Far Beyond the Abyss

Ethan stood still, trying to process everything that had just happened. The massive crater, the intense heat that had turned the desert sand into a lake of black glass, and the colossal toad, now reduced to ashes. The battle felt like something out of an ancient myth, yet he knew it was real—and that he was caught right in the middle of it.

"This would make a great painting," he murmured to himself, trying to find some humor in the chaos. "Too bad I don't know how to paint…"

Seryne looked up at Korrak, still standing atop the building with Ethan. Her calm voice broke the silence.

"Bring him down."

Korrak said nothing. He simply picked Ethan up carefully and leapt from the building, landing gracefully on the ground below.

The wind whipped against Ethan's face, and he let out a startled scream, but as soon as his feet touched the ground, he realized he was completely unharmed.

As the group gathered, Ethan looked around.

Zeta 4 stood near the crater, his metallic body still glowing faintly from the extreme heat.

Kiyoshi remained silent, his sword resting in its sheath, though it still felt sharp enough to cut through the air itself.

Lian Xuan gazed at the horizon, his posture serene as always.

And then, Ethan noticed the Sorcerer.

He was a little ways off, standing in front of a concrete wall from a ruined building. Without warning, he lifted his foot and kicked the wall with full force.

With a loud crash, the wall crumbled, revealing a hole.

Ethan's eyes widened. "What the hell is he doing now?"

But the Sorcerer wasn't paying attention to the others. He stepped closer to the hole and, to Ethan's absolute confusion, began speaking directly to it.

Breaking the Fourth Wall

The Sorcerer leaned in, his mask shifting to display a sly grin. He pointed directly at the reader, ignoring the rest of the group entirely.

"Ah, I see you there! Curious as always!" he exclaimed, dramatically gesturing. "Allow me to take this moment to clarify something important. After all, you must be wondering: 'What are these horrendous monsters?' Well, let me enlighten you."

He crossed his arms, tilting his head slightly as his mask's eyes gleamed.

"The corruption of this world," he began, "twists everything it touches into grotesque abominations. And, so you know exactly what we're up against, I've taken the liberty of developing a little classification system. Ready?"

He clapped his hands together, as if waiting for a response.

"First, we have the Minor Aberrations. Ah, level 1! Newly corrupted beings, still retaining traces of their original form. They're the easiest to deal with, but don't be fooled—enough of them can still be lethal. Those insect swarms we encountered earlier? Just mere hatchlings in their Aberrant stage. A shame not all of you got to appreciate the spectacle!"

The Sorcerer spun dramatically, his cloak billowing behind him.

"Now, level 2: Predators. Ah, these are fast, lethal, built to hunt. We haven't faced a real one yet, but… who knows what fate has in store?"

He chuckled—a low, almost unhinged laugh—before continuing.

"Then we come to the Corrupted Warriors, level 3. Creatures adapted for combat, possessing brute strength and basic strategies. The kind of thing you wouldn't want to encounter in a dark alley. Luckily, we haven't run into any of those yet… but it's only a matter of time."

The Sorcerer turned back toward the hole in the wall, lowering his voice as if revealing a secret.

"And then we have the Colossi, level 4. That giant toad we just fought? One of them. Massive monsters, capable of mass destruction with a single movement. And that one, my friends, was merely in its Titan Deformed stage. Can you imagine what it would be like to face an Avatar of Despair?"

He paused, letting the weight of his words sink in.

"And finally, level 5: Elemental Corrupted Beings. Creatures that warp the very elements of the world itself. They are rare, dangerous, and… well, I'll keep those details to myself for now. Don't want to spoil the surprise!"

With that, he turned away and walked back to the group, leaving the hole behind.

End of the Fourth Wall Break

The group gathered inside the building the Sorcerer had just kicked open.

Seryne, ever pragmatic, improvised a bench using pieces of concrete and metal. She and Ethan sat side by side, and though Ethan felt restless, he tried not to show it.

Zeta 4, on the other hand, seemed occupied with something far more solemn.

The machine knelt, speaking in a low, mechanical tone.

His arms were raised, and he recited the honorific names of his Machine God, attempting to reestablish a connection.

"The Infinite Gear.

The Father of Automata.

The Guardian of Mechanical Order.

The Cybernetic Will.

The Forger of Steel Realities.

The Eye That Never Blinks."

His voice was firm and reverent. After each title, he paused, as if awaiting a divine response.

Only silence answered him.

Slowly, Zeta 4 lowered his arms and rose to his feet. Though his posture remained rigid and unreadable, a subtle tension in his metallic frame hinted at his frustration.

Meanwhile, Ethan turned to Seryne, her silver hair falling gracefully over her shoulders. Her presence was so calm and ethereal that his heart quickened in his chest.

He knew he shouldn't be thinking about that, but… well, here he was.

"So…" he began, trying to hide his nervousness. "Seryne, what was your world like? Where do you come from?"

She turned to him, her voice soft and melodic, filling the space like a distant lullaby.

"I come from a place where destiny is revered. Where those who serve it are considered the most worthy. There, I am known as the Lady of Fate."

She explained how her role was to preserve the chain of events that shaped the world.

"My people serve fate, protecting it from outside interference that could shatter its harmony."

From the corner of the room, Lian Xuan, leaning against a wall, listened intently. He finally spoke, his voice rich with wisdom.

"Would you say there is freedom in your world, Seryne?"

She fell silent for a moment before responding.

"I believe so… but only for those who do not see fate. The more you perceive it, the more you realize how trapped you are."

Her gaze dropped slightly, thoughtful.

"I did what I could to change that. My order once manipulated the world from the shadows, but I guided them to be guardians, not manipulators. I hope… they are well."

Lian Xuan let out a deep sigh.

"It must be the same in all worlds.

Fate is the greatest jailer of all."