The world around Orin, Mira, and Kaelen had always felt vast, but now, as they stood together in the heart of a universe on the brink of unraveling, it felt infinitely larger. The stars above them twisted, their light flickering as though struggling to maintain their hold on the fabric of existence. Orin's hand tightened around the Skybrand, the last vestige of the Flame of Origin's power still alive within him.
"It's happening faster than I thought," Kaelen murmured, his gaze fixed on the horizon where the sky had begun to split apart like fragile glass. "The rift—it's spreading."
"We need to find the source," Mira said, her voice urgent but steady. "The Outliers aren't just an old myth. They're a living, breathing force—and they're tearing the universe apart from the inside."
Orin nodded, a sense of unease settling in his chest. The Hollow Star might have been healed, but this new threat was something far more primal—something older. The Outliers were not bound by the laws of reality or the creation of stars. They existed to unmake. And if they succeeded, everything would fall into nothingness.
"We'll have to go to the heart of the distortion," Orin said. His voice was firm, but there was a quiet fear in his heart. The Void was a place beyond comprehension. Even with the Skybrand's power, the journey into the rift would be perilous. They would be stepping into the unknown, where nothing—nothing—was guaranteed to survive.
"I don't like the idea of stepping into the Void," Mira said, her hand tightening on the hilt of her sword. "It's not just the Outliers we'll have to contend with. The very space between worlds is a hostile force. I've heard stories of ships getting lost, of travelers never returning."
"We don't have a choice," Kaelen said. His voice was quiet but resolute. "The Outliers have already broken through the edges of reality. If we don't stop them now, they'll be able to reach the core of the universe. There'll be nothing left to save."
Orin turned toward the heart of the distortion, where the sky had started to bend and fracture. The air itself seemed to shimmer, the stars rippling like water disturbed by a heavy hand.
"Then we go," Orin said, his voice carrying the weight of responsibility. "We end this."
---
Meanwhile, in the distant galaxy where Eryssa stood, the dark crystal she had carried for millennia now hummed with a dark energy that seemed to vibrate against the very bones of the universe. The rift was growing—its edges crackling with energy, its presence like a wound in the fabric of existence.
Sable remained silent beside her, watching the cosmic disturbance with a detached interest, though his presence was like a shadow pressing against the light. His mask shimmered as though it too was a part of the void itself.
"The Outliers are closer than I thought," Eryssa said, her voice cold and calm as ever. She watched the ripples across the stars, her dark eyes calculating. "The seal is nearly gone. But they have not yet crossed over."
Sable's voice was soft, though it carried an undertone of something darker, something almost ancient. "They have always been close, Eryssa. The Hollow Star was meant to keep them out, yes. But it was also meant to contain them. That was why the barrier existed in the first place."
Eryssa turned to him, her expression unreadable. "I know that, Sable. I know what the stars were meant to be." She looked back at the dark crystal in her hand. "But the Outliers have no place here. This world was never meant to carry them. We must close the rift."
"And how will you do that?" Sable asked, his tone laced with a touch of skepticism. "The rift is growing too powerful. If you try to close it, you risk tearing the fabric of reality further."
Eryssa's gaze hardened, her fingers tightening around the crystal. "I'll do whatever it takes."
---
Orin, Mira, and Kaelen moved through the landscape of fractured reality, the space between worlds growing thinner with every step. The sky above them twisted unnaturally, its colors deepening into hues of black and purple. There was no longer any clear boundary between what was real and what wasn't. The universe seemed to stretch and collapse all at once.
"What is this place?" Mira asked, her voice barely a whisper. She reached out as if to touch the air, but her fingers passed through it like smoke.
"This is the border," Kaelen said, his eyes scanning the shifting skies. "The space between worlds. It's not meant to be traveled by anyone, especially not mortals. The Outliers—they are born from this place."
Orin's heart raced. He could feel the Skybrand pulsing in time with the strange energy of the rift. Every beat seemed to pull at him, as if the very universe were calling to him.
"We're getting closer," Orin said, his voice tight. "I can feel it."
Suddenly, the rift ahead of them flared with an intense, blinding light. The ground beneath their feet shifted, and the sky seemed to open up in front of them, revealing an endless void.
From within the rift, figures began to emerge. Their forms were fluid, like shadows given shape, their movements smooth and predatory. They were the Outliers—beings born from the absence between stars, made from the stuff of nothingness.
Orin stepped forward, drawing the Skybrand with a steady hand, its blade glowing with the power of the Flame of Origin. "Prepare yourselves," he said, his voice low and determined. "This is what we've come for."
The Outliers stopped, their eyes—if they could be called eyes—fixated on the three of them. There was no sound, no speech. Only a deep, unsettling silence that seemed to press against the soul.
Then, the sky shattered.