Path of Death: Awakening
Chapter 29: Breakpoint

Chapter 29: Breakpoint

Light exploded.

And Fade was gone.

After a blinding flash, the world fell into silence.Not true silence—the silence of the system.As if every protocol had collapsed at once, and reality had pulled back by a few pixels.

Zeyna moved first.She reached toward the spot where Fade had vanished—only to grab at empty air."FADE!" she screamed.

Nothing.

Only dust.

Kaela’s wrist screen flickered—then burst.

"No... energy equilibrium’s collapsing. The system’s backfiring—Node Echo is no longer stable!"

The floor quaked.

The server room walls began folding inward.

Metal panels imploded into themselves, releasing waves of digital distortion.

And then...

[Warning: Zone Integrity Compromised]

[Corruption Entities Approaching]

[SYSTEM]

Detected Threat: Unstable Echo Remnants

Entity Name: Glitchspawn – Type: Corrupted Construct

Level: 15

HP: ??? / ???

Special Traits:

– [Fractured Form] – Physical resistance increased by 40%

– [Feedback Bite] – Reflects 10% of damage as system overload

– [Echo Loop] – 20% chance to copy opponent’s last used ability

The first creature lunged straight at Arven.

"WATCH OUT!" Darin shouted, raising his shield.

The entity shimmered—its body partially transparent, flickering like a broken hologram. Its claws weren’t sharp, but every touch left a data echo—destruction through the system.

Darin’s shield absorbed the first blow—but the surface cracked.

"This thing’s not real—but it hurts like hell!"

Seeing Darin pushed back, Arven surged forward.

[Skill Activated:Iron Tempo]

– Forward rush strike. Gains armor penetration if timed with enemy attack.

As the creature slashed down, Arven deliberately left his flank open—then stepped in, locking its shoulder with his right hand and smashing his left elbow into its jaw.

A crunch.

A glitch.

A collapse.

The creature recoiled—its stability compromised.

"There’s a logic flaw in your code," he muttered. "Mine runs on rage."

The monster reeled—but didn’t vanish.Still, its attention was fixed.

And that was enough.

Arven paused, clutching his bleeding shoulder.But it wasn’t pain he felt—it was a strange, cold emptiness.

"So many of us... and still, something’s missing."

He glanced at Darin.

"Even now, without him... we move around him. Maybe that’s how it’s always been."

Zeyna slashed forward.

[Skill Activated: Dual Fang Slash]

– Double slashing attack. +20% critical chance if the target is staggered.

Two quick strikes slashed across the creature’s neck.

No blood.

Just a shimmer—like a screen flickering before breaking.

The creature stumbled back, but didn’t break apart.

Kaela suddenly dropped to her knees.

"I need to stabilize the data blocks. Or this place will swallow us too!"

[Deploying: Core Barrier Script v.0.9]

Progress: 4%... 9%... 17%...

"Buy me time!" she gasped.

Arven spun his sword one-handed. His shoulder was bleeding, yet he laughed.

"Hurting something that’s not alive?

Well—worth a shot."

[Skill Activated: Stone Fang Drive]

– Heavy pierce with forward momentum. Bonus damage against unstable enemies.

His attack pushed the creature back, cracking the floor and disrupting data flow.

But then—something went wrong.

[Echo Loop Activated – Copied Skill: Stone Fang Drive]

The creature flared—and lunged back at Arven with the same attack.

Darin intercepted it—his shield shattered.

Darin dropped to one knee. Blood trickled down his cheek.

"If we stay here too long...

And Fade doesn’t come back...

This is where it ends."

Zeyna’s breath caught in her throat.

"We’re not leaving. Not yet."

But there was no certainty in her voice.

For the first time, without Fade, she truly felt alone.

Her short blade slipped from her fingers.

The exhaustion in her limbs didn’t come from wounds—it came from drain.

Her muscles weren’t responding. Only memory kept her standing.

She wasn’t falling—because she hadn’t fallen.Yet.

"It’ll end," she whispered. "Me... or them."

And this time, if she was the one to fall—she wouldn’t imagine Fade beside her.

The creatures multiplied.

Three... then four... then six.

They didn’t spread out—they closed in.

It wasn’t tactical.

It was instinctual.

A pack surrounding its prey.

Darin noticed the cracking circle forming beneath them.

"They’re creating a ring...

Trying to surround us."

One lunged toward Kaela. Darin launched himself. Zeyna dashed the other way.

But the space between them had become—unstable. Incalculable. Warped.

They were all reflections of a broken system.

Shadows that, you could touch.

Each one felt like the echo of a void left by Fade’s absence.

Zeyna (inner voice):"I’ve fought alone before. But this... this isn’t solitude.

This is something missing."

Darin (inner voice):"You lead, but when someone’s missing... who are you giving orders to?"

Arven (inner voice):"This is too much. Too fast. This place isn’t ours.

But if Fade were here... maybe—"

Kaela (inner voice):"Data link collapsing. Stability below zero.

But someone has to make it back...Otherwise, nothing means anything anymore."

Kaela cried out, voice cracking:

"The data gates are breaking! One more minute—either I connect, or we fall!"

[Override Permission: Kaela Initiated – Bio-Neural Sync Engaged]

Warning: Conscious Stability Risk – 62%

Accept? [Y/N]

Y...

Blood traced the corner of Kaela’s mouth. Her eyes unfocused, but her face kept calculating.

"I... I liked the system," she murmured. "But I guess... it never liked me back."

Light pulses danced around her skull—what she connected to wasn’t just a network.

It was an abyss.

But she was opening a gate while everyone else was falling.

Even if it meant losing herself.

Zeyna stepped beside Darin. Blades in hand, trembling fingers.

Darin drew his sword.

They locked eyes—brief, wordless.

Her breathing was uneven, but steady.

For a moment—silence.

No monsters moved. No light flickered.

Only the air between them seemed to grow... heavier.

Darin glanced sideways.

"Ready?"—his eyes asked.

Zeyna didn’t look back. But her body signed: "yes."

The background noise—the system alerts, Kaela’s breath, Arven’s fading steps—all seemed far away.

"Defense is yours, attack is mine," Zeyna said.

Darin nodded.

[Formation Activated: Cross-Fang Hold]

– Defender and Duelist stance: Incoming damage split, counter window +20%

They moved in sync.

Darin deflected the creature’s claw—Zeyna slashed low at the knees.

It didn’t break, but it stumbled.

There was harmony.

Fade wasn’t here.

But they were still a team.

"If we’re going to down..."

"Even if he’s not here—we fight as if he is."

And, that moment—

A light flickered.

Far away.

Through a crack too small to see.

Just a vibration. A subtle shift.

But none of them saw Fade’s return.

Not yet...

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