Cain's Titan Core screamed.
The abyss around him bent and warped as the First Forsaken stepped forward, his golden eyes burning with an intensity that made Cain's very soul tremble.
This wasn't a battle he could win.
Not as he was.
The First Forsaken moved like a shifting void—half-there, half-absent. His body flickered, ceasing to exist in one moment and reappearing the next. His blade wasn't just sharp; it carved through space itself, severing reality with each movement.
Cain's Titan Core flared, golden energy bursting from his limbs as he forced himself into motion.
The moment he moved, the First attacked.
Cain barely managed to twist away, dodging the first strike by instinct alone. The blade sliced through the space where he had just been, leaving a jagged, trembling scar in the air.
His pulse pounded. If that had hit him—
No.
There wouldn't have been a 'hit.'
He would have ceased to exist.
Cain gritted his teeth, golden flames flickering around his hands as he countered. He lashed out with a strike enhanced by his Titan Core, aiming for the Forsaken's side—
But the First did not move.
Cain's fist connected—
And passed straight through him.
Cain's balance shattered.
His instincts screamed a warning.
He turned—too late.
A fist slammed into his ribs.
Cain's world exploded in pain as the force of the impact sent him hurtling through the abyss, his body crashing into unseen terrain. The impact should have broken bones—but something worse happened instead.
The Titan Core inside him flared erratically.
Like it had been damaged.
Cain gasped, his limbs trembling as he pushed himself upright. He had taken worse hits before. He had survived things normal people shouldn't survive.
But this wasn't about power.
This was about something else.
"Pathetic."
Cain froze.
The First Forsaken was already behind him.
Cain barely turned before a knee slammed into his stomach. The impact folded him over, his vision going white from the sheer force. He staggered, coughing, trying to regain his footing—
But the First grabbed him by the throat.
Cain's golden flames flickered violently, his Titan Core struggling against something far deeper.
"This is what they sent me?" The First Forsaken tilted his head, his fingers tightening around Cain's throat. "This is what remains?"
Cain's body fought back instinctively. His Titan Core roared, golden fire bursting from his skin, trying to force the Forsaken away—
But the First did not burn.
Cain's eyes widened.
The golden flames of the Titans had no effect on him.
Because he wasn't just Forsaken.
He was something else entirely.
"You fight like a child grasping at a sword too heavy for his hands."
The First lifted Cain higher.
"But I will teach you."
Cain snarled, forcing every ounce of his power outward. His Titan Core roared, and for a brief moment—the abyss trembled.
The First Forsaken smiled.
And then, he let go.
Cain's body hit the ground hard, his limbs shaking as he gasped for air. His Titan Core was still burning, but the flames were unstable.
The First Forsaken stepped back, tilting his head slightly.
"You are incomplete."
Cain pushed himself up, wiping blood from his mouth. "I don't need to be whole to kill you."
The First laughed.
"Kill me?" His voice carried something almost amused. Almost disappointed. "You do not understand, lost one."
Cain didn't respond.
Because the moment the First finished speaking, the abyss changed.
The ground split apart beneath them.
Cain staggered back, his heart pounding as the very fabric of the abyss tore open.
And something began to rise.
The First Forsaken's burning gaze never wavered.
"If you wish to fight, then you must first remember what you are."
Cain tried to step back—but he couldn't.
Something was pulling him forward.
The abyss wrapped around his limbs, dragging him toward the gaping rupture in reality.
No.
Cain fought against it, golden energy flaring—but it was no use.
The Forsaken had never needed to defeat him.
They had only needed to bring him here.
And now, the truth they had hidden from him was awakening.
Cain's breath hitched.
Because he wasn't just falling into darkness.
He was falling into a memory that was never his.
And something inside him recognized it.
Something deep.
Something terrifying.
The First Forsaken's voice echoed as Cain was swallowed by the abyss.
"Remember, lost one."
"Remember what they took from you."
And then—
Nothing.