The surge behind me didn't just push me—it hurled me forward.
SLAM!
"Ugh...!"
I crashed into the stone floor hard enough to rattle every crack in my shell before bouncing across the rough ground. Each impact sent fresh waves of agony through my battered body as I rolled uncontrollably, scraping against the cold rock.
THUD!
My body slammed into a jagged boulder, finally bringing me to a stop.
For several long moments, I could only lie there, drawing ragged breaths that echoed through the vast silence. The warmth filling the tunnel was gone, replaced by an eerie chill that seeped through the stone beneath me. Even Overdrive, which had carried me this far, flickered once behind my eyes before fading away.
"Haa... haa..."
Gritting my teeth, I slowly forced my head out of my shell. Every movement pulled at my injuries, and dark spots clouded my vision before gradually clearing.
Only then did I realize where I had landed.
This wasn't another tunnel.
An enormous chamber stretched before me, so vast that its ceiling vanished into darkness.
Silence swallowed everything around me.
For a few moments, I couldn't think straight. Fragments of the tunnel flashed through my mind before fading again, leaving only the icy stone beneath my chin.
"Huff... huff..."
Each breath came out ragged, burning all the way down my throat. Pain surged through every inch of my body. Every breath tugged at torn muscles while the cracks in my shell throbbed with each heartbeat.
Barely.
I tried to move.
"...Ugh."
Nothing.
My hind legs refused to respond, as though they no longer belonged to me. The slightest movement sent a sharp jolt racing through my spine, forcing a pained hiss from my throat. Deep inside my chest, my newly formed core trembled violently, its unstable rotation sending chaotic pulses throughout my body.
Then...
Something changed.
The strange energy sealed within my core stirred. It pressed against the fractures, restless and violent, as though searching for a way to break free.
"N... not yet..."
My vision grew heavier with every passing second. The darkness creeping into the edges of my sight wasn't ordinary exhaustion. It was my consciousness slipping away.
Yet amid the silence, an uneasy feeling crawled over me.
I wasn't alone.
Using the last of my strength, I slowly lifted my head. My blood blurred everything before me.
Then...
Two blue lights appeared in the darkness.
They didn't flicker like flames. They remained perfectly still, watching me with an ancient, emotionless gaze.
My heart skipped a beat.
"...What is that?"
A deep voice echoed throughout the chamber.
"Is this the one?"
Another voice answered after a brief silence.
"A mere pebble..."
"How disappointing."
The sound rolled through the chamber like distant thunder, shaking the stone beneath me.
I wanted to lift my head.
I wanted to see what those voices belonged to.
But my body had already reached its limit.
My vision faded.
The blue lights were the last thing I saw before everything disappeared into darkness.