Abby's fingers dug into Mike's wrist as the bone locket swung between them. The photograph of Captain Riggs seemed to move in the firelight—his eyes flickering black for a heartbeat.
"You don't understand," Abby hissed. "This mark on your chest isn't just a bridge - it's a bargain. The shadow gave it to my father too... before it ate him."
The spirit cave's blue fungi pulsed as Abby shoved Mike against Riggs' skeleton. The bone locket swung between them, casting jagged shadows across the cave walls.
"The elders never told you where my father really died," Abby snarled. She pressed the locket into Mike's scar, making the golden veins throb. "Not in the jungle. In your world. The shadow pushed him through."
System Alert:
» MARK MEMORY FRAGMENT UNLOCKED
» FLASHBACK: Riggs' hospital bed surrounded by tribal warriors—their eyes black with shadow
Mike's vision doubled—
Abby dragged Mike through the cave's hidden tunnel, her grip iron-tight. "Move, starwalker. Unless you want your soul ripped in half."
They emerged in a subterranean cavern, its ceiling dripping with luminescent moss. At the center lay the sacred pool—water so still it reflected the constellations painted on the cave ceiling.
"Elder Moko's secret," Abby said, kicking aside human finger bones encircling the pool. "Where the first bridge drowned."
She didn't let Mike resist. A shove sent him plunging into the freezing water—
Beeping machines. Shouting in Spanish.
Mike's hospital body vomited black fluid onto the ECG leads. Lina screamed as his pupils dilated into golden slits.
"His blood!" A nurse recoiled as Mike's IV blood bag swirled into tribal patterns.
Then combat erupted in both worlds.
Jungle Side:
~ Enemies: Shadow-Touched Tribesmen (Lv.30-35) – Warriors possessed by the shadow's whispers, their spears dripping liquid darkness.
~ Abby's Fight: She dueled two warriors at once, her daggers carving through their smoke-like flesh. Every kill made their hospital-side counterparts collapse mid-surgery.
~ Marpe's Betrayal: He emerged from the tunnel, his jaguar cloak sewn with human teeth. "The elders voted," he spat. "Your corpse will make a better bridge."
Hospital Side:
~ Enemies: Shadow-Corrupted Staff – Nurses moved with unnatural speed, their needles aiming for Mike's golden scar.
~ Lina's Role: She grabbed a fire extinguisher, blasting a doctor whose shadow stretched toward Mike's bed.
~ Aftermath: Equipment was destroyed. Six staff members were unconscious. Security footage later showed Mike floating two inches above the bed during the incident.
Marpe raised a black obsidian knife—the same one used in Riggs' death. "The shadow promised us power," he growled. "Your world's weapons. Its cities. All we sacrifice is you."
Abby leapt between them, taking the blade through her shoulder. Her blood hit the sacred pool—
Vision Unleashed:
The pool showed every past bridge's death, their skeletons piled beneath the village.
Elder Moko binding the shadow with Riggs' dying breath.A child's voice (Mike's daughter?): "Daddy, why do you have two shadows?"
The heart monitor flatlined for 22 seconds—then Mike gasped awake.
Hospital Aftermath:
Lina clutched his hand—now branded with Abby's tribal mark.Doctors whispered about "mass hysteria" as the corrupted staff remembered nothing.On Mike's chart: "Patient's blood type changed from O+ to unidentified golden substance."
Jungle Aftermath:
Abby collapsed, her wound leaking shadow and blood.Marpe fled into the tunnels, whispering: "The sync completes at the next moon."The System flashed:
» REALITY SYNCHRONIZATION: 89%
» WARNING: At 90%, the shadow walks in both worlds.
~
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Key Expansions:
Locations Clarified:
~ Spirit cave → Sacred pool via hidden tunnel (now shown)
~ Firelight comes from Abby's torch in the cave
Tribal Betrayal:
~ Marpe acts as the elders' enforcer
~ Revealed the tribe sacrifices bridges for shadow-gifted power
Hospital Consequences:
~ Physical evidence remains (golden blood type, security footage)
~ Staff remember nothing, but Lina keeps the tribal mark
Enemy Types:
~ Jungle: Possessed warriors (shadow-spears)
~ Hospital: Corrupted staff (shadow-needles)