Naering: Origination

An unseen disturbance

The solar twilight cast its amber glow over the tundra forest, and Dri and Fal sat perched on a high outcrop of crystalline rock, overlooking the sprawling expanse of their home. The shimmering domes of their city glistened in the distance, refracting light in prismatic patterns.

"I wonder," Dri began, his voice quiet but curious, "if we'll ever get to see the Naering up close. I mean really see it, not just in holograms."

Fal leaned back, propping himself up with his hands. "Probably not. It's locked in the vaults under the Core Citadel. Only the Elders and the Hyper Scholars are allowed access." He glanced sideways at Dri, a mischievous grin spreading across his face. "Unless you're thinking of sneaking in."

Dri laughed. "Not a chance. I'd rather live to see my 15th year."

Their conversation was interrupted by a distant rumble. At first, it was faint, like a low hum carried on the wind. But it grew louder, resonating through the ground beneath them.

Fal sat up, his playful demeanor replaced by sudden concern. "Do you hear that?"

Before Dri could respond, the sky above them began to shift. The nimbus clouds, once stationary, started swirling violently, their dark forms churning as if stirred by an invisible hand. A strange, oscillating glow pulsed through the mist—a deep indigo hue that seemed almost alive.

"It's the atmosphere," Dri said, his voice trembling. "Something's—"

The ground beneath them cracked.

In an instant, they were thrown from their perch, tumbling down the rocky slope. Dri's enhanced reflexes kicked in, allowing him to hover momentarily before landing on a patch of mossy ground. Fal wasn't as quick; he hit the ground hard but scrambled to his feet.

"Fal, look!" Dri pointed to the sky, where the indigo glow had condensed into a singular point. The pulse of energy was unlike anything they had seen before—dense, rhythmic, and growing stronger with each passing second.

Then it happened.

A piercing wave of energy shot down from the sky, striking the distant horizon. The force of it sent a shockwave rippling through the tundra, bending the taiga trees and shattering the crystalline structures of the Acunaymex city in the distance.

Fal grabbed Dri's arm, panic evident in his eyes. "Is this—? Is this the Eclecticos?"

Dri couldn't answer. His mind raced, and for the first time in his life, he felt the weight of true fear.

The wind howled through the tundra, a relentless force that seemed to carry with it the weight of something far greater than just a storm. The indigo pulse that had shot from the sky now bathed the landscape in an unsettling glow, its deep hum vibrating through the very air. Dri and Fal crouched behind the shattered remains of a crystalline arch, barely able to shield themselves from the shockwaves that rippled through the ground beneath them. The once serene landscape had transformed into a chaotic battlefield, where the natural order had been completely upended.

For a long moment, they could only hear the crackle of energy in the air, and the distant, muffled sound of what might have once been a city in motion. The Core Citadel, the heart of their civilization, had been shaken to its foundations, and its once-pristine architecture was now a jagged silhouette against the pulsing sky.

"This... this is impossible," Fal muttered, his voice barely audible over the roar of the storm. His usual bravado had been replaced by a deep, unmistakable fear. "The Eclecticos... it's never been this close before. The last time it happened, the Origon disappeared... the whole planet vanished."