The road to Cauldron Lake went surprisingly smoothly — even cheerfully. As usual, Emmett kept throwing jabs at Casey, who was getting sick of being constantly compared to the fictional detective Alex Casey. Even Saga, who was talking on the phone with her husband and daughter, couldn’t help but laugh when Casey snapped again and Emmett calmly asked him for an autograph.

On the other end of the line, Saga’s husband, David, didn’t understand at first what had made her laugh so hard. When he heard that bright, genuine laugh, he relaxed noticeably — because when she had first called, there had been something in her voice, something heavy, as if Saga were calling to say goodbye. Now, though, his heart eased a little. He exhaled softly and simply asked his wife to be careful.

“I promise,” Saga said with a gentle smile. “I’ll have a lot to tell when I get back.”

After talking a bit more with her husband and daughter, she said goodbye and handed the phone back to Alex.

The black Impala smoothly turned toward Cauldron Lake and stopped in an old parking lot. Alex killed the engine and, glancing at his companions, silently asked if they were ready. Emmett, Saga, and Casey nodded without a word and started getting out of the car.

“And here we are again,” muttered Casey, adjusting the strap of his shotgun.

“Things usually end where they began,” replied Alex, taking off his coat and tossing it onto the driver’s seat.

“Makes sense,” Emmett nodded. “Rosalie was reading a novel recently where the main character went full circle and came back to where it all started. Turns out, the killer had been right beside him the whole time.”

“And is that normal in those kinds of books? Returning to the beginning?” Saga asked with genuine curiosity.

“Not always,” Alex shrugged. “Alright, let’s move. Kiran and her people should be arriving at the shore any minute now.”

With that, he looked up at the sky. Above the dark forest, a Bureau helicopter roared past. Knowing they were running out of time, the group headed down the old trail leading to the lake.

The forest wasn’t what it used to be. Ever since the story of Return had nearly merged with reality, everything around them had changed. It felt like the Darkness itself didn’t want them to reach the shores of Cauldron Lake.

A fallen tree blocked their path at the fence, crushing the gate and part of the barrier.

“No turning back now,” said Alex, climbing up the trunk.

He was the first to make it over and scanned the area, activating his danger sense — no Taken, no movement.

“All clear!” he called. “Climb over! Careful though, it’s slippery!”

Emmett went up first to help Saga and Casey. He reached down, easily pulling Saga up beside him, then lent a hand to Casey, who gritted his teeth, hiding the pain from his wounded arm.

On the other side, Alex caught Saga when she slipped slightly.

“Thanks,” she breathed, steadying herself.

Alex just gave a brief smile in response and helped Casey down. Emmett landed last, light and easy, as if it were nothing at all.

Looking around, Saga took out a flare and lit it. The bright red glow tore through the thick darkness.

She knew too well: when it was too quiet and too dark, you didn’t take chances. The flare illuminated their way as Alex, Emmett, and Casey followed behind, scanning the forest — the Taken could emerge from the shadows at any moment.

The path was wet and slippery. Alex took up the rear, using his magical sight to assess the surroundings. What he saw made him frown. He had thought the story of Return had merged with reality, becoming part of it — but in truth, it was the opposite. The Dark Place hadn’t blended with the world. It was consuming it. Reality around the lake was being pulled inward, like a massive whirlpool sucking the dimension itself into its depths, reshaping it into a piece of itself.

Turning off his magical sight, Alex rubbed his eyes. The experience in Bright Falls had taught him a lot. Now he understood better how to act when facing enemies capable of bending reality itself.

Pushing away his uneasy thoughts, he quickened his pace, catching up with Saga, whose face was softly lit by the crimson flare.

Their path to the lake was only just beginning.

Reaching the end of the trail, Alex, Emmet, Saga, and Casey stepped out onto an open clearing overlooking the gloomy mirror of Cauldron Lake. One brief glance — and they headed toward the old wooden stairs leading down.

Descending, they stepped onto the cracked asphalt when, all of a sudden, five Taken emerged from behind the trees, holding rusted weapons in their hands. Their silhouettes shimmered within the swirling darkness, and it was clear — they were about to attack.

But before anyone could raise a weapon, the air was torn apart by a deafening honk. All four — Alex, Saga, Emmet, and Casey — turned to see an old retirement home bus speeding down the road at full throttle.

Behind the wheel, a bottle of liquor in one hand and a wide, almost insane grin on his face, sat Odin.

“Holy shit…” Casey managed to mutter.

The bus’s headlights slashed through the darkness, freezing the Taken for just a moment — and then came the impact.The bus screeched, plowing straight into them, sending their bodies flying like bowling pins.

“O-o-o-ho-ho-ho!” Emmet gasped, bending over in laughter. “Did you see that, Alex?! He actually hit them while drinking from the bottle!”

Alex just nodded, unable to suppress a grin as the bus roared past them, tires screeching, and drifted around the bend like an old rally racer before vanishing into the distance.

Saga’s phone suddenly rang. She sighed heavily and turned on the speaker.

“Kiddo, did you see that?! Hahaha! That’s how you deal with the servants of Darkness!” came Thor’s drunken voice.

“Haha! I could run over those bastards with my eyes closed!” Odin roared in the background.

“Did you set everything up?” Saga asked, struggling to hide her irritation.

“Of course! We’re about to put on a show like the good old days! Brother, tree! TREE!” said Thor — and then started yelling.

“What damn tree?! There are no trees in our songs! Aaaaaaah—who’s the idiot who left a tree in the middle of the road?!” Odin shouted, followed by a loud crash, the snap of branches, and the crunch of metal.

“Because we’re not on the road!” Thor yelled, and again came the sound of breaking branches and another heavy thud.

Saga closed her eyes and covered her face with one hand.”Grandpas… watch the road. And please, be careful.”

“Don’t worry, kiddo! Everything’s under control! See you on the beach! Love you!” Odin said just before the call ended with yet another muffled crash.

For a few seconds, silence hung in the air. Then Alex and Emmet burst into wild laughter, doubling over. Even Casey, though still looking dazed, couldn’t help but smile.

Even the Valkyries watching the broadcast were silent in complete shock. One of them muttered:”If we had an Odin like that, Ragnarok would’ve never happened.”

Meanwhile, still laughing, Alex wiped tears from his eyes and exhaled:”Glad I left them that bottle of wine from Valhalla. Looks like it was enough to remind them of their youth.”

“Oh, definitely,” Emmet said, trying to catch his breath. “Who would’ve thought, Saga — your grandpas are absolute legends.”

“Irresponsible drivers,” she replied dryly, slipping her phone back into her pocket.

“The important thing is they’ve got spirit! When you put on a concert, it’s all about that burning spirit inside you!” Alex said, raising his hand to the sky. “They’ve ignited the fire of their youth one last time! And tonight, it’ll burn brighter than the sun!”

Saga looked at him and couldn’t help but smile, seeing that same fire in his eyes. Even Casey smirked, and Emmet nodded — he understood that Alex wasn’t just speaking for the sake of words.

After catching their breath, they continued down the road. But a few minutes later, their path was blocked by fallen trees — a massive pile that was impossible to climb over.

Saga pulled a map from her pocket and lit it with her flashlight. Alex, Emmet, and Casey leaned in to look.

“Here,” she said, pointing. “There’s a detour along the riverbank. It leads straight to Cauldron Lake.”

They followed the stream, listening to the distant voices — Thor and Odin were already setting up their concert equipment, accompanied by raspy laughter and the clinking of bottles.

“Judging by the sound, they’re still drinking,” Casey remarked. “I already like them.”

“That’s the power of creation,” Saga said softly, and a faint smile crossed her face.

Alex and Emmet followed behind Saga with smirks on their faces, moving along the dark forest trail. The closer they got to the shore, the louder Odin’s and Thor’s voices became — the two old rockers were fiercely arguing about how exactly to tune their equipment.

For a brief moment, Alex even felt sorry for Kiran, who was witnessing this chaos from the front lines. He could easily imagine her expression described in a single word — realization of the end, especially when “salvation” arrived in the form of two drunk musicians.

After climbing over the last obstacle — a fallen tree surrounded by thickening darkness — they finally reached the beach.

From above, a bright spotlight blinded them — a helicopter hovered over the shore. Alex was the first to step down onto the ledge and quickly scanned the area. On the sand stood crates brought by Kiran and three FBC agents. Nearby was the old bus that Thor and Odin had arrived in. But what surprised Alex the most was seeing Ahti among them, calmly tuning a guitar while Thor and Odin kept arguing.

Jumping down, Alex realized that Verrocchio and his men still hadn’t returned — apparently, they were installing the last isolation stakes around Cauldron Lake.

Saga went straight toward Thor and Odin, trying to calm them down at least a little, while Casey and Emmet headed to Kiran, who was busy with the final preparations. Alex, meanwhile, took another glance around the beach and noticed Ilmo and Jaakko sitting on a raised area, holding hunting rifles, ready for the signal to begin.

“Verrocchio, report in. The beach is ready,” Alex said, contacting his team.

“My King, we’re setting up the last stake. We’ll be with you in a minute,” Verrocchio replied.

Satisfied that everything was going according to plan, Alex walked over to Kiran. She was checking the generators, making sure they wouldn’t fail at a critical moment. Beside her, on top of a crate, lay a strangely shaped silver blade.

Alex recognized it immediately — an angelic weapon.

Leaning against the crate, he smirked.

“I see the FBC hasn’t lost its touch — still collecting angel blades, huh?”

“Something like that,” Kiran replied without looking up from the wires. “When all the angels fell, we had to clean up piles of corpses. The humans who couldn’t handle being vessels, and the angels themselves — killed in their own civil war.”

“You deal with beings like that often? Demons, angels, all that nasty stuff?” Alex asked, raising a brow.

“Too often. We barely have time to handle one anomaly before something new pops up — the apocalypse, hell gates, fallen angels, Leviathans… and now, the Darkness. Sometimes it feels like the whole world’s turned into one endless horror movie. What about you? What’ve you been up to lately?” Kiran asked, still not turning her head.

Alex pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and exhaled lazily.

“Broke a wendigo curse on Blackwood Mountain. Visited a couple of haunted spots — like Blair Forest. Oh, and I’ve got a crossroads demon locked in my basement right now — squeezing information out of him. You know, the usual.”

Kiran glanced up for a moment.”Blair Forest, huh? The Bureau stopped sending agents there after three teams vanished without a trace. And honestly, I didn’t think the Men of Letters interrogated their enemies. You usually just kill and move on.”

“I make exceptions when it helps me track down the embodiment of Darkness,” Alex replied calmly. “And no, I’m not telling you where it is — not until your Jessie shows up herself.”

Kiran narrowed her eyes.

“And why would she come to see you?”

Alex smirked, meeting her gaze.

“Don’t play naive, Kiran. I know you’re already putting together a dossier on me. Once this is all over, you’ll have to file a report — and my name will definitely be in it. Besides…” he tilted his head slightly, “your janitor is already here.”

Right on cue, Ahti strummed his guitar, producing a melodic chord that echoed softly into the night air.

“So, you and Ahti know each other,” Kiran said evenly. “Looks like you really came prepared for your meeting with our Bureau.”

“My job is to know everything,” Alex replied with a faint smile, flicking ash from his cigarette.

Kiran’s gaze lingered on his multicolored irises. Yes, he was definitely not human. In her mind, she placed him in the same category as Director Jesse Faden — and even Ahti — living anomalies that stood beyond human understanding.

Alex, without reading her thoughts, still perfectly understood what was going through her mind. That was exactly what he wanted. If he showed just enough, Jesse would inevitably take interest. Which meant that sooner or later, the Director of the FBC would come knocking on his door — not as an enemy, but as a potential ally.

While they exchanged calm remarks, Kiran subtly gathered information about him, and in the meantime, Verrocchio and his men returned to the beach.

Alex noticed that everyone had taken their positions. Tossing aside his spent cigarette, he walked toward the bus, where Thor, Odin, and Ahti were already standing on the roof — fully prepared for the concert to begin.

Climbing the steps calmly, Alex met their eyes. All three smiled. Odin stepped back from the microphone and gave him a nod. The old man understood perfectly — this was not their time to shine, but Alex’s. They would simply accompany his performance.

Alex approached the microphone, gripping it with one hand. For a moment, he glanced back at Emmet, Saga, Casey, Kiran, and Verrocchio’s men. All of them were waiting for his signal. Alex gave a small nod, then turned his gaze to Odin, Thor, and Ahti.

Odin adjusted the strings on his guitar and gave a short nod. Ahti replied with a soft smile. Thor, sitting behind the drums, raised a thumbs-up.

“So, ready to light it up?” Alex asked with a smirk.

“Go on, King,” Odin laughed. “Show us how the youth rocks these days! Tonight’s your stage. Consider it payment for that wine you gave us!”

“Better yet, bring another bottle after the concert,” Thor added. “We’ll drink together!”

“Ahaha! Another fond memory for the collection,” Ahti said, lazily strumming a few notes.

Alex chuckled and shook his head. He turned to face Cauldron Lake, took a deep breath, and raised his hand. A snap of his fingers echoed across the water.

In that instant, the silver stakes driven along the lake’s perimeter flared with blinding light. Reality itself seemed to ripple — the darkness that had cloaked the sky retreated, revealing a bright moon and a scatter of stars. Moonlight poured down, bathing the bus — and the four figures standing atop it — in silver radiance.

Yet the lake remained impenetrably dark, as if it rejected the light itself.

When the spatial isolation was complete, Alex swept his gaze across the team, wordlessly signaling that it was time. At once, Verrocchio barked an order, and his men activated their energy blades — arcs of crackling electricity burst from the swords. Kiran switched on the spotlights, flooding the shore with blinding white light. Emmet cracked his knuckles and grinned wide. Casey readied his weapon. The Koskela brothers, stationed higher up, aimed their shotguns toward the dark shoreline, prepared to meet the first wave of the Taken.

Alex stepped closer to the microphone and raised his hand. The lights flickered — as though the lake itself had blinked in response.

And that marked the beginning.

“A warning to the people. The good and the evil. This is war,” Alex sang, his voice low and resonant.

His voice carried over the water, and ripples spread across the surface of the lake — not from the wind, but as if the water itself had answered his call. Odin and Ahti joined in, weaving their chords into the rhythm of Alex’s voice.

The air trembled — it felt as though the song itself pierced the fabric of reality, rewriting it.

The water stirred again — not in waves, but in fractures. From the depths rose a thick, cold fog — dead and heavy, like the breath of another world.

“To the soldier, the civilian. The martyr, the victim. This is war,” Alex continued, his gaze locked on the darkness at the lake’s center.

Thor struck the drums — the ground beneath the bus trembled.

At that very moment, a sound like shattering glass cut through the air. Everyone standing on the shore looked up — the moon had cracked, and through the fracture appeared a second one — a blood-red Moon.

A crimson beam of moonlight descended straight into the center of Cauldron Lake. Where it touched the water, the silhouette of a woman with long black hair and a scarlet dress appeared.

It was Zhang Ya — his wife, who had chosen to help her husband in his mad plan to absorb the Dark Place.

Her blood-colored dress swayed as if alive, her hair shimmered under the red moonlight, and her bare feet barely touched the surface of the water.

Seeing her, Alex smiled — softly, warmly, like a man who had just seen his purpose.

“It’s the moment of truth and the moment to lie. The moment to live and the moment to die. The moment to fight, the moment to fight. To fight, to fight, to fight,” he continued, quickening the tempo, and the music around him flared with new power.

With every line of the song, the surface of the dark lake began to change. The light of the blood-red moon acted as a spotlight, illuminating the scene as if everything happening now belonged only to Zhang Ya — and no one else.

She stepped forward, her movements smooth and graceful, as if the water itself obeyed the rhythm of her dance. Wherever her bare feet touched, crimson ice appeared, cracking and melting into the waves with every step. She spun to the music — elegant, poised — and in every motion there was unity with Alex, as if they were one being: voice and dance, rhythm and breath.

The wind suddenly rose, growing stronger and stronger — a herald of the Taken, released by the Darkness to ruin the concert. One after another, the Taken emerged from the lake, their formless shadows flooding the shore.

“To the right, to the left. We will fight to the death. To the edge of the earth. It’s a brave new world. From the last to the first!” Alex’s voice thundered, as if the very air vibrated with the force of his words.

At that moment, Verrocchio and his men were the first to charge into battle, meeting the Taken with flashing power blades. Alex didn’t stop. He knew — this was his stage, and his task wasn’t just to sing, but to finish the song, to give his wife the chance to shine in her full glory.

Thor, Odin, and Ahti played with fury, as if they had returned to their own youth. The guitar chords and drumbeats intertwined with Alex’s voice, merging into a living storm.

Meanwhile, something grand unfolded on the lake. The crack in the sky grew wider, and all of Cauldron Lake was flooded with red light. Zhang Ya twirled, taking light, almost weightless steps, spinning to the rhythm of the music like a ballerina dancing on the edge of the living and the dead. Each step left behind a trail of crimson ice that melted and merged with the water’s surface, turning it from black to blood-red.

Song and dance fused together — Zhang Ya was absorbing the Dark Place, taking it piece by piece from the Dark Entity. And it felt it — its power slipping away, its control over the shadows weakening. The lake, once lifeless and black, now pulsed with red light, as if it were coming alive to their music.

Meanwhile, the battle on the shore raged fiercely. Hordes of Taken kept emerging from the water, but they met resistance — Verrocchio’s swords, the Koskela brothers’ bullets, Kiran’s floodlights and lamps. Every strike, every shot moved in rhythm with the music, forming a symphony of light and darkness.

Across the world, viewers held their breath. The girls watching the broadcast put everything aside — they didn’t want to miss a second of the concert.

In Alex’s family mansion, Freya, Hephaestus, Hestia, Loki, Gloria, Namie, Kiriko and Alcina sat in the spacious living room in front of the large screen. Wine, cigarettes, quiet laughter — and eyes fixed on the screen.

“I didn’t expect Zhang Ya to dance so beautifully,” Freya said, holding a glass. “She’s usually quiet, always in Alex’s shadow… but now her soul is shining.”

“I think Alex arranged all of this for her,” Loki smirked, opening a can of beer. “Not that I’ll argue — Zhang Ya is simply stunning right now.”

“And I never thought another of my stubborn husband’s projects would end with a concert,” Alcina remarked, taking a drag from a long-stemmed cigarette holder.

“I like this song,” Gloria added, resting her hand on her cheek. “If Alex had decided to become a singer back when we lived in Night City, he would’ve conquered the whole world by now.”

“Maybe,” Hephaestus snorted. “But knowing Alex, he’d lose it at some point and cause an absolute riot.”

“Can’t argue with that,” they all agreed in unison.

A similar atmosphere reigned at the Guild. In Brunhilde’s large office, Koko, Yuriko and Saya gathered in front of the screen to watch the performance. Other Valkyries, not wanting to watch on tiny phones, joined in — and Alvitr decided to be creative, broadcasting Alex’s drone feed on every screen in the Guild.

Those who were about to leave froze when the camera showed Alex standing on the roof of the bus with a microphone in his hand.

At first, no one understood what was happening. But when his voice rang out and Zhang Ya began to twirl on the water beside him, everyone went silent.

No one expected that the Demon King — a hunter and scientist capable of toppling mountains and bargaining with gods — could sing so purely, powerfully, and beautifully.

And Zhang Ya’s dance turned the battle into art.

A few minutes before Alex began to sing, his workshop was already in chaos. Four gremlins — Nyaruko, Jinx, Tina and Anya — had taken over the workspace, deciding that Dad’s absence was the perfect chance for “scientific experiments.”

“While Dad’s away, we can use his workshop!” Nyaruko said with a mischievous sparkle in her eyes.

At one of the many tables stood Nyaruko, Jinx and Tina, arms folded and frowning as they examined their latest invention. Anya, as usual, sat slightly apart, swinging her legs and glued to her phone screen.

Inspired by a cartoon about a mad scientist’s machine that creates food, the girls decided to build their own version — FLDSMDFR. But something clearly went wrong.

On the workbench sat a trembling, pulsating contraption shimmering in all the colors of the rainbow — the result of each of them adding their favorite hues. The device buzzed loudly, crackled, and seemed ready to explode at any second.

Then, on a white plate under the device, a… purple slime appeared. It emitted strange squeaky noises and wriggled.

“Looks like it failed again… Why is it so hard to turn water into food?” Jinx muttered, ruffling her hair.

“I said we should’ve stolen the original FLDSMDFR,” Tina said cheerfully, poking the squealing slime. “We need it more than that scientist.”

“I wonder if that slime is edible?” Nyaruko asked, stretching out a finger as well.

“I don’t think it’s worth testing,” Jinx noted. “Last time we fed similar slime to a minotaur, Mommy Hephaestus was furious for a week.”

“What if no one finds out?” Tina asked slyly.

“Mommy Freya will find out anyway,” Nyaruko said confidently, nodding like a wise sage.

The three gremlins sighed heavily. They loved their moms and didn’t want to anger them… but curiosity burned stronger. Then a lightbulb literally went off over Nyaruko’s head.

“I’ve got an idea!” she whispered and whistled.

From the corner of the room, a thick gray mist began to rise, slowly revealing the distorted face of a creature known as the Hound of Tindalos. Without hesitation, Nyaruko fed the purple slime to the beast. It swallowed its prey and vanished instantly, as if it had never existed.

Anya, however, paid no attention to what was happening around her. She kept her eyes fixed on the phone screen, waiting for her daddy to start singing.

“Anya, aren’t you going to join us? You were the one who wanted to build this thing!” Jinx called out.

“Not now. Daddy’s going to sing soon. I want to listen,” Anya replied calmly without looking away from the screen.

Hearing that, the three gremlins exchanged glances and, forgetting all about the FLDSMDFR, rushed toward Anya. Instead of grabbing more chairs, all four tried to squeeze onto one.

“Ow! You hit me!” Jinx protested, pushing Nyaruko aside.

“Don’t pull my hair!” Nyaruko shouted, shoving Tina.

“Ah! You stepped on my hand!” Anya yelped, trying to push both of them off.

For a few seconds, a quiet war for space unfolded until… a familiar voice came from the phone’s speakers. Alex had begun to sing.

In that instant, all four froze. On the screen appeared their daddy — and beside him, their mommy, Zhang Ya, dancing beneath the crimson moonlight.

The four gremlins stared at the screen in awe, forgetting everything else. They even began to hum softly along with the song, as if performing it with their father. Their eyes shone as Zhang Ya twirled in the red lunar glow.

Meanwhile, on the shores of Cauldron Lake, everything was changing rapidly.

The dark surface of the water had almost completely turned crimson — Zhang Ya, gradually taking control of the Dark Place, seemed to open one door after another, releasing the Taken into the world.

Gunfire never ceased for a moment. Bullets ripped through the air, echoing over the lake. On the shore, battle raged — dozens of Taken fell every second, yet new ones emerged from the depths, an unending tide surging toward the light.

Alex didn’t stop. His voice rang out — strong, clear, resonating through the chaos, as if harmonizing with the world itself. Beside him, Zhang Ya danced, her movements reflecting the rhythm of his singing, creating a mesmerizing duet of light and shadow.

Thor and Odin, as if young again, played with the fury of their youth. Ahti, a grin on his face, pulled every note from his guitar, and after the next chorus, delivered a soaring solo that made even the Taken seem to freeze for a heartbeat.

The climax was approaching. Thor hammered a thunderous rhythm on the drums; Odin and Ahti slowed the tempo slightly, preparing the stage for the final verse. Alex, sweaty but radiant, smiled. He had never felt anything like this — and damn it, he loved it.

Running a hand across his face and brushing his hair back, he stepped toward the mic and sang:

“I do believe in the light. Raise your hands into the sky. The fight is done, the war is won. Lift your hands toward the sun. Toward the sun. The war is won.”

Alex’s voice softened — almost tender — filled with fatigue and faith all at once.

But as the final line faded, the music surged again. The air trembled, the waves rose, and with every note, the red light grew brighter. Zhang Ya spun once more, her dance quickening — as though the moon itself guided her movements.

As the song neared its end, the number of Taken began to dwindle. Their screams faded, and at Alex’s final words, the remaining shadows dissolved into the crimson glow.

“The war is won. A brave new world…”

With the last guitar chord and drumbeat came a final gunshot — and silence fell over Cauldron Lake.

Zhang Ya stood still in the center of the lake, her dress — woven from blood and light — softly swaying in the wind. Gracefully, she took the edges of her hem and, with a gentle bow toward Alex, finished her dance — a tribute to her husband, who had sung for her.

Alex gazed at her with love. When their eyes met, a fleeting, almost imperceptible smile crossed Zhang Ya’s cold face. In the next moment, her silhouette dissolved into the crimson glow, merging with the lake.

Alex lifted his eyes to the blood-red moon and let out a heavy sigh. He hadn’t expected that performing before both darkness and light at once would be so difficult — and so beautiful. He turned his gaze toward Thor, Odin, and Ahti — the trio stood drenched in sweat, yet smiling with genuine satisfaction.

“We’ve played many concerts in our youth,” Odin said, catching his breath. “But this one… this was the best of them all.”

“I agree, brother,” said Thor, leaning on his drums. “Even without an audience. That girl dancing under the moonlight — she was the best crowd we’ve ever had.”

Alex smiled.

“I’m glad you liked my wife’s dance.”

Ahti patted him on the shoulder, his eyes glinting with amusement.

“We’ll have to do it again, King.”

“Definitely,” Alex replied with a wide, genuine smile.

Alex, Odin, Thor, and Ahti burst out laughing. Even for Alex — who was used to chaos — this was something special. Performing side by side with these old warriors had been both fun and mesmerizing.

When the laughter finally faded, Alex shook off the last traces of adrenaline and decided to check on the others.

He jumped down from the roof of the bus and first looked toward Verrocchio and his squad of Black Templars. Their armor was soaked in the blood of the Taken, yet they stood unfazed — no wounds, no exhaustion. Alex nodded approvingly, then shifted his gaze to Ilmo and Jaakko: the two sat on a rise, breathing heavily but grinning in satisfaction, slapping their palms together.

Emmet stood a bit apart, covered in blood from head to toe. His clothes were torn, but judging by his expression, he was very much alive. Saga, Casey, and Kiran looked tired but uninjured.

“I see everyone’s fine,” Alex said, lighting a cigarette.

“Seems like it,” Saga replied, pointing toward the lake. “But that concert of yours was… incredible. Though, what happened to the water? And where did that crimson moon come from? And who was the girl dancing in the middle of the lake?”

“I’d like to know that too,” said Kiran, wiping blood off her angelic blade. “But one thing’s clear — because of her, the lake turned red as blood.”

Alex smirked, exhaling a thin stream of smoke.”Then let me ask you a question, Kiran. What happens when two spaces similar to the Dark Place collide?”

Kiran frowned, thinking for a moment — and then her eyes widened as realization struck.

“The stronger one consumes the weaker… You mean to say…”

“Exactly,” Alex nodded. “Almost all of the Dark Place has been absorbed. There’s only one part left. Well, to be precise… ninety-nine percent of it is already gone.”

He raised a finger, as if placing a period on the conversation.

“So you’re planning to go down there for Alan Wake? And that’ll be the end of it all?” Casey asked, leaning on a crate.

“That’s right,” Alex replied, folding his hands behind his head. “I would’ve gone sooner, but I wanted to make sure you were all safe first. Now… it’s time to see the ending of this book.”

No one said another word. They all just nodded silently, giving Alex their unspoken blessing.

He smiled, took off his cloak, and calmly walked toward the crimson lake. The water hissed as it touched his feet, but Alex didn’t stop. He kept walking — deeper and deeper — until the scarlet waves closed over his head.

When he disappeared beneath the surface, the others settled down wherever they stood — some sitting, some lying back — waiting for Alex and the rescued Alan Wake to return.

Meanwhile, Kiran activated her comm console and added a note: Alex’s access level — increased by one rank.

She had been watching him, and that girl in the center of the lake, the whole time. And now she knew — once he returned, she’d have to file a very detailed report for the council.

To be continued…

(Wow, who knew it would be so hard to write a chapter like this? It seems like it’s been a while since I read fanfiction where the main character sang and held concerts. But writing this one turned out to be not as easy as I thought. Anyway, I tried my best. Honestly. Anyway, what follows is a dark place, or maybe the Red World, who knows. Basically, beating up Scratch, then saving Alan, and talking to Amara.)

Early access to chapters on my patreon: p*treon.com/GreedHunter

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep