The abandoned ruins of the Echo Council's outpost loomed like a skeletal giant against the twilight sky. Kael and Seren stood at the entrance, their breaths visible in the cold, stagnant air. This was where Harlan's information had led them—a former Council facility, now a hub for illegal experiments on Echoes.
Kael scanned the surroundings, his mismatched eyes glinting. "Feels like a trap."
"It always does," Seren replied, her emerald-green Echo flickering faintly beside her. She clutched her weapon, a lightweight blade gifted by a sympathetic villager, its surface etched with patterns meant to channel her Echo's flames.
As they ventured inside, the air grew heavier, thick with the residue of corrupted Echo energy. The walls were lined with decayed murals depicting the Council's ideals—unity, protection, balance—but the twisted experiments they discovered mocked those values.
The Hidden Laboratory
They entered a large chamber filled with cracked glass tanks, each containing grotesque remnants of Echo experiments. Seren stopped in front of one, her hands trembling as she recognized a deformed Echo resembling a phoenix, its wings blackened and broken.
"This… this could've been me," she whispered, her voice quivering with rage and sorrow.
Kael, though silent, felt the weight of her words. The experiments were grotesque attempts to corrupt and weaponize Echoes. The tanks bore labels, each listing the names of Echoes and their owners—many of them children.
"They were doing this on people like us," Kael muttered, his voice low.
The sound of footsteps interrupted their thoughts. A figure emerged from the shadows—a tall man with dark hair and sharp features, dressed in a sleek Echo Council uniform. His Echo, a massive, wolf-like creature with shadowy fur and glowing red eyes, materialized behind him.
"Jorin," Seren hissed, recognizing the man who had joined their cause only days earlier.
Jorin smirked. "You didn't really think I'd abandon the Council, did you? I was just gathering information—about you, Kael, and your little pet project here."
Kael's fists tightened, and the Void tendrils flickered to life around him. "You were leading us into a trap."
"Of course," Jorin said, his tone dripping with condescension. "The Council doesn't take kindly to interference. And Seren… the Council will never forgive what your family tried to expose."
The Battle
Jorin's wolf Echo lunged at Kael, its claws slashing through the air. Kael dodged, countering with his Void tendrils that wrapped around the beast's legs. The wolf snarled, its form flickering with corrupted energy, and broke free with a burst of force.
Meanwhile, Seren engaged Jorin directly. She channeled her phoenix Echo, flames dancing along her blade as she struck. Jorin dodged with practiced ease, his movements calculated and precise.
"You're weak, Seren," he taunted, his own Echo striking Kael to the ground. "Just like your family."
The taunt ignited Seren's fury. Her flames intensified, and her phoenix rose higher, its wings illuminating the dark chamber. She unleashed a powerful attack, a sweeping arc of fire that forced Jorin to retreat.
Kael struggled to his feet, blood dripping from a gash on his temple. "We need to take him down together," he said, his tone grim.
Seren nodded, and they coordinated their attacks. Kael's Void tendrils locked the wolf Echo in place, while Seren's flames scorched it. The creature howled in pain, its shadowy form beginning to dissipate.
Jorin, realizing he was losing, turned to a control panel on the wall. He pressed a button, and alarms blared throughout the facility. The ground shook as the tanks began to crack, releasing the corrupted Echoes within.
"Enjoy the chaos," Jorin sneered, retreating through a hidden door.
Desperate Measures
Kael and Seren were left to face the unleashed horrors. Dozens of Shades emerged, their forms twisted and grotesque. Seren's flames burned brightly, but her energy was dwindling. Kael absorbed the essence of two Shades, gaining temporary strength but feeling the Void within him grow stronger.
"We can't fight them all," Seren said, her voice strained.
Kael looked at her, then at the collapsing room. "Then we bring the whole place down."
With combined effort, they targeted the facility's support beams. Seren's flames melted through steel, while Kael's Void tendrils pulled the structure apart. As the building began to collapse, the two fought their way through the swarm of Shades, barely escaping as the ruins crumbled behind them.
Revelation
Outside, Seren collapsed to her knees, her phoenix Echo barely visible. Kael knelt beside her, his body trembling from the strain of absorbing so many corrupted Echoes.
"He got away," Seren said bitterly, tears streaming down her face. "Jorin… he betrayed us."
Kael placed a hand on her shoulder. "We'll find him. And we'll stop him."
Before they could catch their breath, Seren noticed something in Kael's expression—an unsettling glint in his dark red eye.
"Kael… are you okay?" she asked.
He looked away, his voice hollow. "I don't know."
The chapter ends with Kael and Seren vowing to continue their fight against the Council, but both are haunted by the cost of their powers—and the growing darkness within Kael.