The symbol on Ochieng's palm pulsed. It wasn't just a mark—it was alive.
Cassandra took a cautious step back, eyes narrowing. "Ochieng… that symbol… it shouldn't exist."
Lin Feng's expression darkened. "You saw something, didn't you?"
Ochieng clenched his fist. The moment he did, a wave of something unnatural surged through his body. He felt it crawling under his skin—an echo of that abyss, whispering, taunting. But he pushed it down.
"I saw… something." His voice was hoarse. "Or maybe it saw me."
The air grew heavier. Lin Feng and Cassandra exchanged a look, the kind that didn't need words to translate. Something had changed.
Before they could process it, a deep tremor shook the cavern.
The blue glow of Cassandra's scanner flickered violently. Lin Feng cursed, grabbing the nearest wall for balance. Rocks tumbled from the ceiling.
Then—a sound.
A deep, guttural growl.
Not from above. Not from around them.
From below.
Ochieng's pulse spiked. The ground beneath them cracked.
Cassandra barely had time to shout before a dark claw—massive, jagged—ripped through the stone, reaching toward them.
Something was coming.
Ochieng's mark burned.
And then—the abyss screamed.