Gaia Chronicles: The Integral Saga

Rain drummed steadily against the crystalline windows of the Vallentine War Hall the next morning. The once-vibrant sea view was now shrouded in mist, storm clouds curling above like hungry shadows. Lightning cracked across the horizon in jagged silence.

Within the hall, the newly formed Octagon gathered around the central briefing table. A glowing orb of ether hovered above it, projecting a translucent map of Southern Austria, marked with pulsing red points and shifting violet fog.

Thea Synthesis 0 stood at the head of the table, her presence calm but tense.

"At 0200 hours, a breach was detected near the town of Eiswacht," she began. "Rift Type: Abyss Class Nine. Current manifestations: Wretches and Class-11 husks."

Cyg narrowed his eyes. "Only Class-11? That doesn't align with the Rift's size."

Thea nodded. "Which is why we suspect a larger presence nearby."

Harriet leaned back in her chair, arms behind her head. "And we get to handle this instead of a senior team… why, exactly?"

Julius Synthesis 2 grinned from behind Thea.

"Because you're the shiny new Octagon. And Thea wants to see if you can actually dance with monsters before you fight gods."

Charlotte snorted. "Lovely. So this is a hazing ritual."

Mia raised a hand. "Is it weird I'm a little excited?"

Sylvia sighed, tucking a strand of silver-blonde hair behind her ear. "We don't even know if our formations are stable yet."

Eun-Ha, who stood silently at the far corner, finally spoke.

"We learn in battle. Or not at all."

Thea gave a single nod. "Your primary objective is containment. Your secondary—retrieve any Black Cores if discovered. And your final instruction—stay alive."

Harriet cracked her knuckles. "That last one might be hard for the Wretches."

Two hours later, the transport carrier landed on the snow-covered outskirts of Eiswacht.

The silence was eerie.

Ruined buildings leaned into each other like broken teeth, their glass windows shattered inward. No bodies. No blood. But Mia could feel the coldness—an unnatural silence that clung to the streets like frostbite.

"It's too quiet," she murmured. "There should be people hiding… survivors."

"There were," Cyg said flatly. "Keyword: were."

From above, Hikari hovered on a rooftop, violet eyes scanning the fog below. Her Artifact, Sanguira, shimmered faintly in her grip. Beside her, Eun-Ha stood still as a statue, cross-staff Solmaria glowing with pale divine light.

"Movement, southwest block," Eun-Ha reported.

"Got it," Cyg said. "Charlotte, deploy drones."

"Already done," Charlotte replied, typing rapidly into her arm-mounted console. "Mapping thermal signatures… Two humanoid, multiple crawling… and something large under the rubble."

Elaine's voice chirped from above, carried by a current of air. "Should I give them a little breeze?"

"No," Cyg said firmly. "We wait."

Then the ground beneath Harriet cracked open.

From it surged a Wretch—hulking, semi-humanoid, its ribcage split open and filled with flickering voidlight. It screamed with jagged teeth and lunged—

Only to be intercepted by a blast of flame and a shout.

"You picked the wrong redhead, freak!"

Harriet's wings of fire spread behind her as Vermithar ignited in full force. She brought her foot up and kicked the beast backward, then unleashed a pyrostream that scorched the courtyard clean.

"I'm not waiting for the signal anymore!"

"She never waits," Sylvia muttered, stepping beside her and raising Orisha. A harmonic pulse rippled through the air, destabilizing the Wretch's form.

Charlotte's chakrams whirled past, slicing its limbs mid-regeneration. "Three, two—now!"

Hikari descended like a shadow, scythe slashing with terrifying grace. Blood and void mist sprayed as her movement ended in stillness. The Wretch disintegrated.

Silence again.

And then—movement beneath the snow.

"Underground," Cyg muttered, activating his Mystic Eye. "It's not over."

They didn't see the next creature until it rose.

A hulking Black Core, twelve feet tall, metal-fused and humming with deep energy. Its core pulsed within its chest—shaped like a jagged heart, glowing violet.

It turned toward them.

Then detonated.

The explosion rippled across the block, sending shards of snow and ether-blasted stone in every direction.

Cyg raised his hand—

"Octagon, SCATTER!"

Elaine swept up Sylvia just in time. Mia summoned a shield construct over Charlotte. Harriet leapt into the air, wings flaring. Hikari threw herself in front of Eun-Ha—

The world became flame and static.

When the dust settled, the Black Core was still alive.

Wounded. Flickering. But standing.

Mia's eyes widened. "That thing's not stopping…"

Eun-Ha stepped forward, divine light gathering in her hands. "Then neither will we."

And for the first time—

The Octagon fought together.

Sparks and flames. Wind and blood. Light and silence.Eight powers entwined.

Not yet perfect. Not yet one.

But growing.

Together.