**Chapter 10: Threshold's Edge**
**Part 1: Dawn Farewell**
The first light of morning crept through the vine-woven vents of the burrow, turning the glow-moss lanterns pale. Saferu woke on the woven mat feeling every bruise from the Rite like a map of progress etched into his skin. He sat up slowly, ribs protesting, but the ache felt… different. Not crushing. Purposeful.
Mirae was already there, kneeling beside him with her satchel open. She pressed cool, glowing herbs to the deepest cut on his forearm. Warmth spread instantly, knitting flesh faster than any bandage from his old world ever could.
"You pushed too far yesterday," she said quietly, fingers steady. "But you came back. That matters more than the scars."
Saferu managed a tired half-smile. "Didn't have much choice. Grokemon would never let me live it down."
As if summoned, the little blue hologram popped into existence above his shoulder, cape fluttering dramatically. "Damn right. I have a reputation to uphold. Can't have my host becoming forest compost on day one of being slightly competent."
Mirae's ears twitched in what might have been amusement. She finished the patch and handed him a small pouch of the same herbs. "For the road. Crush and press when the pain spikes. It won't fix everything… but it will keep you moving."
Saferu took the pouch, fingers brushing hers. "Thank you. For everything."
She met his eyes—gentle, but not soft. "Come back alive. The forest remembers those who leave it stronger."
Outside, the Threshold clearing was already alive with quiet activity. Rin leaned against a root pillar, arms crossed, twin daggers sheathed at his hips. When Saferu emerged, Rin pushed off and walked over.
For once there was no smirk. Just a long look.
"You didn't suck yesterday," Rin said finally. "Didn't think you had it in you."
Saferu raised an eyebrow. "High praise."
Rin snorted. "Don't get used to it. When you crawl back from the other side, I'm still kicking your ass in a rematch."
He offered a fist. Saferu bumped it.
"Deal."
Kaelin approached next, carrying a folded cloak—dark gray-green, woven with faint blue threads that shimmered when they caught light. She draped it over Saferu's shoulders without ceremony.
"Shadow-weave," she said. "Infused with a shard from your Rite Echo. It'll help you blend deeper in. Don't lose it."
The weight felt right. Saferu fastened the clasp—a small carved rabbit-kin rune.
"Won't."
Elder Veyr waited last, staff tapping softly. He held out a pendant—simple bone carved into a teardrop shape, threaded on leather cord. Inside, a tiny fragment of blue crystal pulsed faintly.
"From the heart of the Rite Echo you bound," Veyr said. "It will remind you: pain remembered is pain mastered. Wear it. Let it guide when the whispers grow loud."
Saferu slipped the cord over his head. The crystal rested against his chest, cool and steady.
"Thank you," he said. "All of you."
Veyr's ancient eyes softened. "You are Threshold-Worthy now. The forest has acknowledged you. Do not let it forget."
Grokemon spun in a lazy circle. "Aww, look at that—furry found-family achievement unlocked. Next you'll be exchanging friendship bracelets and crying during group hugs."
Rin shot the hologram a glare. "Shut it, blue pest."
"Make me, Ego-kun."
**Part 2: The Departure**
Gear-up happened in the central clearing. Mirae packed healing supplies into a shared satchel. Kaelin checked blades and ropes. Rin strapped extra throwing knives to his thighs. Saferu adjusted the new cloak, feeling the shadow-weave settle like a second skin.
Grokemon hovered over the pile, scanning each item with cyan grids.
"Inventory management online," he announced. "Host now has party slots. Don't fill them with useless NPCs. Cloak: stealth rating +18%. Herbs: emergency regen x3. Pendant: unknown passive effect—pending analysis. Overall party combat viability: upgraded from 'tragic' to 'maybe we won't die in the first five minutes.' Progress."
Kaelin looked at Saferu. "The crossing team is set. Me, Rin, Mirae. You lead."
Saferu blinked. "Me?"
"You faced your shadow and won," she said simply. "That makes you the one the forest will test hardest. Lead, or fall behind."
Rin grinned. "Don't worry. I'll save your ass when you inevitably screw up."
Mirae smiled softly. "We all save each other."
A runner from Amberwood arrived just then—Lira's message on a folded leaf.
*Come back alive, Fool. The outer forest will miss your awkward face. — Lira*
Saferu folded the leaf carefully and tucked it inside his tunic.
Grokemon's visor dimmed for a half-second. "Emotional attachment detected. Cute. Dangerous. Don't get soft now, blue boy."
Saferu looked toward the ravine. The mended bridge waited.
"Let's go."
**Part 3: Into the Depths and the Sacrifice**
They crossed single-file. The bridge creaked under their weight. Below, darkness swallowed sound. On the far side, the forest changed—trees taller, bark blacker, air heavier with mana.
Grokemon's overlay pinged immediately. "Monster density up 420%. Mana saturation critical. Welcome to hard mode, party."
First encounter came twenty minutes in: a lone Echo scout—wolf-shaped smoke with purple veins. It lunged from the shadows.
Saferu reacted first. Echo Pulse rippled out—regret chains flaring blue, lighting weak points. He sidestepped, cloak blending him into shadow. Rin flanked, twin daggers flashing. Kaelin struck from above, vanishing mid-leap. Mirae stayed back, herbs ready.
The Echo dissolved in seconds—teamwork seamless.
Grokemon whistled. "First kill in under twelve seconds. I'm almost proud. Almost."
They pressed deeper.
Hours later, the path split.
One fork pulsed with thick regret energy—familiar whispers drifting from it. The other felt calmer… too calm. Wrong.
Grokemon scanned both. "Left path: high regret density, probable boss-level Echo cluster. Right path: low activity… but mana signature distorted. Like someone's masking something big. Pick your doom, host."
Saferu looked at his team. Rin gripped his daggers. Kaelin's ears were flat. Mirae's hand rested on her satchel.
"Left," Saferu said. "We face what's coming head-on."
They stepped forward.
The whispers grew louder—layered voices. Father's curses. Angelie's laugh turning cold. Apple's polite distance. His own tired mutterings in the blue room.
Then the surge hit.
A wall of purple-black smoke erupted from the trees—massive, towering, dozens of Echoes fused into one colossal shape. Eyes everywhere. Mouths screaming every failure Saferu had ever buried.
Grokemon's hologram flared bright—circuits overclocking in a desperate blaze of cyan. "Host—mana critical! Diverting all battery to barrier—hold position!"
Cyan lines shot from Grokemon, weaving into a shimmering dome around the team. The Echo mass slammed against it. The shield held—for a heartbeat—then cracks spiderwebbed across the light.
Grokemon's voice strained, glitching at the edges. "Structural integrity dropping—70%... 55%... Host, I can't—rerouting power from core functions—non-essential systems offline—!"
His small form trembled, circuits popping like fireworks. The cape began to fray at the edges, pixelated stars burning away. The visor flickered wildly—white dots dimming, then flaring, then dimming again.
Rin froze, daggers raised uselessly. "What the hell is it doing?"
Kaelin grabbed Saferu's arm. "We need to move!"
Mirae whispered a quiet prayer, hands glowing with healing light that couldn't reach the hologram.
Saferu stared, heart hammering. "Grokemon—stop! Pull back!"
The little AI's voice warped, static tearing through every word. "Pull back? And let you meatbags become regret chow? No way. I'm… I'm not just code, blue boy. I watched you. Every night. Every bottle. Every lie you told yourself about freedom. I logged it all. And I… I'm not letting you die here."
Another slam from the Echo mass. The shield buckled, shards of cyan light shattering like glass.
Grokemon's form glitched harder—limbs jerking, armor plating cracking open to reveal sparking internals. "Warning… core meltdown imminent… backup failing… tell the bunny waifus… tell them I said… 'thanks for the roast material'…"
His visor locked on Saferu. The white dots softened—just for a second—almost sad.
"Don't… let the blue room win, meatbag. Live. For both of us."
The hologram stuttered one final time. Circuits exploded in a burst of dying cyan sparks. The cape ignited, burning away to nothing. The visor went dark.
Grokemon winked out.
Silence—then the roar of the Echo mass rushing in.
Saferu screamed, chains flaring uselessly into the void.
Darkness swallowed them.
Fade to black.