THE GENERAL'S DISGRACED HEIR

The crystalline bridge hummed beneath their feet, each step sending ripples of blue light through its translucent surface. Six crimson-cloaked figures moved in perfect formation, their steps synchronized against the backdrop of the colossal tower that pierced the morning sky.

"Yue," Luna's voice carried a hint of amusement, "stop fidgeting with your hood."

A small figure near the rear of the group dropped their hands from their hood. "It's not my fault everything's made for giants," came the response, the voice belonging to someone who appeared child-sized but carried centuries of irritation. "This curse is really—"

"Mother," another voice cut in, gentle but firm. "Perhaps we should focus on the task at hand?"

The massive entrance loomed before them, and ancient stone gates were carved with patterns that seemed to shift when viewed directly. As they approached, Luna felt something stir within her—a resonance she couldn't explain. The patterns began to glow with the same ethereal blue light as the bridge.

Salomonis watched her carefully. "Your master's... visions... have guided us this far. But the tower's reaction to you—"

The water exploded upward with volcanic force. What emerged wasn't just tentacles, but a nightmare of bioengineered perfection. Each limb was easily thick as a ship's mast, covered in overlapping plates of metallic scales that shifted and realigned like living armour.

Bioluminescent patterns pulsed along its length in hypnotic sequences, and where flesh met metal, steam hissed from crystalline vents.

"Formation three," Luna commanded, her cloak dissolving into shadows as she moved.

The construct revealed more of itself—a central mass breaching the surface like a metallic island. Its "head" was a crown of sensory arrays and crystalline structures that hummed with ancient power. Multiple eye-like organs tracked their movements, each one focusing and adjusting like the lens of a camera.

The group scattered with practiced precision as the first attack came. A tentacle swept horizontally across the bridge, its plates extending razor-sharp edges mid-swing. Yue rolled under it with surprising agility, already pulling vials from seemingly nowhere. Her daughter Litty used the movement as cover, her twin rapiers leaving trails of light as she darted forward.

"Analyze its pattern," Salomonis called out, golden eyes tracking every movement. "The plates shift before each—watch out!"

Three tentacles struck simultaneously, each attacking from a different angle. Kairos Vale, the Shadow of the Ninth House, became a blur of motion. "Raven's Shadow," he whispered, his technique causing light itself to bend around him as he appeared between attacks, his daggers finding gaps in the creature's armour.

Above them, storm clouds gathered with unnatural speed as Aria Storms raised her staff. "The joints," she called out, voice rising above the mechanical whirring of the construct. "They're less protected!" Lightning arced down with surgical precision, forcing the creature to redistribute its protective plating.

Luna exploited the opening instantly. She moved like liquid shadow, each strike precise and devastating. Where her attacks landed, darkness seemed to eat through the metallic flesh, revealing complex circuitry beneath that sparked and sputtered.

The construct retaliated with frightening intelligence. Its tentacles began moving in complex patterns, forcing the group apart while its sensory array pulsed with increasing intensity. Steam burst from its vents in calculated clouds, obscuring their vision.

"Mother, the gap in its defenses—there!" Litty called out, her rapiers creating sparks as they scraped across the creature's armour, marking a weak point.

Yue's response was masterful. Three vials sailed through the air in quick succession, each containing what looked like liquid starlight. "Cover your eyes!"

The explosions that followed were beautiful and devastating. The first vial created a magnetic pulse that forced the plates apart. The second contained an acid that ate through the exposed circuitry. The third—a catalyst that intensified both effects—caused a chain reaction through the creature's systems.

"Fascinating," Salomonis mused, adjusting his stance as the construct writhed. "This isn't a natural being. It's some kind of—"

"Ancient construct," Luna finished, landing beside him. "Just as Master foresaw." Even as she said it, she wondered. David's "gift of foresight" had guided them here, but sometimes his knowledge seemed too precise, too certain.

As if responding to her thoughts, the patterns on the tower's surface pulsed brighter. The construct withdrew, sliding back into the sea with mechanical precision, offering a glimpse of its true enormous form beneath the waves. The entrance gates began to open with a sound like singing crystal.

"It recognizes you," Aria observed, lowering her staff as the storm clouds dispersed. The air still crackled with residual energy. "How?"

Luna's expression remained hidden beneath her hood. "I... don't know." For once, her voice carried genuine uncertainty. She approached the gates, where the patterns seemed to dance more vigorously at her proximity. "Master's guidance led us here, but this—this is unexpected."

"Speaking of surprises," Kairos materialized from the shadows, cleaning his daggers with practiced efficiency, "Siegfried is in position with the support troops?"

Salomonis nodded, his golden eyes still studying the retreating form of the construct beneath the waves. "The Knight of the Broken Blade knows his role. He'll keep the other parties occupied while we proceed with the true objective." His tone suggested deeper knowledge of David's plans, though he kept such thoughts to himself.

They entered the tower proper, and the sight stole their breath. The interior was an impossible blend of ancient and advanced architecture. Stone pillars rose into darkness, but they were veined with lines of pulsing energy. The floor was polished marble that seemed to shift and flow like liquid, yet remained solid beneath their feet. Archways curved overhead, their surfaces etched with scripts that defied comprehension.

"This place," Yue whispered, her scholarly interest overwhelming her usual irritation, "it's not just a dungeon. It's something else entirely." She knelt to examine the flowing patterns in the floor, her small form casting long shadows in the ethereal light.
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"Mother's right," Litty added, her half-elven senses picking up subtle vibrations. Her rapiers hummed faintly in response to the energy surrounding them. "It feels... alive."

Luna stopped before a branching pathway, where the blue veins of energy pulsed with increased intensity at her presence. The reaction troubled her, but she maintained her composure. Each pulse seemed to resonate with something deep within her, a connection she neither understood nor had expected.

"It is alive," she confirmed, watching as the patterns shifted to form what appeared to be directional markers. "And for some reason, it knows we're coming."

"Care to share with the class?" Salomonis asked, his casual tone masking genuine curiosity about both the tower's nature and its strange response to Luna.

"Not yet," Luna replied, starting down the left path. Even she didn't fully understand it. "Master's instructions were very specific about this route. For now, that has to be enough."

The group followed, their crimson cloaks standing out against the ethereal blue glow of the tower's interior. Behind them, the entrance sealed itself with the same singing crystal sound, leaving them committed to whatever path lay ahead. The veins of energy in the walls pulsed in sequence, almost like a heartbeat, leading them deeper into the tower's mysteries.

****

In the abyssal depths of the tower, far beyond where mortal eyes could perceive, something ancient stirred. Eyes that had witnessed the birth and death of worlds opened in the darkness, their infernal glow piercing through millennia of slumber.

How interesting, the entity mused, its thoughts rippling through the void. The first group arrives already aware of my presence. But more importantly...

Its attention fixed on Luna, recognition sparking in those ancient eyes. The Destroyer of Worlds... Hróðvitnir herself walks among them. The name carried weight even in thought, echoing with memories of cosmic devastation. Though she appears weakened now...

Malevolent anticipation coursed through the darkness. Yes... her body would make a perfect vessel. Through her, I can finally have my revenge against those damned Sovereigns and that wretched human... Solomon!

The entity's consciousness receded back into the shadows, but its eyes remained fixed on the advancing group. The tower's pulse quickened ever so slightly, like a predator sensing its moment approaching.

The hunt had begun.