***
{Outside The Projection}
The moment Malik's final words rang out—
AWAKEN FROM THIS DARKNESS!
—The projection froze.
The hall trembled.
His voice had BOOMED like a sword splitting the heavens.
Not through the projection, not through mere echoes of sound, but as if it had been spoken directly into their very souls.
It was not a request, not a proclamation—it was a command, absolute and undeniable.
The darkness around their Sultan did not move. It did not yield. But the feeling—the sheer force of presence—it rattled even the most hardened Magi among them, those who had long since dulled their emotions with years of bloodshed.
A long silence followed. A breath held by many, waiting to be released.
Then, as if a dam had burst—
"...Did you fucking hear that shit?!"
Someone blurted out, their voice shaky.
"Hear it?"
Another scoffed.
"I damn near touched it!"
Most leaned forward, gripping their robes, their gazes fixed on his lingering afterimage.
