Darkness loomed over the land, thick and humming with a strange resonance—as if old memories buried deep beneath the soil were whispering into the wind.
Aren stood beside a worn-out wall, gripping his rod tightly.
"This pressure in the air… something's changing. No—something big is coming," he whispered.
Tomo's sensors flickered to life, his blue lights pulsing brighter than usual.
Tomo:
"Warning. Spiral frequency detected. Location—unknown. Source—awakening."
Aika stepped closer, her expression grim. She clipped back a strand of her hair, but her hands trembled slightly.
Aika:
"You said Spiral…?"
Aren (confused):
"Spiral? Is that another villain?"
Aika shook her head, her voice softer—but tinged with fear.
Aika:
"Not a villain. Not something you can define. Spiral isn't a being... it's an entity. When it appears, time doesn't stop. It shatters."
Just then, the ground beneath them rumbled violently. A crack split the stone floor, and an ancient wall crumbled—revealing a glowing symbol embedded in the rock: a spiraling pattern, pulsing with energy.
From beyond the spiral gate, a familiar voice echoed.
Kuze (from the shadows):
"Well, you made it. Welcome… to the edge of Spiral."
Kuze stepped forward from the darkness, half his face hidden in shadow.
Kuze:
"I won't stop you, Aren. But I want to see how far you'll go… when time itself turns against you."
Aren:
"Why are you so obsessed with Spiral?"
Kuze's eyes gleamed with an unstable light.
Kuze:
"Because Spiral offers what the world stole from me—existence without limits."
The spiral symbol flared, bathing everything in an eerie glow. The wind picked up, swirling unnaturally.
Tomo leapt onto Aren's shoulder.
Tomo:
"Gate stabilizing. Spiral presence confirmed."
Suddenly, a distorted voice rippled through the air—its source unknown, its tone layered with something inhuman.
Spiral (distorted):
"Did you call upon me… or has time chosen you?"
The world trembled. The flow of time began to twist. Aika stumbled, nearly falling—but Aren caught her hand just in time.
Aren (shouting):
"Tomo, keep everyone safe! No matter what!"
Kuze approached the gate, eyes wide with madness. He placed his hand on the glowing spiral.
Kuze (frantic):
"Spiral! Give me power! I've lost everything… I deserve this!"
The center of the spiral gate tore open. Within it—an eye-like, glowing vortex emerged. It had no body. No face. Just presence.
Spiral (echoing voice):
"Are you ready to sacrifice… or are you merely pretending, Kuze?"
Then—
Silence.
Everything froze.
The gate vanished.
Kuze disappeared.
The wind died.
Only one thing remained—a blazing spiral symbol etched into the ground, burning faintly like a lingering curse.
Aren (quietly):
"…Spiral. Now I understand… this game is bigger than me."
Aika (shaken):
"This… this is just the beginning."
Tomo:
"Next phase: unpredictable. Time fabric… unstable."
The scene faded out as an unknown energy began spinning in the sky—rewriting the threads of time itself.
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Chapter 7 – End