Kai’s chest burned where the Beast’s claws had struck him, but the pain was distant, drowned out by the chaos swirling around him. The air crackled with energy, dark and electric, as the vortex of shadows enveloped him. The Solar Eclipse Beast roared, its molten cracks flickering as if the darkness was sapping its strength. Kai could feel the pull of the vortex, a force tugging at his very soul, and for a moment, he thought he might be torn apart.

Then, the voice spoke again, cold and mechanical, echoing in his mind.

"Void Eclipse System Activated. Welcome, Sovereign."

Kai’s breath caught in his throat. Sovereign? The word echoed in his mind, stirring memories of the old legends he’d heard as a child. Sovereigns were said to be the only ones who could open the Eclipse Gate, the forbidden portal to the Void Realm. But they were just stories, weren’t they?

The Beast lunged again, snapping him out of his thoughts. Instinctively, Kai raised his hand, and the shadows responded. A wave of darkness surged forward, slamming into the Beast and sending it crashing into the wall. The creature howled, its molten cracks dimming further, but it wasn’t dead. It staggered to its feet, its glowing eyes fixed on Kai with a mixture of rage and fear.

Kai didn’t have time to process what had just happened. His AR glasses flickered, the display now overlaid with strange, glowing symbols. A new message appeared:

"Eclipse Quest: Defeat the Solar Eclipse Beast. Reward: Void Points x200, Void Ability Unlock."

A quest? Kai barely had time to register the words before the Beast charged again. This time, he was ready. He focused on the energy within him, the strange, chaotic power that had awakened. It felt like a storm raging just beneath his skin, wild and untamed. He reached for it, and the shadows answered.

The darkness surged around him, forming a blade of pure void energy in his hand. It was weightless yet solid, humming with power. Kai swung it at the Beast, and the blade sliced through its molten armor like it was paper. The creature let out a final, guttural roar before collapsing, its body dissolving into ash.

Kai stood there, breathing heavily, the void blade dissipating into shadows. His AR glasses flashed again:

"Quest Complete. Void Points x200 Acquired. New Ability Unlocked: Void Step."

Before he could process what that meant, the voice spoke again.

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"Corruption Meter: 15%. Warning: Prolonged use of Void Energy may result in permanent damage."

Corruption Meter? Kai’s mind raced. He didn’t understand half of what was happening, but one thing was clear: this power came with a cost. He could feel it already, a faint ache in his chest, like something was gnawing at him from the inside.

The station was silent now, the only sound the faint hum of his AR glasses. Kai sank to the ground, his legs trembling. He stared at the pile of ash that had been the Beast, his mind reeling. He’d just killed a Solar Eclipse Beast. Alone. Without a Gatekeeper’s power. How was that possible?

The voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Void Eclipse System Initialization Complete. Sovereign Status Confirmed. Accessing Eclipse Archives…"

A flood of information filled his vision, lines of text and images scrolling past too quickly for him to read. He caught glimpses of things—ancient symbols, maps of the Void Realm, diagrams of Eclipse Gates—but it was overwhelming. He closed his eyes, trying to block it out, but the voice continued.

"Primary Objective: Restore Balance to the Celestial and Void Realms. Secondary Objective: Seal the Eclipse Gates Permanently."

Kai opened his eyes, the information fading from his vision. “What are you?” he muttered, his voice barely above a whisper.

The voice didn’t answer. Instead, a new message appeared:

"Void Market Unlocked. Accessible During Eclipses. Void Points Required for Transactions."

Kai frowned. A market? What kind of market could exist in a place like this? Before he could ask, another message popped up:

"Eclipse Imminent: 10 Minutes Until Solar Eclipse Ends. Seek Shelter Immediately."

Shelter. Right. He was still in the subway station, and while the Beast was gone, there could be more. He needed to move.

Kai grabbed his backpack and slung it over his shoulder, wincing as the movement pulled at the wound on his chest. He glanced down and saw that his shirt was torn, the fabric stained with blood. The Beast’s claws had left deep gashes, but strangely, the pain was fading. He touched the wound and felt a faint warmth, like the shadows were healing him.

He didn’t have time to dwell on it. The Eclipse would end soon, and he needed to get out of here before the Beasts retreated and the area was swarmed by scavengers or worse—Gatekeepers. He couldn’t let anyone see him like this, not with this power. They’d either fear him or try to exploit him, and he wasn’t sure which was worse.

As he climbed the stairs out of the station, the sky began to lighten. The oppressive weight of the Eclipse lifted, and the world felt normal again—or as normal as it could be in a world ruled by Eclipses. Kai took a deep breath, the cool air filling his lungs. He felt different, like something inside him had shifted. He wasn’t just a scavenger anymore. He was something more. Something dangerous.

The voice spoke one last time as he stepped into the sunlight.

"Sovereign Status Confirmed. Prepare for the Next Eclipse."

Kai didn’t know what that meant, but he had a feeling his life was about to change in ways he couldn’t imagine. For better or worse, he was no longer just Kai Ren, the failed Gatekeeper. He was a Sovereign, and the Void Eclipse System had chosen him for a reason.

As he walked away from the abandoned town, the weight of that realization settled on his shoulders. The world was dangerous enough without Eclipse Beasts and Gatekeepers. Now, he had to navigate a new kind of danger—one that came from within.