The void beyond creation trembled.
Luke slowly turned in the endless darkness, golden Balance light flickering around his small body while distant ancient eyes opened one after another across infinity itself.
Massive shapes moved beneath the void.
Too large and tooooo old and very wrong.
Even the Balance inside him reacted with alarm.
Vaelthoros' corrupted form shifted uneasily nearby, the ancient Primordial staring into the darkness with something Luke never expected to see from such a being.
Fear.
The sleeping entities beyond the void were enormous beyond imagination.
Luke could barely comprehend their forms.
Some resembled collapsing stars wrapped in endless darkness.
Others moved like living storms between dimensions.
One appeared as a gigantic skeletal serpent coiled around broken fragments of dead realms.
And every single one of them felt far older than Vaelthoros.
The little light that had begun returning to Vaelthoros dimmed uneasily.
"THEY MUST NOT AWAKEN."
Luke swallowed hard.
"How many are there?"
Silence.
Then slowly: "TOO MANY."
The answer sent cold fear through him.
The void trembled harder as the sleeping Primordials sensed the Heart's awakening through Luke. Ancient whispers echoed across the darkness like forgotten gods speaking in dead languages.
The Balance inside Luke flared instinctively in response.
And almost immediately,dozens of colossal eyes opened fully.
The void screamed. Luke gasped as unbearable pressure slammed into him from every direction.
The sleeping Primordials had noticed him. Golden light exploded around his body defensively while Vaelthoros moved in front of him almost instinctively.
Luke froze.
The Primordial was protecting him.
Vaelthoros' voice thundered across the void furiously.
"HE IS NOT YOURS!"
The darkness answered with ancient roars powerful enough to distort existence itself.
Luke nearly lost consciousness from the pressure alone.
one of the Primordials began moving toward them.
Slowly. Awfully slowly. But even that slight movement caused reality around them to fracture.
Luke's eyes widened in horror because the creature looked endless.
A gigantic being made from darkness and shattered celestial matter emerged partially from the void, its body covered in countless sealed mouths whispering endlessly. Six massive glowing eyes stared directly at Luke.
And unlike Vaelthoros…this one radiated pure hatred. No sorrow. No loneliness. No pain. Only hunger.
Vaelthoros growled deeply.
"NERATH-KUL." The monstrous entity smiled...Or at least…
the endless mouths across its body twisted into something resembling one.
"THE HEART RETURNS…" Its voice felt like poison crawling across reality itself.
Luke instinctively stepped backward.
Nerath-Kul's six eyes narrowed immediately.
"A CHILD?" The Primordial laughed.
The sound nearly shattered Luke's Balance threads instantly.
"THIS IS WHAT CREATION SENDS AGAINST US NOW?" Golden energy surged around Luke defensively.
Vaelthoros remained firmly between them. "LEAVE."
Nerath-Kul's gaze shifted toward the partially purified Primordial.
And suddenly the void became colder.
"YOU HAVE BEEN TOUCHED BY BALANCE." Vaelthoros said nothing.
But Luke felt shame ripple through the ancient being beside him.
The other Primordials began stirring harder now.
Whispers spread through the void endlessly.
The Heart has awakened. The Balance lives again. The heir has come.
Nerath-Kul floated closer slowly.
The pressure became unbearable.
Luke's knees nearly buckled as the Balance inside him fought to protect him from collapsing entirely.
"You should not move anymore," Luke whispered weakly toward Vaelthoros. "The purification isn't complete yet."
Vaelthoros did not look at him.
"IF I FALL…"Its voice rumbled softly.
"THEY WILL DEVOUR YOU."
Luke stared at the Primordial silently.
Then quietly: "You're protecting me."
Vaelthoros became still.
Almost confused by the statement itself.
Nerath-Kul laughed again darkly.
"LOOK AT YOU."
The massive creature's eyes glowed brighter.
"CHAOS DEFENDING BALANCE." The void shook violently. "DISGUSTING."
Then Nerath-Kul attacked.
The darkness exploded forward like the death of stars.
Luke reacted instantly this time.
Golden Balance threads erupted from his body magnificently, forming massive barriers of living light while Vaelthoros slammed directly into the incoming primordial storm.
The collision shattered portions of the void itself.
Luke cried out as the force sent him flying backward through endless darkness.
Vaelthoros roared in fury while the two Primordials clashed violently across the infinite void.
But Vaelthoros was weaker now.
The purification had stripped away much of the chaotic corruption empowering it for ages.
Nerath-Kul noticed immediately.
And smiled.
"YOU ARE DYING, BROTHER."
Vaelthoros staggered as primordial claws tore through its body. Ancient darkness spilled into the void like bleeding night itself.
Luke's eyes widened.
"VAELTHOROS!"
The Primordial turned toward him sharply.
And for the first time…
Luke saw fear not for itself,but for him. "RUN!"
The Balance inside Luke reacted violently. Golden light surged around him again as the Heart's power answered his emotions instinctively.then a familiar voice echoed faintly through the void.
Luke…
His eyes widened instantly.
"Dad?"
The golden thread connecting him to Lucien still remained.
Weak. But alive.
And through that thread…
the Heart Chamber was calling him back.
Vaelthoros noticed the connection immediately.
Nerath-Kul noticed too.
And suddenly the monstrous Primordial's six eyes widened with terrible realization.
"THE SANCTUARY STILL STANDS."
Luke's heart dropped.
Because now he understood.
If these Primordials followed the connection home....all realms would fall.
Nerath-Kul's mouths opened together in horrifying delight.
"WE HAVE FOUND THE WAY BACK."