CHAPTER 83 — RECKONING OF CREATION
The laboratory shivered,not in chaos,in awareness,walls flexed under no visible force.
Steel beams groaned, strained by something that wasn't there. Lights flickered unevenly. Machinery stuttered, as if forgetting its purpose.
The air tightened like a bowstring pulled too far,then...BOOM!!
The ceiling ruptured.
A shadow cut through the dome, slicing across the trembling air,then dropped.
The ground split beneath it. Pillars shattered as a violent shockwave tore through the chamber, folding half the laboratory inward as stone and steel collapsed in a deafening cascade.dust surged. Sparks scattering as the echoes rolled outward .
From the ruin, a figure rose.
Tall, composed.Dust slid from her shoulders as she stepped forward, her presence settling into the space,not dreadful, not overwhelming..just there, as if it had always belonged..crimson Six.
Her gaze swept the destruction once.
Then stopped at the center as a body lay there... still
It's form was bare,Unmarked..Wrong.
Dark hair, streaked faintly with silver, fell across its face. Skin smooth to the point of discomfort. Not fragile,not strong, just Unfamiliar.
The compass in her hand trembled, locking unto the body before her as her crimson gaze narrowed at this turn of event.
Just as she was about to reach out her senses to probe the being before her.
Movement,slow,uneven,as gradually..an am shifting ,as if the motion arrived before the body understood it.placing both hands on the ruined earth, It pushed.
Trying to stand,but such a simple act required great effort as It's limbs trembled. as though testing themselves for the first time, muscles uncoordinated, yet there was a rhythm in the chaos, a symmetry beneath the faltering.
It tried again. But Fell,it's limbs giving way as it Collapsed. But as if not registering the failures..it rose.This time, it stayed standing.
Not stable,But enough.
Crimson Six didn't move,She simply watched as her gaze took in the figure of the being before her
Six feet. Lean. Structured without excess. Every line of its form felt… deliberate.
Slowly,Its eyes opened.They met hers.but at that moment,Something in her paused.
Not pressure,not even fear.but Something quieter, predatory..
Then as suddenly as it appeared,it was gone.
Regaining her bearing, crimson six took a step forward as she went ahead to ask the question that had recently surfaced in her mind
"Who are you"
The being before her tilted its head slightly, Curiosity tugging at the edge of its vision
As Its lips parted. deliberately trying to form sound but to no avail.
It touched its throat, fingers pressing lightly, as if searching for something missing. Its hand drifted outward, brushing the air, uncertain..Curious
Crimson Six's eyes narrowed.
The compass trembling as a thin crack traced across its surface.
"…Leylin." the name came slower this time.
A prob, hearing this, the being stilled.Its gaze sharpened slightly.
Crimson Six felt it.that hesitation.
Her voice hardened.
"What have you done ?"
Silence,the being before her ignored her questions as It's Stance shifted.
More stable now.
Fingers flexing,cleaner, more controlled. Shoulders aligning. Balance correcting itself in small, precise adjustments.
Slowly, It's mouth opened as a single word left it's lips
"§€#¥—"
At first...since ,then as if reality had taken its time to catch up..the air dipped.Dust hanging between them stilled for a fraction too long as the faint hum of broken machinery skipped..then resumed.
Crimson Six's breath slowed,not by choice.
She didn't understand the word's
But..she somehow understood the intent.
As her gaze dropped to her chest.
The core embedded within her armor trembled violently. As if answering a call
The being raised its hand,not forcefully,not urgently,Casually.the core trembled further as crimson Six's body trembled alongside it..and then,it tore free.
ripped from her armor with a sharp crack, as it crossed the distance instantly..
settling into the palm of the being before her
Seeing this Crimson Six moved,but was a bit
too late.as the core sank into his skin.
Seamlessly
A faint red glow passed through his eyes..then faded.
A small smile touched his lips.
Not warm,Not cold,Simply… satisfied.
Crimson Six stopped.
Not because she couldn't move.
Because something in her understood
That whatever stood before her wasn't the same calculated being she had fought in the battlefield,this ... thing,was on a different scale entirely