Aiden's POVMy heart is still pounding, my thoughts a tangled mess, when Aiden Prime steps closer. Every step he takes feels like a slow motion sequence, a moment that stretches out forever. My mind is racing, trying to comprehend what just happened, what I just did. Mila is still standing there, looking at me with wide, terrified eyes, and it feels like the world is slipping through my fingers."You changed everything," Aiden Prime says, his voice as calm and cold as always. But there’s something there—a subtle edge to his words that gnaws at me. His eyes hold a certain depth, an understanding I’m not sure I can grasp.“But that doesn’t mean you won.”The words hit me like a slap in the face. My stomach twists, and a sense of unease bubbles up inside me. What did I miss?I look at him, blinking rapidly as the weight of his statement settles over me. “What do you mean?” I ask, struggling to keep my voice steady. “I defeated the Abyss. I fixed this. Everything is different now. This is

Aiden’s POVI stand frozen, back pressed against Prime’s, the sound of the wind howling through the shattered sky. The ground beneath us is still shaking, the very earth trembling as if the world itself is trying to escape the chaos we’ve unleashed. My breath is ragged in my chest, and all I can feel is the pounding of my heart, beating so loud that it drowns out everything else.The creatures—the Forgotten Ones, as Prime called them—continue to emerge from the rift in the sky. They move like smoke, their bodies formless and shifting, as if made of liquid shadow. There’s no clear shape to them, no recognizable form. Just darkness, moving with an unnatural purpose.They are not from the Abyss. They are something far older. And they are here because of me.I clench my fists at my sides, the muscles in my arms tensing with barely contained rage. “Mila…” I whisper under my breath, the name burning in my throat. I can’t lose her. Not again. I won’t let these things take her. Not when I’ve

Aiden's POVI don't know how long I've been standing here. The seconds stretch into minutes, then hours, until time itself feels irrelevant. The endless white around me is suffocating, and the only sound is the echo of my own breath. I try to move, but it’s as if the very air is holding me in place, suffocating me in its weight. The words, “Find me,” keep ringing in my mind, and they cut through my thoughts like a knife, each repetition reminding me of the one person I’ve been desperately trying to reach: Mila.My chest tightens. “I won’t lose you again,” I whisper to myself. My voice is barely audible, swallowed by the vastness of the void. I don’t care how impossible it seems. I won’t give up. Not now. Not when I know she’s out there. Somewhere.But how do I escape this place?How do I reach her when I don’t even know where here is?I close my eyes and grit my teeth, willing myself to find an answer. I focus on the pulse of my heart, the steady rhythm that still beats despite every

Aiden's POVThe world spins in chaotic blur as I stagger to my feet, my heart racing. The pain in my chest is overwhelming, but it’s not just from the blade. It’s the realization that the woman in front of me—Mila—isn’t the same anymore. The coldness in her eyes, the lethal grace with which she moves... This is not the girl I’ve loved. This is something else. Someone else.I barely dodge the next strike, feeling the rush of wind as her energy blade slices through the air mere inches from my neck. I dive to the side, the ground scraping against my skin as I scramble to my feet.“Mila, it’s me!” I shout, desperation and confusion clawing at my throat. My words come out in gasps, but she doesn’t even pause. She doesn’t react at all, like she can’t hear me.She’s faster, so much faster than I’ve ever known her to be. Her movements are sharp, precise, almost... predatory. Every strike is deliberate, a perfect, lethal rhythm. I block and counter, but it’s like fighting a shadow. No matter

Aiden’s POVMy body aches, every muscle screaming in protest as I try to push myself back onto my feet. But the pressure around me is too much. The air is thick with dark energy, and I can feel it tightening around my chest, pulling at my soul. The older version of myself—he’s powerful, terrifying. And he’s waiting.Every step he takes toward me feels like the earth itself is trembling beneath him. He doesn’t move quickly, but each stride is calculated, purposeful. I know he’s in no hurry. He’s letting me feel the weight of the inevitability.I look up at him, my breath coming in ragged gasps. I can barely focus through the haze of pain clouding my vision.“You’re stronger than me,” I manage to say, forcing the words through clenched teeth. “But I’m not backing down. You won’t break me.”He stops in front of me, his expression unreadable. His eyes—those dark, hollow eyes—pierce through me, and for a moment, I can’t breathe. He’s me. But he’s not. And I don’t know how to fight that.“