Location: Siberian Tundra – Subterranean Vault Z-07
Snowstorm winds battered the icy wastelands, howling like spirits of the dead. Beneath the permafrost, deeper than any satellite scan could reach, Vault Z-07 remained untouched by time.
Until now.
The Leviathan's awakening had rippled through the ley lines of the Earth, shattering ancient bindings across the globe.
Inside Vault Z-07, a frozen chamber pulsed with dull, rhythmic beats—thump... thump... thump...
In its center, suspended in a cocoon of obsidian crystal and aetheric chains, Velkyr the Winged Queen slept no longer.
Her eyes opened—burning violet.
---
Who is Velkyr?
Long ago, she ruled a realm between myth and prophecy—a queen of forgotten skies, half-goddess, half-sorceress. In some cultures, she was worshipped as a Valkyrie; in others, feared as a sky demon who whispered omens into the ears of dying kings.
She was once beloved.
Then betrayed.
And so, she tore down her heavens and vanished, sealing herself away to prevent her wrath from consuming the world.
Until now.
Her cocoon cracked.
The bindings snapped one by one.
And Velkyr took her first breath in ten thousand years.
---
Location: Avalon – War Room
Lucian stood over a live projection map showing global Mythborne energy surges. Red lights blinked across every continent.
"Velkyr's cocoon just destabilized," he said, fingers twitching over the console. "Three bindings failed in sequence. By tomorrow, she'll be fully active."
Isaiah, his image appearing via holo-feed from South America, narrowed his eyes. "You're telling me Typhon wasn't the scariest thing in the vault?"
Lucian glanced toward Elder Mara, who stood stiffly behind him. "Velkyr was locked away by the Nine Wills. They considered her a wildcard—too powerful, too unstable. She's not evil. But she's… dangerous."
Suri stepped into the feed's frame. "What does she want?"
Lucian exhaled. "She wants justice. And she's been stewing on betrayal for millennia. When she wakes, she may not care who's guilty."
---
Meanwhile: The Andes
Ayar paced before the ancient shrine, firelight reflecting in his scaled armor. Isaiah watched him, cautiously leaning against a stone pillar.
"You ever meet her?" Isaiah asked.
Ayar gave a bitter chuckle. "She and I danced through storms once. Not as lovers, not as enemies. Something worse. We understood each other."
Suri tilted her head. "So you think she'll help us?"
"No," Ayar replied, "I think she'll judge us. All of us."
Isaiah folded his arms. "Then we better get to her before she finds us first."
---
Flashback: The Sky That Burned
In the mythic past, Velkyr soared above battlefields. Her wings turned day to night. Her gaze chose who lived or died. She wasn't cruel—merely cold. Detached. But when the gods used her as a weapon, then sealed her away when she questioned them, something broke.
She declared war on fate itself.
And now, as the world teetered between awakening gods and ancient threats, Velkyr stirred not for revenge—but to rewrite the mythic order itself.
---
Location: Vault Z-07 – Final Seal
The final binding was a word.
One single, unspoken Name, etched across the deepest stone—her true Name, known only to one.
It began to fade.
Velkyr flexed her fingers, the air crackling as her wings extended for the first time in ages. Her armor shimmered into existence, woven from astral feathers and lightning thread.
She rose.
"I was forgotten," she whispered. "But they will remember me."
With a single beat of her wings, she shattered the vault.
Snow, ice, and ruin spiraled into the sky.
The Queen of Wings had returned.
---
Elsewhere: The Maw Watches
From the deep beneath the Mariana, the Maw turned.
Not physically—it had no form to speak of.
But it noticed.
It had consumed gods of strength, of chaos, of sea.
But air?
The wind was tricky.
It didn't obey the same rules.
The Maw hissed in delight.
Velkyr was not prey.
She was potential.
---
Avalon Response
Lucian slammed his hand on the council table. "We can't let Velkyr go unchecked! We need someone who can match her before she decides the modern world isn't worthy of survival!"
Elder Mara, arms folded, was cold and firm. "And who do you suggest? Kairon?"
Lucian shook his head. "Isaiah's not ready. Not yet. But together—with Ayar and Suri—they might stand a chance."
An alarm chimed.
"Velkyr has been sighted," said a technician. "Northern Siberia. She's heading for the stratosphere."
Lucian went pale. "She's not hiding. She's announcing herself."
---
Location: Upper Atmosphere
Velkyr flew so high that air barely existed. Satellites caught glimpses of her—wings of stardust stretching a mile across. Behind her trailed clouds shaped like blades.
She stopped mid-flight and looked down.
The Earth.
Once hers.
Still broken.
Still ruled by lesser myths, afraid to challenge the old gods.
She spoke, and the sky quivered.
"I return not to wage war," she said, voice carried on global currents. "But to cleanse what was corrupted."
And far below, every Mythborne heard her.