The void didn't wait.
It pulsed—
Once—
Heavy.
Deliberate.
The ground beneath Edrin's feet trembled, cracks spreading closer to the edge.
"…That's not a good sign," he said.
"No," Lyra replied. "It isn't."
The shape below shifted again—
Rising just a little more—
Enough to feel its presence fully now.
Not complete.
Not whole.
But overwhelming.
Edrin swallowed.
"…It doesn't need to come up all the way, does it?"
Kael shook his head.
"No."
Ronan grinned.
"Then we go down to it."
Edrin stared at him.
"…No."
A pause.
"…Absolutely not."
The voice from the void returned.
Stronger.
Closer.
"Release them."
Edrin clenched his jaw.
"…Still no."
The ground cracked again—
A piece of the edge broke away—
Falling silently into the void.
No sound.
No impact.
Just gone.
Edrin stepped back quickly.
"…Okay, that's worse than expected!"
Lyra steadied herself. "The boundary is unstable."
"That's a nice way of saying we might fall!"
Kael stepped forward, firm.
"Then we hold the line."
Edrin blinked.
"…There's a line?"
Kael pointed.
Right at the edge.
Edrin stared.
"…That's not a line. That's a drop."
"It's where we stand."
Edrin sighed.
"…Of course it is."
The echoes behind them stirred.
Not moving forward—
But reacting.
Faint flickers ran through their forms—
As if something was pulling on them.
Edrin turned.
"…Hey."
The nearest one trembled.
Its form thinning—
Fading slightly.
"…don't…"
Edrin's chest tightened.
"…I'm not letting go."
The void pulsed again.
Stronger.
The pull increased.
Not physical—
But something deeper.
Trying to reclaim.
Trying to take them back.
Lyra raised her hand—
Magic flaring—
Not attacking—
Holding.
"Edrin," she said, strained. "They're being pulled apart."
"I can see that!"
Ronan planted himself firmly.
"Then we stop it."
"How?!" Edrin shouted.
No one answered immediately.
Because none of them had an easy answer.
Kael spoke first.
"We anchor them."
Edrin blinked.
"…How do you anchor something that isn't fully here?"
Kael looked at him.
"…You."
Edrin froze.
"…I knew you were going to say that."
Lyra stepped closer.
"You connected with them."
Edrin shook his head.
"…I don't know how to do that again."
"Then figure it out," Ronan said.
"That's not helpful!"
The pull intensified.
The echoes flickered harder now—
Some nearly fading completely—
Their forms unraveling.
Edrin felt it.
That same sensation from before—
Not physical—
Something deeper.
The connection.
"…They're slipping," he whispered.
"Yes," Lyra said.
Edrin clenched his fists.
"…I said I'd try."
The void surged again.
"Return them."
Edrin stepped forward.
Closer to the edge.
"…No."
A pause.
"…They chose to stay."
The voice responded immediately.
"They cannot choose."
Edrin shook his head.
"…That's not true."
He turned—
Facing the echoes fully now.
"…You're still here."
The nearest one flickered.
Faint.
But present.
Edrin stepped closer.
"…You didn't disappear."
A pause.
"…That means something."
The void pulsed again—
Stronger—
Trying to pull them back.
Edrin felt it tug at him now—
Not just them.
Him too.
"…Okay," he muttered.
"…I really don't like this part."
Lyra's voice rose. "Edrin!"
"I'm fine!"
He wasn't.
But he stayed.
He reached out again.
Hand trembling.
"…Hey."
The nearest echo looked at him.
Barely holding form.
Edrin swallowed.
"…You said 'stay.'"
A pause.
"…So stay."
He didn't know if that would work.
Didn't know if it meant anything.
But he said it anyway.
The connection sparked again.
Faint—
Weak—
But real.
The echo steadied slightly.
Just a little.
Edrin's eyes widened.
"…Okay."
A breath.
"…That did something."
Kael nodded once.
"Continue."
Ronan grinned.
"Now you're doing it again."
Edrin shook his head.
"…I don't know what I'm doing!"
"Exactly," Ronan said.
"That's when you're at your best."
The void surged again—
Stronger—
More forceful—
The ground cracked further—
The edge collapsing slowly—
The pull increasing.
Edrin stepped closer.
Right at the edge now.
"…This is a terrible idea."
Lyra's voice was sharp. "Edrin, don't—"
"I'm not falling!"
A pause.
"…I think."
He focused.
Not on the void.
Not on the threat.
On them.
The echoes.
"…You're still here," he said again.
Another reached toward him.
Then another.
Faint.
Broken.
But responding.
Edrin took a breath.
"…You're not done."
The connection strengthened.
Not fully.
Not perfectly.
But enough.
The pull slowed.
Just slightly.
The void reacted.
Violently.
"ERROR."
Edrin blinked.
"…That's new."
Ronan laughed. "I like that word."
The shape below surged—
More of it forming—
The presence growing heavier—
Angrier.
Edrin swallowed.
"…Okay, it really doesn't like this."
Kael stepped beside him.
"Then we continue."
Lyra reinforced the connection with magic—
Not controlling—
Supporting.
Ronan stood ready—
Holding the line.
Edrin focused harder.
"…Stay," he whispered again.
The echoes steadied.
The pull resisted.
The void trembled.
For the first time—
It wasn't taking.
It was being denied.
Edrin exhaled slowly.
"…Okay."
A small, shaky smile appeared.
"…I think we're doing something."
The void answered with force.
The shape rising further.
The edge cracking more.
The pressure building.
And this time—
It wasn't just trying to take them back.
It was preparing to break everything.