The ground wouldn't stop shaking.
Each step the distant figure took sent slow, heavy tremors through the city. Buildings creaked under the pressure. Cracks spread across walls and roads like veins. Dust filled the air, and the sky itself felt lower, like it was pressing down on everything.
Masszio stood his ground, his hand raised, trying to focus.
But the pressure in his chest tightened again.
Worse than before.
"…this thing…" Laura muttered, her claws forming, though her hands trembled slightly. "…it's not like the others…"
Zyren let out a slow breath. "…yeah… no kidding." Even he looked serious now.
Darius stepped forward, heat rising around his body. "…doesn't matter. we hit it hard enough, it goes down."
Malik didn't move. His shadows stayed low, tight around him.
"…no," he said quietly. "…we don't win this."
Silence followed.
Then the figure fully emerged.
It towered over the buildings—a massive Strider.
But it wasn't unstable like the others. Its body didn't glitch or distort randomly. It was solid. Controlled. Heavy.
Its head lowered slightly.
It locked onto them.
Masszio felt it immediately.
"…it sees us."
The creature moved.
Fast.
Too fast for something that size.
It vanished—
—and reappeared in the middle of the street.
The impact shattered the ground beneath it. A shockwave burst outward, throwing debris—and people—off balance.
"MOVE!" Darius shouted—
But it was too late.
The creature's arm shifted. Not a full swing. Just a small movement.
A wave of force exploded outward.
Masszio raised his hand instantly, trying to stop it—
The force hit.
He was thrown back hard.
Zyren's constructs shattered on impact. Laura was forced to the ground. Darius slid backward, his boots tearing through concrete. Malik's shadows collapsed under the pressure.
Then—
Silence.
Heavy. Crushing.
Masszio struggled to push himself up, his arm shaking, his vision slightly blurred.
"…we… can't…" he muttered.
The creature stepped forward again.
Slow. Certain.
It raised its arm once more.
The air around them began to distort. It folded inward, like space itself was being squeezed. The pressure spiked even higher.
This was it.
Then—
A line of pure white light cut across the battlefield.
Clean.
Silent.
Absolute.
The creature stopped.
For the first time—
It froze.
The light expanded, descending from the sky like a falling star.
It hit the ground.
A shockwave spread outward—not wild or chaotic, but controlled.
The pressure disappeared instantly.
Masszio's eyes widened.
Standing between them and the creature—
Was someone new.
A figure surrounded by faint white energy. Calm. Still. Completely untouched by everything around him.
His presence felt different.
Not like a Strider.
Not like a Girder user.
Something else.
Something stable.
The massive Strider moved again, attacking without hesitation—
The man didn't move.
He simply raised one hand.
The space in front of him split open.
The attack stopped.
Then it collapsed inward—
And disappeared.
Masszio's breath caught.
"…what…?"
The man stepped forward.
Each step made the battlefield quieter.
The Strider lunged again—
One movement—
And the creature's body separated.
Clean.
Effortless.
It didn't explode.
Didn't resist.
It just fell apart.
Dead.
Silence filled the area.
Dust slowly settled back to the ground.
The man turned slightly, now facing them.
His eyes were calm. Sharp. Focused.
He looked directly at Masszio.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Then—
"…you're unstable," he said plainly.
Masszio froze. "…what?"
The man didn't react.
"…if you stay here, you die."
A short pause.
"…or worse."
Zyren blinked. "…nah, who even are you?"
The man ignored him.
Instead, he raised his hand slightly.
The air behind them warped.
A tear opened.
But it wasn't like the Void.
This one was controlled.
Stable.
"…move," he said.
No hesitation. No emotion in his voice.
Laura glanced at Masszio. "…we going?"
Masszio looked at the battlefield. At the destroyed Strider. At the man standing in front of them.
Then he stepped forward.
"…yeah."
One by one, they followed.
Darius and Malik exchanged a glance.
"…we'll meet again," Malik said quietly.
Darius smirked slightly. "…yeah. try not to die before then."
Masszio said nothing.
He stepped through the tear.
The others followed.
The man stepped in last.
And the tear closed behind them.
Leaving the broken city behind.
Under the silent gaze—
of the Black Sun.