The floating bridge stretched before them like a thread spun from starlight and shadow, suspended in an endless void. Each step echoed with an eerie resonance, as if the air itself remembered every soul that had dared tread this path.
The Obsidian Tower loomed ahead—its surface rippled with dark energy, pulsing like a living heart. Lightning forked through the crimson sky behind it, illuminating strange runes etched deep into its stone. This was no ordinary structure. It was ancient. Intelligent. Watching.
"Are you sure this is a tower and not a grave?" Kellen muttered, eyes narrowed.
"If it is," Alira said, "then we either walk out with power… or stay buried with the rest."
Juno, ever silent, said nothing. But the flick of his dagger into his palm showed he was ready.
Raze stepped forward. The [Phasebreak Slash] still buzzed beneath his skin, a gift from the Gatekeeper's defeat. It had nearly drained him, but it also proved something important—his enemies were evolving, and so was he.
He reached out, placing his hand on the obsidian surface.
It was cold. Too cold. Like touching the core of a dead star.
> [Area Entry Triggered: The Obsidian Tower – Floor One: Labyrinth of Echoes]
The tower groaned. Doors formed from nothing, sliding open with a hiss of mist and shadow. Beyond was only darkness… until glowing glyphs lit the floor—spiraling patterns in white and blue.
They stepped inside.
Instantly, the door vanished behind them.
The labyrinth was unlike any dungeon they'd faced before. The walls shifted like flowing oil, sometimes solid, sometimes liquid. The floor creaked with each step, as though memories were being unearthed beneath their feet.
"Stay close," Raze said, drawing his sword again. "This place is alive."
They moved cautiously, turning corners with weapons raised. Whispers slithered through the air, but they couldn't tell if they were voices or just tricks of the wind.
Then came the traps.
An explosion of spears shot from the wall—Alira barely dodged them. A ripple of spikes followed—Kellen shielded the group with a [Lightning Barrier], sacrificing energy.
"They're not random," Juno finally spoke. "They're timed."
Raze blinked. "You're right. Every ten seconds—count it."
He waited.
Ten seconds.
> Click.
From behind, the floor collapsed—an illusion covering a pit of fire.
Raze caught the rhythm. His mind sharpened.
"This entire labyrinth is a test of perception," he muttered. "They want us to think it's random, but it's all a pattern."
> [Skill Activated: Foresight Instinct – Pattern Prediction Boosted by 60% for 1 hour]
Raze's eyes glowed faintly as the glyphs on the walls began to shift in front of him, forming a puzzle of cause and consequence.
"Follow me," he said.
He led them through the maze, dodging collapsing walls, timed flame traps, and ethereal guardians that phased in and out of existence. Every ten steps brought a new challenge—but with Foresight Instinct active, Raze was moving like a chessmaster.
Finally, they reached the center.
A circular platform surrounded by glass orbs, each containing a flickering light.
A voice boomed from above.
> "Choose the orb that holds truth. Choose wrong, and remain forgotten forever."
They looked at the orbs.
Each had a different symbol: fire, water, wind, earth, shadow, light, time, and void.
"This is more than elements," Alira said. "It's philosophy."
Raze narrowed his eyes.
"What do you always see in the dark?"
"Light," he whispered.
He reached out and touched the orb marked light.
Silence.
Then—
> [Correct Orb Chosen. Phase One Complete.]
The room quaked.
The tower spoke again.
> "You carry within you something more than power. You carry potential. Prove it… or be unmade."
A glowing stairway rose from the platform, spiraling upward.
They exchanged glances.
"One floor down," Kellen muttered. "How many more to go?"
"Doesn't matter," Raze said. "We climb them all."
As they ascended, the shadows behind them shifted… and something began to follow.