The crack in reality pulsed before them—a vertical seam of jagged light that split the air like a wound. Beyond it, darkness writhed, shot through with veins of crimson and purple. The air around it was thick, heavy, pressing against Andrey's lungs with each breath.
Sein stood at the edge, her crimson gauntlets flickering in the strange light. Her eyes were wide, not with fear but with something closer to awe.
"This... is the first time I've seen something like this..." she murmured.
Andrey studied the rift, his Ki senses recoiling from the dark energy bleeding through.
"It looks like we have to go inside and take the artifact," he said, his hand resting on the hilt of the katana.
Sein glanced at him, a familiar smirk tugging at her lips. "Heh. Are you scared?"
Andrey met her gaze, his expression calm. "It's too late to be scared."
He stepped forward, crossing the threshold into the crack. The darkness swallowed him.
