Chapter 55 – Shadows of the Seventh Sky

The Tower loomed again.

It didn't wait. It didn't welcome. It simply was.

The one-month rest had ended, and Blackhunt stood at the return gate of Floor 7, their bodies sync-stabilized, their minds sharper—but beneath that surface, all of them felt it.

Something about this floor felt… wrong.

Unlike the last six, Floor 7's transfer process wasn't immediate. Instead of the usual blue-white light that whisked them away, the gate activated with a pulse of deep violet, lined with thin slashes of black energy.

The ground beneath them vibrated. Not violently—but deeply, like something below the Tower's base had stirred awake.

A whisper echoed in Ankit's mind.

"Welcome… Shadows of the Seventh Sky…"

Then the world shattered.

Arrival – Floor 7: The Broken Sky

They landed on a floating island high in the atmosphere, surrounded by hundreds of others. Each platform drifted slowly in an endless field of clouds. Above them? A ceiling of shattered glass.

No sun. No sky.

Just an infinite mirror with cracks, through which glimpses of other climbers flickered.

Toni spoke first.

"This… isn't a battlefield."

"It's a memory maze," Asha said, her eyes narrowed. "Or a trap. Maybe both."

System prompts appeared, scrolling midair:

[Floor 7 – The Labyrinth of Skyshards]

Trial Objective: Recover the Three Shards of Origin scattered across the Sky Islands.

Optional Objective: Cleanse the Dark Marked.

Timer: 48 Hours

Warning: Prolonged exposure to shard energy may cause memory distortion or madness.

Synchronization enforced. All members must clear together.

Ankit read it again.

"Three shards. Three trials. Spread out."

Toni looked uneasy. "It's not the trial I'm worried about. It's what's already here."

Fragment One – The Island of Silence

Their first target floated to the west: a jagged black island, surrounded by shadow-crows and laced with windstreams sharp enough to cut flesh.

Team 1: Ankit, Riya, Raunak, and Vikram.

They landed using Toni's guided wind arcs. The moment their feet touched the platform, sound vanished.

No voices.

No system prompts.

Just silence.

Raunak activated his shadow senses and signed in hand gestures:

(We're being watched. At least four entities.)

Riya extended a sheet of frost across the ground—then gasped. Her reflection wasn't hers.

It was her younger self—the one who'd betrayed her first team.

The mist around them took form: four humanoid creatures made entirely of shattered memories. Half Riya. Half enemies from Vikram's past. One even bore the face of Raunak's lost sister.

They attacked without warning.

No words. No sound. Just rage.

Vikram intercepted the first, his shield glowing red with defensive runes.

Ankit slashed two illusions down—but they reformed, stronger, faster.

"They're not meant to die," Riya signed. "They're meant to be faced."

Ankit understood instantly.

"Let them hit us."

"What?!" Raunak signed back, frowning.

"I said let them in," Ankit shouted mentally, willing the command through their bond.

They lowered their defenses just long enough.

The illusions struck—and then merged, flickering into blinding white light as they dissipated.

The sky above cracked. A shard descended—glowing blue.

[Shard of the Origin – 1/3 Acquired]

They regrouped silently, minds heavy.

Vikram whispered, "This floor... it doesn't want us dead. It wants us broken."

Fragment Two – The Island of Echoes

Team 2: Toni, Asha, Kaido, Sana, and Raghav.

Their island was surrounded by echoes—literal sound loops that replayed words spoken by the team in past missions.

Asha heard herself screaming during the death of her first patient.

Kaido heard his own laughter as a comrade died.

Toni heard silence—because in his darkest moment, he had said nothing.

Raghav collapsed midair, clutching his ears.

"This is madness," Sana hissed.

The enemies this time weren't illusions—they were Spectral Replays, phantoms that mimicked past missions gone wrong.

Each one wore a Blackhunt member's face.

Each time they struck, the echo would replay a painful line.

"You left us."

"You weren't strong enough."

"You failed."

Kaido snapped.

"ENOUGH!"

He burst into a blaze, launching fire in every direction—but nothing was burned. It passed right through.

Toni whispered something then.

"I forgive you."

The Specter in front of him vanished.

He looked at Kaido.

"Try it."

Kaido gritted his teeth.

"…I forgive me."

One by one, the others followed.

Until only a girl stood—a child version of Asha, crying and bleeding.

She looked at the real Asha and said, "You promised you wouldn't run."

Asha knelt and whispered, "I didn't. I came back."

The echo vanished.

[Shard of the Origin – 2/3 Acquired]

Return and Realization

Both teams met at the nexus island, 2 shards in hand.

They expected to search for the third.

Instead, the moment they gathered—the final shard appeared, hovering between them.

Toni narrowed his eyes. "A trap."

Riya nodded. "No energy signature. No echo pulse."

Ankit stepped forward—but the shard cracked before he could touch it.

Out of the fissure stepped a cloaked figure, wrapped in deep violet, face hidden, eyes glowing with the intensity of fallen stars.

"You are not ready," the figure said.

Ankit's blade was in his hand instantly. "Who are you?"

The man laughed softly.

"I am the Mirror That Walks."

"And this shard belongs to the one who survived me."