In the distant reaches of the Chromaverse, something long thought dead stirred beneath the darkness, and those who could read the patterns of fate knew one thing: the Grand Design was crumbling.

“When Zenith awakes, the threads of Fate shall unravel. Stars will fall, and night shall reclaim its rightful hold. “The stars themselves will mourn, and silence will swallow them whole.

- Lost Record of the Luminari -

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Ren stared down onto the world he killed. Countless craters covered the gray surface of his dead homeworld Ceras. The bones of billions of his people turned to dust because of him… He cramped up, trying to control his anger and guilt. It took him months to no longer get overwhelmed with it.

Ren stood at the edge of the observation deck, of the “Silver Spire” Station that floated silently in the expanse, its sleek silver towers cutting through the darkness like swords. Outside, the Chromaverse stretched endlessly, uncaring, its vastness enough to swallow fragile lives without a second thought.

The station hummed faintly beneath his boots, the vibrations barely noticeable through the cold, sterile floor. Everything about the Silver Spire was designed for efficiency—there was no warmth, no comfort here, just cold metal and the deep black of space. Ren liked it that way. It was easier not to feel anything at all.

He traced his finger over the small stone pendant hanging from his neck. A tiny reminder of something—someone—he’d left behind. His chest tightened as the memories rushed back, but he pushed them away, burying them deep. There was no room for that now.

Behind him, the quiet swish of the door opened, and he didn’t need to turn to know who it was.

“Ren.”

Nightlotus's voice was soft but carried the weight of authority. Ren glanced over his shoulder. She stood in the doorway, her long, dark robe trailing behind her like a shadow. Her presence always seemed to make the air heavier, as though she brought the weight of the universe with her.

“You’re late,” she said, her gaze sharp as she moved closer.

Ren looked back out at the stars. “I needed a moment.”

“Moments are a luxury,” she replied, coming to stand beside him. Her face remained impassive, as unreadable as ever. “You’re leaving soon. I assume you’ve read the briefing.”

“I have.” His voice was flat. “Some kind of low-level corruption. Astral readings spiked on Godwana, but nothing concrete.”

Nightlotus gave a slight nod. “We don’t know the full extent of the threat, but it’s manageable. You’ll be operating alone.”

Ren’s jaw tightened, though he wasn’t sure if it was from the tension in her words or the idea of being sent off without backup. “And you think I’m ready for this?”

She didn’t answer right away. Instead, her eyes followed his gaze out into the void. “Readiness is a matter of perspective. This mission will challenge you, yes, but it’s something you can grow from.”

Ren exhaled slowly, the tightness in his chest loosening slightly, but not entirely. His first mission—finally. He should’ve felt something more, some kind of excitement, but all he felt was a gnawing unease. The idea of corruption wasn’t new, and he’d seen of what happened to a world that fell to it. But this was supposed to be a small problem. Contained. A simple mission.

His grip tightened around the pendant. He had wanted this. Needed it. A chance to prove himself—to the Astral Order, to her, to himself. But doubt still clawed at him. What if he wasn’t enough? What if it happens again, like—

“You’ll be traveling via the cosmic laylines,” Nightlotus interrupted his thoughts, as if sensing his hesitation. “They’ll take you directly into the Valley of the Red Star. We believe that’s where the source of the corruption is.”

“I won’t fail,” he said, though the conviction in his voice felt thin. Hollow.

Nightlotus studied him for a moment, her expression softening slightly. “This mission is important, yes, but it’s not the end of the world if you encounter setbacks. You’re not fighting an army or a monstrous Demon Lord. Just a shadow that needs to be extinguished before it becomes a real threat.”

A shadow. That’s what they were calling it. Corruption, in its early stages, was like a slow-moving disease. If caught early enough, it could be purged. If ignored, it would fester. Turn worlds into nightmares. Ren knew that much from his former home.

Nightlotus turned and began walking toward the door. She paused in the doorway and glanced back at him, her sharp features softened by the dim light of the observation deck. “This is your mission, Ren. Make it yours. Grow from it.”

With that, she disappeared into the hallway, leaving Ren alone with the hum of the station and the silent, indifferent stars. He stood there for a moment longer, his thoughts circling like the distant stars beyond the station. The first mission. A chance to prove that he wasn’t just a survivor, but a protector.

He clenched his hand around the pendant, his last tether to a past he was trying so hard to forget.

Ren stood alone in his quarters, the sterile light casting long shadows across the bare walls. His clothes, simple yet elegant, were laid out on the narrow bed beside him. Ren’s tunic was sleeveless, a light shade of gray, made of a soft, flowing fabric that was loose enough to allow movement, but cinched at the waist by a thin, braided belt. Under it, he wore a dark green shirt, with delicate, subtle embroidery of ancient Dragonguard sigils from his lost homeworld.

On the table next to his clothes lay his sword, the intricate carvings along the hilt catching the light like threads of silver fire. The weapon was more than just a weapon; it was one of the few remnants of his old life. The scabbard, worn but maintained, was wrapped in the same patterns as the pendant around his neck.

His eyes drifted to the mirror hanging loosely on the wall. He caught his own reflection: tall, strong, but with shadows beneath his eyes. A boy who had become a man too soon. His white hair fell over his forehead, unkempt, framing his face in sharp lines. And his sky-blue eyes stared back at him, clouded with more questions than answers.

With a deep breath, Ren focused inward, summoning the ability that had earned him his place in the Astral Order. His irises shifted, turning from blue to a bright, unnatural white. His Cypher ability activated with a quiet pulse.

Before his eyes, a series of faint, translucent tooltips began to materialize in midair, overlaid onto everything around him. His surroundings became a network of shimmering white lines, symbols, and data points. The sword on the table showed its history in text. He could read with a glance—its weight, its balance, its Chroma resonance. The unreadable pendant around his neck emitted a faint aura, one he’d never fully understood.

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He focused the ability inward, turning the Cypher on himself. His own status appeared in crisp white text in front of him, hovering just at the edge of his vision:

Base Level: 4

Class: Cypher

Chroma Ascendancy: Not Available

Chroma Level: Impure

Ren’s jaw tightened at the last line. *Impure.* He had seen the word enough times now that it had lost its sting, but it still lingered in the back of his mind. His Chroma wasn’t unlocked, wasn’t clean, like others in the Astral Order. It was a reflection of him.

He blinked, and the tooltips vanished. His irises faded back to their usual blue, the world settling into its normal, quiet state once again.

Ren gathered his clothes and dressed quickly. He lifted the sword, its familiar weight grounding him as he slung it over his back. Everything was in place. There was nothing left to do but go.

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At the center of the Spire lay the Leyline Core, an immense chamber filled with swirling, radiant energy. The Leyline itself pulsed within a vast, cylindrical tube that ran through the core of the Spire, a shimmering thread of cosmic power that connected worlds across the Chromaverse. The tunnel of energy vibrated with light, glowing in an otherworldly silver, gold and white, its radiance casting shifting shadows on the walls.

Ren stopped at the edge of the platform that circled the Leyline, the energy radiating warmth against his skin. He had studied these lines, practiced simulations of travel, but standing here now, at the precipice of it all, was something else entirely.

Nightlotus appeared from the shadows, her arrival soundless. She walked toward him, her dark robes sweeping behind her. Her face, as always, remained unreadable.

“You’re ready,” she said, her tone not a question but a statement of fact. She gestured toward the Leyline, where the energy spiraled in rhythmic pulses. “Step into the flow, and it will carry you to Godwana. The path is stable.”

Ren nodded, his eyes never leaving the swirling energy. “And when I arrive?”

“You’ll be near the Valley of the Red Star. From there, the mission begins. Find the source of the corruption, assess the threat, and if necessary, eliminate it.”

He tightened his grip on the pendant. It felt heavier now, as though it knew something he didn’t. A part of him still wondered if he was truly ready for this, but he swallowed the doubt.

“I’ll handle it,” Ren said quietly.

Nightlotus regarded him for a moment longer, her gaze flicking between him and the Leyline. “You’ve been trained well, but remember—this isn’t just about fighting. It’s about learning. You’re alone out there for a reason.”

Ren met her obsidian-shimmering eyes. He nodded once more, stepping forward until the glow of the Leyline bathed him in its light.

Nightlotus stepped back, her figure disappearing into the shadows once more. “Good luck, Ren,” she said, her voice quieter than usual, almost distant.

Without another word, Ren took a breath and stepped into the swirling energy of the Leyline. The moment his foot touched the stream, he felt his entire being pulled in, the sensation like being absorbed by pure light. The force gripped him, and in the blink of an eye, he was shot forward, his body dissolving into the flow of cosmic energy.

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The instant his body touched the surging energy, it felt as though the universe itself grabbed hold of him and pulled him into its current. His vision blurred, and the world dissolved into streaks of light and dark, galaxies whipping past like smudged brushstrokes on a cosmic canvas. Stars, planets, entire systems flashed by, distant but vivid, each one a glimpse into a place far beyond his reach.

For a moment, Ren forgot to breathe. The sensation was overwhelming—like being stretched out across the cosmos, every part of him unraveling and reforming in the space between heartbeats.

Ren’s eyes flicked open, and he could see the white strands of his Cypher power flickering around him, like webs of data that spread out, pulling information from the very energy of the Leyline. He let the ability activate instinctively, watching as tooltips and readings flashed in his vision. He tried to focus, but everything moved too fast—too much data, too many paths.

Then, through the blinding blur of light and motion, something shifted.

A dark stain appeared at the edge of his vision, barely noticeable at first, like a strand of hair in an otherwise pristine waterfall of light. But it grew, expanding, twisting, as though the very fabric of the Leyline was being pulled apart. Ren’s heart skipped. He strained to focus on it, but the Leyline continued to pull him forward, faster and faster, like a river current dragging him toward the unknown.

Ren’s pulse quickened as the darkness wriggled, grasping like a shadow that wanted to swallow the light. His Cypher powers flickered again, showing faint readings—corrupted signals, strange distortions in the energy flow, but nothing he could make sense of.

He tried to adjust his focus, to slow the flow of data so he could understand what he was seeing, but the Leyline moved too quickly, the signals too scattered. His body was pulled along, shot through the endless network of energy, and the stain of Darkness faded as quickly as it had appeared. Yet the feeling of it lingered, gnawing at him.

He didn’t have time to dwell on it. A sudden pull, stronger than before, yanked him forward, and the light around him began to change. The cosmic streaks dimmed, shifting from bright silver, gold and whites to deep, emerald green. The energy of the Leyline began to pulse, its smooth rhythm becoming swelling, thrilling. Ren gritted his teeth, bracing himself as the force of the line pulled him closer to his destination.

Then, with a sudden jolt, everything stopped.

Ren was thrown out of the Leyline, his body slamming into the ground with a force that knocked the breath from his lungs. He rolled instinctively, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword as he came to a stop on the rocky, uneven terrain. Dust filled the air around him, black and thick, swirling like a storm.

He was here. Godwana.

Ren staggered to his feet, his vision still swimming as he took in his surroundings. The Valley of the Red Star stretched out before him, vast and wild. Towering cliffs of red crystal infused stone loomed in the distance, their jagged peaks cutting into the sky like broken teeth. The air was thick with heat, almost suffocating, and the distant sound of rumbling echoed through the valley like the growl of some ancient beast.

He glanced up at the sky. It was different here—darker, with swirling clouds tinged in shades of black and blue. The sun was barely visible through the haze, casting an eerie red glow over everything.

Ren activated his Cypher ability again, his irises shifting to white. Immediately, tooltips and data points flickered into view, scanning the environment around him. But the readings were distorted—like trying to read through thick fog.

Red Chroma levels exceeding natural expectations. The interface showed.

He took a cautious step forward, his hand still resting on the hilt of his sword. Every instinct screamed at him to stay alert. This part of the Valley was eerily silent. His Cypher readings detected nothing of note immediately nearby, but that didn’t mean it was safe.

Ren narrowed his eyes, pushing through the thick dust that hung in the air like smoke. As he moved deeper down into the valley, his senses sharpened. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was watching him, hidden in the shadows of the jagged cliffs.

Then, just as he rounded a bend in the rock, he saw it.

A creature—massive, twisted—stood on the edge of a distant ridge. Its body was grotesque, a mockery of natural dignity and grace. This beast was corrupted, its skin dark and scaly, veins of black energy pulsing beneath its surface. Its eyes glowed with a sickly black light, and even from this distance, Ren could feel the malevolent aura radiating from it.

His Cypher flickered to life, scanning the creature as quickly as it could.

Reptile Kaijura

Base Level: 55

Chroma Color: Green

Category: Life Guardian

Type: Reptile

Description: Descended from the Kaiju Tetanu, these Reptile Life Guardians are fearsome and powerful beasts. They protect the life of their natural environment from anyone that might want to destroy it.

Passive Abilities: Regeneration, Protection against Lightning, Protection against Fire

It was a Kaijura—a corrupted Kaiju descendant, and worse than anything he had expected to encounter this early. Ren’s heart raced. This was no low-level threat. Whatever the Order thought this was, they were wrong.

The creature hadn’t noticed him yet, but Ren knew it wouldn’t be long before it did. He gripped his sword tightly, the weight of it familiar and reassuring. He had no choice now.

This mission was about to become a fight for survival.