The Architect's distorted form loomed like a storm, its edges slicing through the space with a sound of shattering glass. The labyrinth of mirrors had collapsed into a field of obsidian shards, their surfaces reflecting fragmented realities, burning cities, frozen oceans, and the hollow eyes of countless victims consumed by the Architect. The air crackled with static, and every breath carried a taste of ash and iron. Ha-eun's hands trembled, her knuckles turning white around the hilt of her dagger, which dimmed as if suffocated by the Architect's presence.
Vega knelt next to her, carefully reloading her rifle with the last of her glowing cartridges. A streak of blood ran across her forehead, and her golden eyes were narrowed to slits, radiating a fierce determination.
"This ends here," she growled, trying to muster the intensity she was known for, but her voice wavered slightly, lacking its usual edge.
Ha-eun didn't say a word. Her eyes were locked onto the Architect's core, pulsing heart that floated within its complex fractal body. It throbbed with a vibrant violet light, each beat sending ripples through the air that warped the ground beneath them. The terrain was like a wild rollercoaster ride for one moment, it was solid stone, then it morphed into quicksand, and suddenly, it was a spongy moss oozing some eerie black fluid. She braced herself against a floating slab of concrete, its surface etched with glowing runes that seemed to whisper secrets.
We're running out of time..
The Architect struck first. Vines of fractal energy pour out, carving a channel into the ground where Ha-eun had stood moments before. She rolled, her dagger scraping against the obsidian shards as she pivoted to counterattack. The blade connected with the vine, sparks erupting in a shower of violet and gold. The impact vibrated up her arms, numbing her fingers.
"Vega, now!"
Vega fired, her energy rounds piercing the Architect's outer layers. The creature retreated, its form rippling like disturbed water. But the wounds sealed instantly, the distorted patterns rearranging themselves with a flash.
"Aim for the core!" Ha-eun shouted, dodging another vine.
"I'm trying!" Vega tried to aim at the core despite her rifle overheating in her hands.
The Architect's laughter echoed through the void, a dissonant choir of voices. "YOU ARE INSECTS. YOU ARE NOTHING."
Ha-eun's chest tightened. The words clawed at her determination, increasing the fatigue in her bones. She thought of her father's face, weathered by years of waiting, and her sister's voice, I can't fail them. Not again.
A sudden tremor split the ground, forcing Ha-eun to leap onto a floating chunk of debris. Below, the fissure opens to an abyss, revealing a crater filled with swirling darkness, the place where the Architect's insatiable hunger goes.
The sight triggered a memory: her mother, years ago, scolding her for staying out too late.
"You'll get lost in the dark," she'd warned.
Too late for that.
Ha-eun nodded, pressing a hand to her wound. The stardust swirled thicker there, clotting the injury. How much longer can my body hold out?
The Architect's vines multiplied, lashing at Ha-eun and Vega from all sides. One grazed Ha-eun's leg, slicing through her jeans and drawing a line of blood that shimmered with faint stardust. She hissed, stumbling, but Vega yanked her behind a crumbling pillar.
"Stay focused," Vega muttered, her breath labored. "Next time, it's getting into your head."
They fought in a cycle, Vega's suppressive fire creating openings for Ha-eun's strikes. The danger flared brighter with each hit, its glow piercing the Architect's oppressive aura. But every wound they inflicted healed faster than the last.
Ha-eun's arms burned. Her vision blurred at the edges, the visions seeping into her thoughts: her father burning incense at her shrine, her sister pleading with detectives, and Echo's twisted smile. "You're weak. You'll die here."
"Shut up," Ha-eun yelled and twisted, driving her blade into another vine.
The Architect strikes back. A distortion erupted from the ground, narrowly missing Vega. "We need a new plan!" she shouted.
Ha-eun's gaze locked onto the Architect's core. There's only one way.
"Distract it!" Ha-eun ordered, aiming her blade.
Vega didn't waste any time arguing. She unloaded her rifle into the Architect's ever-shifting form, each energy round buying them some precious seconds. Meanwhile, Ha-eun took off like a shot towards the crater, her boots sliding on the unstable ground beneath her. Below was nothing but darkness and a deep void.
"Trust the void. Just for this once," she thought to herself as she leaped into the unknown.
As she soared through the air, the Architect's core loomed above, its violet glow practically blinding her. In a rush fueled by pure desperation, Ha-eun reignited her blade, its familiar hum giving her a surge of confidence. She plunged it blade into the geometric heart of the beast, hoping against hope that it would be enough.
This was it, no turning back now. The void erupted.
Light and shadow clashed dramatically, tearing apart the Architect's form, fractal shape into a torrent of dissolving pieces. Ha-eun fell, the edge of the crater rising to greet her like an eager friend. Just in the nick of time, a hand shot out and grabbed her wrist It was Vega, her golden eyes wide with an unusual hint of fear.
"I've got you!"
They crashed onto solid ground, the void trembling around them. The Architect's remnants degenerate, its final roar fading into silence.
Ha-eun lay on her back, gasping. Her blade was gone, her hands raw and bleeding. Vega slumped beside her, her rifle shattered.
"We… did it?" Ha-eun whispered.
Vega laughed hoarsely. "Don't get cocky. This was just a limb."
As they caught their breath, the ground shuddered again. The obsidian shards reformed, not into mirrors, but into towering monoliths etched with the ΔΣ symbol. A shadow moved in the distance, an outline too familiar, too human.
Ha-eun sat up, her blood freezing.
The eyes were wrong. Violet. Fractal.
"You didn't think it was over, did you?" the figure taunted, its voice a harmony of Ha-eun's and the Architect's.
Vega cursed. "Get up, kid. We're not done yet."