The Titan's single massive eye pulsed like a dying star as Nakato stepped into the ritual chamber. The air itself vibrated with each thrum of its heartbeat, sending cracks spiderwebbing through the concrete floor. Kuroto hovered at the epicenter, his body encased in that shimmering energy sphere—untouchable. Smug.
*"You're too late, Prime."* His voice slithered through the chamber, warped by the dimensional rift. *"The gate is already open."*
Nakato's flames answered before he did. Black fire roared up in a protective wall as the Titan's tendrils lashed out, each strike sending shockwaves through his bones. The clones—those not yet purified—scurried along the walls like grotesque insects, their key-shaped marks glowing brighter as the rift expanded.
Hinako's daggers found the throat of a clone that got too close. "We need to break Kuroto's shield!"
Daisuke, huddled behind a shattered pillar with Subject Nine, frantically scanned the energy sphere. "It's drawing power from the Titan! You'd need—"
*"—a concentrated blast at the nexus point,"* Subject Nine finished, her too-old eyes locked on Kuroto. *"Where he's weakest."*
Nakato's regulator beeped. **[01:59:59 REMAINING]**
Two hours to live.
He met Hinako's gaze. "Get Daisuke and Nine clear."
She grabbed his wrist. "You're not doing this alone."
The Titan shrieked, its massive form shuddering as the rift behind it *stretched*—revealing glimpses of that endless void. And in the darkness, something *stirred.*
Nakato pried her fingers loose. "Yes. I am."
---
Hinako's curses followed him as he charged straight for the Titan.
The clones converged, a living wave of his own face twisted in agony. Nakato's fire burned hotter, purging their marks with every touch—but for every one he freed, two more took its place. His ribs screamed where a clone's elongated claws found purchase. Blood slicked his palms, making his flames sputter.
Kuroto's laughter echoed. *"You can't save them! Their purpose was always to burn!"*
The Titan's massive eye focused on Nakato, and the world *twisted.*
Suddenly he wasn't in the chamber anymore. He stood in a vast nothingness, surrounded by floating remnants of broken cities and dying stars. Before him loomed the silhouette from his visions—the Hollow King.
Its true form defied comprehension. A shifting mass of darkness and jagged light, crowned with fragments of shattered realities. When it spoke, Nakato's bones vibrated.
**"AT LAST, THE PRIME COMES TO OFFER HIMSELF."**
Nakato's fire guttered. This wasn't some Beast or dimensional parasite. This was something older than time. Hungrier than the void.
And it recognized him.
The vision shattered as Hinako's scream yanked him back to reality. A clone had her pinned, its fingers digging into her temples as black veins spread beneath her skin. *Corrupting her.*
Something in Nakato snapped.
His next breath drew in all the fire, all the heat, all the screaming voices of the Blood Memory—and *released.*
The explosion incinerated every clone in the chamber. The shockwave cracked Kuroto's shield, sending him crashing to the ground. The Titan *screeched*, its massive eye rupturing as Nakato's flames bored straight through it.
Hinako collapsed, gasping. The corruption receded from her skin—but not completely.
Nakato didn't have time to check on her. The Titan was thrashing in its death throes, its body destabilizing the rift. Kuroto staggered upright, his perfect silver hair now streaked with blood.
*"Fool! You've only hastened the King's arrival!"*
The rift pulsed, expanding violently. From the void emerged a single jagged shard of darkness—the tip of the Hollow King's crown piercing into their world.
Nakato's regulator beeped faster. **[00:59:59 REMAINING]**
One hour to live.
---
Kuroto lunged, his hands crackling with stolen energy. Nakato barely dodged, the blast shearing off a chunk of his shoulder. Pain blinded him for a crucial second—long enough for Kuroto to grab Subject Nine.
*"Perfect,"* Kuroto purred, holding the girl aloft by her throat. *"The first successful hybrid. The King will savor her."*
Nine didn't struggle. Her eyes met Nakato's—and she *smiled.*
Then she drove her tiny fingers into Kuroto's wrist, right through his pulse point.
Kuroto's scream wasn't human. Black fire—*Nakato's fire*—erupted from Nine's hand, burning through Kuroto's veins. The Director dropped her, clawing at his own arm as the flames spread.
*"IMPOSSIBLE! SHE SHOULDN'T BE ABLE TO—"*
Nine landed gracefully, her amber eyes now burning black. When she spoke, Nakato's own voice echoed beneath hers:
*"Mother made sure I could."*
The chamber shook as the Titan finally collapsed, its massive form dissolving into the rift. But the damage was done—the Hollow King's shard remained, hovering like a jagged piece of broken reality.
Daisuke dragged Hinako toward the exit. "We have to seal the rift!"
Nakato knew what that would cost. His regulator's countdown flashed relentlessly. **[00:30:00 REMAINING]**
Thirty minutes.
Nine grabbed his hand. Her tiny fingers were burning hot. *"Together."*
Kuroto, half-consumed by black fire, let out a guttural laugh. *"You think this ends with me? The King has already marked this world! The Eclipse—"*
Hinako's dagger silenced him forever, embedding straight through his remaining eye.
Nakato didn't celebrate. The rift was still expanding. The Hollow King's presence pressed against his mind, whispering promises of endless hunger.
Nine squeezed his hand tighter. *"We are the fire that unmakes."*
Nakato exhaled. Then he *pulled.*
Every ember, every spark, every dying gasp of his flames surged forward—not to destroy, but to *consume.* The black fire met the rift in a cataclysmic embrace, unraveling the fabric of reality stitch by stitch.
The last thing Nakato saw before the light took him was Nine's smile—and the Hollow King's crown shattering in the void.