Chapter 100: The rise of riftborn
The sky had bled for three days straight.
What began as a distant wound in the horizon had grown into a seething gash in reality—stretching wide across the skies of the Eastern Vale. Crimson tendrils of energy twisted like veins from the gaping rift, staining the clouds and casting the sun in hues of blood-orange. The very air tasted of iron and static.
The kingdom was restless.
Inside the war chamber of the palace, a map lay sprawled across the obsidian table. Tiny red markers dotted the borderlands—villages swallowed, forests warped into grotesque mazes of twisted roots and screaming trees. They called it The Hollowing. Where the Riftborn touched, reality bent, and monsters spilled from seams between worlds.
Cain, Leo, Eren, Selene, and their parents stood over the map with furrowed brows. They were no longer simply family. They were leaders now—generals, warriors, and last hopes.
"They've already claimed four villages near the Rift," Queen Elira said, her fingers trembling ever so slightly as she traced the blood-red ink. "The scouts say... some of the people were turned. Mutated."
"Turned?" Leo asked, his voice rough.
"They called it 'the song of the void,'" the Queen replied. "A melody no one hears—until it's too late. Then they walk into the Rift. Willingly."
Eren slammed his fist into the wall. "That's not just war. That's—"
"Possession," Cain finished darkly.
Selene stepped forward, her brows knitted. "We need to move fast. The Rift feeds on delay."