The Mysterious Presence

Something changed.

Not just the feeling of being watched.

The very air around her twisted.

Hesperia's steps slowed. The flickering glow of the runes pulsed, erratic and uneven—no longer following a set pattern. It wasn't the System.

It was something else.

Something that hadn't noticed her before.

Now, it had.

The corridor twisted.

Not physically—but perceptually.

The tunnel stretched forward too far. Then snapped back. The walls leaned inward, then outward. Time and space trembled.

Mara flinched. "That—"

Ren cursed. "Nope. Hate that."

Denzel's voice was eerily calm. "We're not in normal space anymore."

Hesperia barely heard them.

Because something was staring at her.

Not with eyes.

With awareness.

And then—

A voice pushed into her mind.

"What… are you?"

Cold. Hollow.

The words did not pass through air.

They arrived. Placed directly into her thoughts.

Hesperia froze.

No one else reacted.

It was speaking only to her.

The presence lingered, assessing her.

There was no certainty in its voice. Only questioning.

It did not know her.

Then—

A flicker.

A shift in the space around her.

Something clicked into place.

And then—

The voice changed

"…You are not the first."

A pause.

Then—

"You are… incomplete."

Hesperia's heartbeat slowed.

This wasn't just a presence.

It was something that should not exist here.

And yet—

It did.

"…You are…"

A hesitation.

Then, a whisper—so faint she barely caught it.

"…Chronos?"

Her pulse thundered.

And then—

The presence changed.

For the first time, there was something else in the voice.

Not confusion.

Recognition.

And with it—something deeper.

Reverence.

"…You are incomplete."

Still what?

Then, finally—

A last whisper before the presence faded.

"We have awaited you, Master."

The weight in the air vanished.

The space around them snapped back to normal.

Mara let out a sharp breath. "Okay—what the hell was that?"

Ren scowled. "That felt personal."

Denzel frowned, gaze lingering on Hesperia.

"…You heard something."

Hesperia didn't answer immediately.

Then—slowly—she shook her head.

Not yet.

She would figure this out on her own.