The jungle was thick with tension, shadows pressing in from every direction.
Thorn stood frozen, eyes locked on the masked woman before him. Serah clutched his arm tightly, her mind racing, the revelation echoing in her ears.
"Hello, brother."
The woman pulled off her black mask with a slow, mocking grace.
And there she was.
Long black hair braided down her back, eyes a sharper, colder version of Thorn's. A jagged scar crossed her left eyebrow. Her lips curled into a half-smile that didn't reach her eyes.
"Ivy," Thorn muttered, voice low, barely audible.
Serah blinked. "You… you have a sister?"
Thorn didn't look away. "She died. Years ago. Or so I thought."
Ivy laughed—a chilling, hollow sound. "Oh, you sweet idiot. They told you I died so you'd never come looking."
Thorn stepped forward, fists clenched. "What did they do to you?"
Ivy's smile vanished. Her tone turned to steel. "What they couldn't finish with you… they perfected with me."
With a sudden flick of her shoulders, thorns burst from her back—sleeker, darker, and sharper than Thorn's. Serah gasped.
"She's like you…"
"No," Thorn growled. "She's worse."
---
The soldiers behind Ivy stood like statues, their guns trained on Thorn and Serah. Ivy raised a hand lazily, signaling them to lower their weapons.
"Relax, boys. If I wanted to kill him, I'd already be picking my teeth with his spines."
Serah stepped forward, her voice firm. "Why are you here? Why now?"
Ivy tilted her head. "Let's call it… a reunion. And a warning."
"I don't trust you," Thorn said flatly.
"You shouldn't," she said with a grin. "But listen anyway. Rhazir isn't hunting you because of what you are, brother. He's hunting you because of who you've created."
Serah's hand instinctively moved to her stomach. Her eyes widened.
"You mean…"
Ivy's gaze dropped to Serah's belly. "Oh, he doesn't just want Thorn anymore. He wants the child. The first of its kind. Half-human. Half-weapon."
Serah's legs nearly gave out.
Thorn caught her.
"I'll never let him touch her," he swore.
But Ivy's eyes turned serious.
"Then you better run faster than ever before, big brother. Because the Blackroot Division already knows. And they've sent the deadliest hunter of all."
Thorn's voice cracked with dread. "No…"
Serah clutched his chest. "Who?"
Ivy whispered, "Project HOLLOW."
---
BOOM!
A tree exploded nearby.
The ground trembled.
Smoke rose in the distance.
Ivy's eyes narrowed. "Too late."
---
As she disappeared into the trees, leaving only a feather-black rose behind, Thorn and Serah turned toward the rising smoke. From it stepped a figure taller than any man they'd ever seen—clad in cybernetic armor, no face, no soul. Just a glowing red visor and rotating steel spikes on its back.
Thorn stepped forward protectively.
Serah whispered, "Is that… Project Hollow?"
"No," Thorn said darkly. "That's Death in armor."