The moment Neil's consciousness reached the liquid, something shifted.
Compared to the dust-like energy that had floated around him for hours, maybe days, perhaps the liquid was a different kind of life. Dust danced, floated, shimmered like fireflies in the air. It was light and ethereal, like breath on a cold morning. But this… this liquid felt dense. It was like plunging a hand into molten gold, heavy, slow, and filled with power that threatened to burn him from the inside out.
And yet, he couldn't stop himself.
His hand remained on the ground, trembling slightly. The dent beneath him still pulsed with faint light, but that pulse had grown faster, deeper, like the quickening heartbeat of something alive beneath the stone.
He pulled.
The liquid energy resisted at first, like thick syrup refusing to leave its container. But Neil had lost the concept of hesitation. His Soul Genesis form drank it in with a hunger he couldn't quell. It poured into him, drop by aching drop, each unit of energy heavier and more potent than any dust he had absorbed before.
And it fed the void inside him.
He had always believed himself to be controlled, sharpened by logic, measured by patience. But now, those traits crumbled under the sheer ecstasy of raw power flowing into his soul. It wasn't just nourishment, it was transformation. His body felt like it was on fire and freezing all at once. His vision flickered. Symbols lit up in his mind he didn't understand. Muscles flexed involuntarily, twitching as if adjusting to something new.
He pressed harder against the floor.
More.
The energy poured through, unending, beautiful, intoxicating. Somewhere in the haze, he remembered he had a body, flesh and bone tethered to this chamber but it didn't matter. What mattered was reaching further. Taking more. Becoming stronger.
Then he felt it.
Something solid within the flow.
His awareness brushed against it like fingers skimming the surface of polished stone. It was unlike the rock around him , smooth, but humming with restrained force. Not natural. Not accidental. A shape, wrapped deep within the pool of liquid energy. A center.
A core.
Neil latched onto it with his mind. He gripped it with everything he had. He didn't stop to consider what it was, or why it was there. His thoughts were clouded by obsession, by want. His Core energy pulsed like a beating drum inside him, matching the rhythm of the deep chamber, drawing power upward as if he were pulling a planet into orbit.
And the thing began to rise.
It moved slowly at first, like breaking free from ancient glue. The liquid shifted with it, parting reluctantly, pulled upward through invisible channels that Neil's presence had activated. The dent beneath him vibrated with intensity, heat building under his palm, and still he didn't let go.
He was grinning. He was sweating. He was burning.
His vision dimmed at the edges, but he held on, even as something warm trickled down from his nose.
He licked his lips. Iron. Blood.
But still he pulled.
Then the stone cracked beneath him. Not violently, but with the ancient groan of a door that had not opened in eons.
The light exploded from the floor.
He was thrown backward, not far, but enough to break contact. He slammed onto his back, and agony erupted through him.
The forceful disconnection hit like a lightning strike from within. His Core energy, once a flowing current, twisted violently. It surged in every direction at once, out of control, wild, rebelling against his body.
He screamed as pain seized him. Muscles spasmed, locking into cramps that contorted his limbs. Blood erupted from his ears, his mouth, his nose and his vision turned red as his eyes began to weep crimson tears.
It burned.
Not just his body. His soul.
Inside his chest, his energy spun like a vortex with a shattered center. He clutched at his ribs, gasping, trying to stabilize his flow, to breathe. The pressure in his head threatened to burst through his skull.
He rolled to his side, retching on the floor.
And then, slowly, the chaos ebbed.
His limbs trembled violently as the backlash receded, leaving behind a trembling husk soaked in sweat and blood. He coughed, tasted copper. Every breath was shallow. His insides felt raw, torn by invisible claws.
But he was alive.
He turned his head and saw what had caused it.
The dent had split open like a blooming flower, the center hollowed out as something emerged.
A capsule of solidified energy rose with grace, not speed but elegant, deliberate. It glowed dark crimson, rimmed in pulsing black veins that shimmered like obsidian. It hovered just above the now-dead platform, suspended by sheer force.
Neil stared, wide-eyed.
Inside the core, he saw a figure.
Suspended in liquid light, encased in layers of crystalline energy like amber trapping an ancient insect, the being within was still. Unmoving. But far from dead.
The creature had the shape of a man, broad chest, defined limbs, tall, perhaps even taller than Neil himself. But his skin was the color of burning coals—deep red with streaks of black as if magma had carved lines across his body. His horns curled backward like those of a ram, smooth and dangerous. Black wings, leathery and massive, were folded tightly against his back. His eyes were closed. But power radiated from him, dense and suffocating.
Neil's breath caught in his throat.
This was no monster.
This was a being.
A sleeping titan wrapped in myth.
Then the cocoon cracked.
It was a subtle sound. Not an explosion. Not a roar. Just a thin, spiderwebbing fracture across the surface of the glowing shell.
Neil stood slowly, legs weak, knees buckling.
A dull thud echoed through the chamber as the heavy twin doors slammed shut behind him triggered by some ancient mechanism. The light in the room dimmed instantly, retreating into the walls like it had been scolded. The energy that had once flowed freely now stopped. Contained.
Sealed.
A defense mechanism.
Neil's heart pounded. He turned to the door, but already knew there was no getting out. Not now.
The cocoon cracked again, wider this time.
A pulse radiated from it, no longer energy, but intent. Presence. Something ancient. Something aware.
And then the figure inside stirred.
His eyes opened. Deep crimson, like twin eclipses glowing in the shadows.
And he looked at Neil.
Not through him.
At him.
The cocoon's energy dimmed, and the room became suddenly quiet. The only sound was Neil's breathing and the quiet shift of wings beginning to unfold inside the capsule.