Oron Karth hung below them like a wound in space—its atmosphere wrapped in ash-gray clouds, storms crawling across its surface like dying gods whispering secrets. The planet was dead. But not silent.
Ethan sat at the command deck of the Wraithling, still recovering. His heartbeat wasn't entirely his own—each pulse echoed with dual rhythms.
Aelira checked the sensors, eyes narrowing.
"Ships incoming. Dozens. No insignias, but formation patterns scream Ecliptic Circle. A few outliers look Guild-class, but they're staying back. Watching."
Ethan groaned, hand on his temple. "Of course they are. The second I touch anything even remotely ancient, everyone suddenly remembers they want it."
[SYSTEM NOTICE: External Surveillance Detected][Threat Level – Moderate. Voidfield Concealment: Holding.]
Aethra chimed in, voice clipped. "I recommend evasive maneuvers or immediate descent. We won't remain hidden for long."
Ethan stood. "Then we don't stay in orbit."
Aelira glanced at him. "You sure you're ready for a planetary drop? After what just happened?"
He gave her a lopsided smirk. "Nope. But I'm not letting them write the next chapter without me."
[NEW OBJECTIVE: Enter the Thronefall Temple][Optional: Investigate the anomaly beneath Oron Karth's equatorial trench][Reward: Unknown – 'A piece of what was stolen.']
Elsewhere – Aboard the Ecliptic Flagship
High Arkan Velros stood before a constellation-mapped interface as lines of power shimmered across it.
"The system mark confirmed. He's bonded with the Reflection Entity. That means he's either a fool…" He paused.
"…or the first to survive it."
A hooded figure beside him chuckled—its voice genderless, body blurred by a shifting field of perception. "If he reaches the Temple, we lose control of the Protocol. The Dead Throne might accept him."
Velros turned, eyes cold. "Then ensure he never leaves that planet."
Descent
The Wraithling plunged through the clouds, space screaming past the hull. Below, ancient ruins cut through the wastelands like scars—monoliths left by a civilization that had spoken in light and bled stars.
Ethan gripped the armrest, feeling the planet push back.
Something knew they were coming.
[WARNING: Dimensional Flux Rising – Oron Karth is active.][Entity Detection: Origin-Class Echo… Unknown. Buried.]
The moment they breached lower orbit, the ship's vision screens flooded with static. Amid the noise—just for a heartbeat—Ethan saw eyes. Not watching him, but watching through him. Eyes with memory. Eyes that had seen the first Throne built.
They landed hard.
The dust swirled, violet and gold, and the Wraithling's engines dimmed as though even it felt the weight of where they were.
Aelira stepped out first, weapons drawn.
Ethan followed.
The Temple of the Thronefall stood ahead—half-buried, half-fused into the mountain it had shattered when it crashed from the heavens. Massive gates stood sealed, each engraved with mirror-sigils that pulsed softly as Ethan approached.
He exhaled. His voice was quiet.
"I've been here before."
[SYSTEM LOG: Memory Echo – Accessing Fragment…]…Kaelen stands before the same gates, younger, bleeding, dragging a corpse behind him.…He speaks a name that cannot be remembered.…The gates open anyway.
Ethan stepped forward.
The sigils lit up—one by one—like they were welcoming him home.