The *Eclipse Chaser* shuddered as it descended through the sulfurous clouds, its bronze hull groaning under the strain. Eldrin gripped the railing of the observation deck, his knuckles white. Below them, the *Sunken Spire* jutted from the earth like a broken boneits obsidian surface veined with pulsating blue light.
The mechanical spider-mech clung to the airship's underbelly, its pilot*Nim*hollering something unintelligible over the roar of the engines.
Liora appeared beside him, her emerald eyes reflecting the spire's eerie glow. Welcome to the graveyard of Titans," she said, her voice barely audible over the wind. Try not to die before we find what we need."
Eldrin's sigils flared in response to the spire's energy, a dull ache spreading up his arms. *Like calls to like.
---
The air inside the *Ashen Archives* was thick with the scent of ozone layer and crumbling parchment. Towering shelves stretched into the darkness, their contentsancient tomes, metal scrolls, and crystalline tabletshumming with residual Titan magic.
Eldrin's boots sank into the ash-covered floor as he followed Liora, the sigils on his skin flickering like dying stars.
Dont touch anything,"Liora warned, her fingers trailing over a shelf. The moment she spoke, the books *moved*.
Thousands of parchment sheets erupted from the shelves, transforming into razor-winged birds that dove at them withunnatural precision. Nim's mechanical spider-legs *clicked* as she vaulted forward, her goggles flashing. *Incoming!*"
Eldrin ducked as a book-bird sliced past his cheek, drawing blood. Liora raised a hand, and a barrier of crystalline energy shimmered into existencej- ust in time to deflect a volley of lethal pages.
The archives defend themselves,"Liora hissed, her voice strained. Find the*Titan Codex*it's bound in black metal. *Now!*"
Nim's spider-mech skittered up the nearest shelf, its clawed legs shredding through the avian onslaught. Eldrin, *cover me!*"
Eldrin clenched his fists, willing the chaos to rise.
The sigils ignited, and liquid shadow pooled in his palms. With a roar, he unleashed a wave of dark fire, incinerating a swarm of book-birds mid-flight. The heat seared his skin, but the pain was distantdrowned out by the power thrumming in his veins.
Nim whooped as she ripped a massive tome from the shelf. Got it!"
The moment the *Codex* left its resting place, the walls *shuddered*. Runes flared to life, their light searing Eldrin's vision. A deep *groan* echoed through the archivesthe sound of ancient machinery awakening.
*Run!*"Liora screamed.
The floor collapsed beneath them.
--
Eldrin tumbled through darkness, landing hard on a stone platform. The airhere was colder, heavier*older*. Blue torches flickered to life, revealing a circular chamber lined with towering bronze automatons. Their hollow eyes glowed with the same eerie light as the spire.
Titan guards," Nim whispered, her spider-mech retracting into a compact form on her back. *Not good.*"
Liora wiped blood from her lip, her gaze locked on the *Codex* in Nim's arms. The shards location is in there. We need to *move*."
One of the automatons *twitched*, its joints screeching after centuries of disuse. Then, with a sound like grinding bones, it *lurched* forward.
Eldrin's sigils burned. *Go!*"
The trio sprinted as the guards awakened in unison, their massive fists slamming into the ground where theyd stood moments before. Nim cursed as she fumbled with the *Codex*, her fingers flying over its metallic pages. The shard's in the *heart chamber*but the maps encrypted!"
Liora grabbed Eldrin's wrist, her nails digging into his flesh. *You* have to activate the door."She pointed to a massive seal engraved in the floora perfect match for the sigils on his skin.
Eldrin didt hesitate. He pressed his palm to the seal.
*Agony.*
The sigils *erupted*, their light searing through his veins. The door groaned open, revealing a narrow passagebut the guards were closing in.
Nim's spider-mech *whirred* as she launched a grappling hook toward the ceiling. I'll hold them off! *Get the shard!*"
Liora yanked Eldrin into the passage just as Nims contraption exploded behind them, showering the chamber with shrapnel and fire.
---
The heart chamber was smaller than Eldrin expectedadomed room with a single pedestal at its center. On it rested a pulsingshard of blue crystal, its light casting jagged shadows across the walls.
Liora's breath hitched. *The third shard.*"
Eldrin stepped forward, drawn by the shard's call. The moment his fingers brushed its surface, a *vision*slammed into him:
*Ophira, standing atop a mountain of corpses, her armor fused with shards. The sky torn open, a maw of endless hunger. And a voice*his *voicewhisper ing:* **Join me."*
He recoiled, the shard clattering to the ground.
Liora snatched it up, her eyes alight with triumphuntil the shadows*moved*.
A figure emerged from the darkness*Tira*, her body half-consumed by the shard's corruption. One eye was human, wide with terror: the other glowed the same eerie blue as the crystal.
*She's here,*"Tira whispered, her voice splitting into two tonesone gentle, one feral.
Then the walls *exploded*.
Blackthorn soldiers poured into the chamber, their weapons aimed at Eldrin' s chest. And behind them, wreathed in smoke and malice, stood *Ophira's shadow*a-living darkness wearing his sister's smile.
Hello, little brother," it crooned. Did you really think you could steal from me?"
Liora's grip on the shard tightened. *Run.*"
The world dissolved into chaos.