloak was torn.
And Blaze? He stood there, watching—unmoved, calm as ever.
Until SK suddenly spoke up. "Sir… permission to challenge you?"
Both Blaze and I looked at her in surprise.
"What got into you?" I asked, wiping sweat from my brow.
She shrugged, smirking. "I want to see if we've actually improved. Fighting you will tell us for sure."
Blaze tilted his head, amused. "You sure about that?"
"Positive," she said, gripping her scythe tighter.
I groaned. "SK, he just got out of a fight with a literal Void monster. You really wanna—"
"Don't worry, Ryze," Blaze interrupted. His grin widened. "If she wants to learn, I'll teach."
He stepped forward, dropping his sword onto the ground beside him with a soft clang. "You two against me. Hand-to-hand. No weapons."
I blinked. "Wait, what?"
"You heard me." He raised his fists, lowering into a stance that was way too confident for someone who was supposedly recovering. "Go on."
I looked at SK. She was already smiling. "You heard him."
I sighed. "This is gonna hurt."
The fight was fast—too fast.
Blaze moved like he always did: sharp, efficient, unpredictable. Every strike was a blur, every dodge perfectly timed. It was like fighting a ghost that knew what we were going to do before we did it.
But still—we pushed him.
We adapted, just like he taught us. SK swung low, I aimed high, forcing him to switch targets constantly. The ground cracked beneath us as we clashed, bursts of dust scattering through the dim light.
Then, for just a split second, something changed.
Blaze's movement stuttered.
It was almost imperceptible—but it was there. A tiny glitch, a flicker of static across his arm.
SK noticed it first. She feinted left, then spun—and her arm's blunt edge grazed his shoulder, knocking him slightly off balance.
She landed the hit.
For a heartbeat, no one moved.
I froze. "Wait—what?"
Blaze blinked, then laughed—an honest, hearty laugh. "Well, I'll be damned. You actually tagged me."
SK straightened, panting but grinning. "I—thank you, sir."
"That's impressive," he said, rubbing his shoulder with a smirk. "You've both improved more than I thought."
"Or you're just rusty," I muttered.
He shot me a look. "Care to test that theory?"
I raised my hands in surrender. "I'll pass."
He laughed again, the sound echoing faintly against the hollow walls. "Alright, that's enough for today. You two should rest—we move at first light."
He bent down, picked up his sword, and turned toward the edge of the camp.
As he walked away, I caught it again.
That faint blue flicker under his armor.
Static. Brief, but real.
I frowned. "Hey, Blaze—"
He glanced back. "Yeah?"
I hesitated. The words were there, but something in his expression stopped me.
"…Nothing," I said. "Just—good fight."
He smiled faintly. "Likewise."
Later that night, SK was already asleep, curled near the dim glow of the campfire. I sat watch again, the Void wind whispering through the ruins.
In the distance, I could see Blaze standing alone—facing the horizon, hand resting on his sword, that same faint hum radiating from his armor.
He hadn't taken a break since the fight.
Every few seconds, a ripple of distortion shimmered around him—like reality bending ever so slightly at his presence.
He thought I didn't notice.
But I did.
Something was wrong.
Maybe he didn't want to admit it. Maybe he thought he could control it.
But I knew that look in his eyes. The same look I saw before every battle—the one that said he'd already made peace with something he wasn't telling us.
The Void howled again, a low, distorted sound that rattled through the air.
Blaze didn't flinch.
He just stood there, staring into the endless blue horizon, the faint flicker of static dancing across his armor.
And for the first time since finding him alive…
I wasn't sure if he was fighting the Void—
or becoming part of it.