Chapter 3: Beneath the Blade of Noctavaria Abyss

Raizen Valefor raced after the white-haired woman, his bare feet slipping on the ashen soil of Noctavaria Abyss, his ragged breaths mingling with the guttural roars of the pursuing horde. The scrape of claws against dirt, the howl of wind through the dead forest, and the thunder of his own heartbeat fused into a chaotic symphony. He stole a glance over his shoulder—dozens of gaunt silhouettes, their ashen skin taut, their crimson eyes flaring in the dark, charged toward them with terrifying speed. Etched on each forehead, a spiraling red symbol gleamed like a taunt from Vesper Atrius: "You are the spark of destruction…"

The woman ahead—the one who'd just pulled him from the jaws of the beast in the ash pit—didn't look back. Her white hair streamed in the wind, her mismatched eyes—blue on the left, blazing red on the right—flashing with each lightning streak across the sky. A thin scar traced her throat, the mark of a blade that had nearly claimed her life. Her scratched leather armor bore a small swallow emblem on her left shoulder, and the steel sword in her grip glinted—a rare shard of metal in this primitive wasteland. She'd barked at him moments ago: "If you don't want to die like those fools, run—now!"—her voice sharp and merciless.

"Run where?" Raizen roared, clutching the gash on his left arm. Blood seeped from where he'd dodged the first beast's claws, staining his fingers, but there was no time to check it. He just ran, shadowing her steady strides through the skeletal forest, where brittle branches snagged at them like desperate hands.

"Don't ask—just run!" she snapped, her reply curt as she slashed a blocking branch with her sword. "They don't stop—not ever, not in this dead land."

Raizen gritted his teeth, fighting to keep pace. His mind spun, memories of Saigon 2050 flooding back—the Thiên Long Tower, the Asvaria machine, Kael Iscariot's betrayal. He still didn't know where he was, but this place—Noctavaria Abyss—was no tranquil sliver of Asvaria.

It was a forsaken scar, severed from the great empires he'd yet to encounter: the opulent Vesperia Syndicate, the militaristic Drakos Imperium of late World War I, or the arcane Solvaria Dominion. If this world held over twenty minor nations, wandering tribes, elven forests, and beast clans, then Noctavaria Abyss seemed a blackened smear erased from the map—nothing left but ashes and monsters.

They burst into a clearing where the ground leveled out, but the roars behind them grew louder. Raizen felt the beasts' hot breath prickling his neck. "We can't keep running!" he shouted, glancing at her. "We have to do something!"

She halted abruptly, pivoting with her sword raised. "You're right," she said, her red eye scanning the oncoming horde—at least fifteen, their claws glinting in the lightning. "Get ready to die—or fight."

Raizen panted, hand pressed to his wound. He was unarmed—the stone axe had shattered in the last clash—but his eyes darted around, seeking an edge. A massive fallen log lay nearby, its dry roots anchored deep; a shallow ash-filled pit sat to his right; and a rusted armor shard rested a few steps away, its faint sun emblem paired with ancient text: "Solvaria Dominion – Those who betray shall be cursed forever." He snatched it up, hands trembling. "Solvaria Dominion," he muttered. "Again."

"What are you mumbling about?" she barked, urgency lacing her tone. "Grab that sword—now!"

Raizen followed her gesture—a broken sword, its blade chipped, protruded from a skeletal figure in tattered armor beside the log. He lunged, yanking it free, the cold metal biting into his skin. It was heavier than the axe, but sharp enough to wound. "I'm no swordsman," he said, turning to her, "but I know how to survive."

"Good," she replied, her lips curling into a frigid smirk. "Because they don't spare anyone."

The pack charged, claws slashing like reapers' blades. She leapt atop the fallen log, her sword arcing in a flawless curve, severing the first beast's head. Black blood sprayed, reeking of rot, but she didn't hesitate, diving to strike another. Raizen dodged a claw swipe, pain flaring from his arm as he swung the broken sword, catching a beast's leg and toppling it. The chipped blade lodged in its stony gray hide, forcing him to wrench it free, nearly stumbling backward.

"Aim for the eyes!" she yelled, vaulting over a corpse to plunge her sword into another's glowing red orb. "That's their weakness!"

Raizen nodded, retreating toward the pit to lure one closer. As it lunged, he sidestepped, driving the blade into its eye. Dark blood gushed, the beast collapsing into the pit with a howl, dragging another down in a frantic scrabble. He gasped, hands shaking, as blood from his wound dripped to the ground. He stared, stunned, as the ash drank it instantly, leaving a bizarre red smear, as if the earth itself lived. "This soil…" he murmured, fixated on the stain, "it's not normal."

"Are you going to gawk until you're dead?" she snapped, cleaving another beast, its blood splattering her armor. "Four more!"

Raizen snapped to attention, joining her. They synced—she struck from the log, he baited them to the pit—until the final beast fell, her sword piercing its skull. They stood amid the carnage, breathless, black blood pooling on the ash. Raizen met her gaze, hand on his now-stilled wound, the red stain on the ground haunting him.

"Not bad," she said, sheathing her sword behind her back, her dual-colored eyes appraising him. "But you don't belong here. Where are you from?"

Raizen hesitated, studying her, then the Solvaria Dominion shard in his hand. "I… come from a place far away," he answered, voice low. "And you? Who are you? What's that swallow symbol on your armor mean?"

She frowned, her red eye flickering. "I'm Selene Kazehana," she said, her tone cold yet edged with pride. "This mark is the sigil of the Nhạn Tribe—the last survivors of this dead land. And you—if you're not from Noctavaria Abyss, why are these beasts hunting you?"

Raizen opened his mouth to reply, but a new sound cut him off—rapid footsteps, not monstrous but human. From the forest, a group emerged—about ten men and women in rough leather garb, clutching wooden spears and stone axes. They halted at the sight of Raizen and Selene, eyes wary. An older man with a silver beard stepped forward, his voice hoarse: "Selene, what are you doing with this outsider? Is he a Drakos Imperium spy?"

"No," Selene replied, her blue eye meeting his. "He fought beside me—and lived. But I'd like to know who he is too."

Raizen sized up the group—native villagers, survivors in this alien stretch of Asvaria, isolated from Vesperia Syndicate, Drakos Imperium, or Solvaria Dominion. Gaunt and fearful, their gazes held a flicker of hope as they looked at him and Selene. He stepped forward, voice steady and deep: "I'm Raizen Valefor. I'm no spy. I came here… by accident. But if you want to survive these beasts, I can help."

The bearded man squinted, skepticism in his tone as he glanced between Raizen and Selene. "An outsider who can fight," he said. "But this land is cursed—ever since Solvaria Dominion abandoned us. What do you think you can do?"

Raizen eyed him, then the armor shard. "Solvaria Dominion," he murmured, recalling the inscription: "Those who betray shall be cursed forever." He didn't know where that mystical empire stood now, but this place had clearly been part of it—or a forsaken colony. He turned to Selene. "You call this a dead land. Yet people still live here—why?"

Selene met his gaze, her red eye shadowed with gloom. "Because we have no choice," she said. "The Nhạn Tribe was once thriving, but the beasts—and the curse—took everything. We endure, waiting for the day… a survivor breaks it." She paused, inspecting him closely. "Are you that one?"

Before Raizen could answer, a boom echoed from the distance—not thunder, but the clang of metal, like a massive machine stirring. The villagers panicked, staring toward the deep forest. Selene gripped her sword, her blue eye widening. "Impossible," she muttered. "They've found us."

"Who?" Raizen demanded, pulse racing. But Selene didn't respond, only whirled toward him, her voice urgent: "If you truly want to help, brace yourself—because what's coming isn't an ordinary beast."

Raizen stared toward the sound, fingers tightening on the Solvaria Dominion shard. A strange land, a prophecy, and a new threat—his journey in Asvaria had only just begun.