The Masked Virtuoso-Chapter 77: The Lost Ones

The Voices of the Rift

The world beyond the Gate of Nihilor was not a place.

It was a memory of existence itself.

Ethan stepped forward, his golden-shadow aura flickering in the unnatural void.

The Rift didn’t feel like an enemy.

Not yet.

It felt like a graveyard.

Then—the whispers started.

Hundreds of voices. Thousands.

Some were distant.

Some were too close.

Selene’s spear pulsed with golden energy. "Something is here."

Mia tensed, gripping her daggers. "I hear them. They’re everywhere."

Kieran’s visor glitched violently. "No readings. No life signs. But we’re not alone."

Ethan’s eyes burned gold.

He felt them.

And then—they appeared.

Figures faded into view.

Not monsters.

People.

Some in armor. Some in rags.

Some in battle-worn cloaks—marked with symbols of the Rift.

Selene’s breath hitched.

"These are... Riftborn."

---

The Riftborn Before Him

They weren’t ghosts.

They weren’t illusions.

They were real.

And there were hundreds.

Their golden-shadow energy flickered, unstable—like echoes of what they used to be.

One stepped forward.

A warrior clad in ancient armor, a sword strapped to his back.

His voice was hollow.

"You’re the next one, aren’t you?"

Ethan’s jaw tightened. "The next what?"

Another figure—a woman with ritual scars along her arms—spoke.

"The next Riftborn."

Mia’s fingers curled into fists. "Ethan, what’s happening?"

The first warrior’s gaze burned into Ethan’s soul.

"We were like you, once."

He spread his arms.

"Chosen by the Rift. Given power. Tested."

His golden-shadow energy crackled violently.

"And then—we failed."

Ethan’s breath slowed.

"What do you mean?"

The woman exhaled, her expression grim.

"None of us could finish the trial." 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

She gestured toward the void around them.

"This is where the unworthy Riftborn are sent."

She met Ethan’s gaze.

"The ones who weren’t strong enough."

Mia’s voice was cold.

"You mean the ones who died."

The warrior shook his head.

"No."

His next words sent a chill through the air.

"We didn’t die."

He took a slow step closer.

"We were erased."

And the shadows moved.

---

The Trial of the Forgotten

The air trembled.

The Riftborn watched Ethan.

Not with hostility.

Not with anger.

But with expectation.

Orion tightened his grip on his rifle. "Ethan. What do we do?"

Selene’s voice was careful. "They don’t seem hostile."

Ethan exhaled.

"I think this is the real test."

Kieran blinked. "What test?"

Ethan looked at the figures surrounding them.

"They failed the Rift’s trial."

His golden eyes burned.

"And now I have to prove I won’t."

The first warrior smirked.

"Then let’s see if you’re worthy, Riftborn."

His golden energy exploded.

The void came alive.

And the battle began.

---

The Realm of Forgotten Kings

The world inside the Gate of Nihilor was wrong.

Ethan had been to many impossible places—the Rift, the Void, and even the Edge of Time—but this was something else.

It wasn’t just a place.

It was a graveyard of history itself.

Towering ruins stretched across a land of fractured stone, monuments built from forgotten wars. The sky was gold and black, swirling as if locked in an eternal battle between light and shadow. In the distance, giant statues of warriors stood frozen in combat, their faces eroded by time.

But the most unsettling thing—

Was the silence.

Not a dead silence.

A waiting silence.

Like something here had been expecting him.

Mia shivered, gripping her daggers tighter. "Yeah, no. Don’t like this. At all."

Orion checked his rifle. "Definitely a trap."

Kieran’s visor flickered with error messages. "Getting zero readings. Nothing. Not even Rift energy. This place is just... wrong."

Nefera, her sword glowing faintly, glanced at Ethan. "You feel it, don’t you?"

Ethan’s golden-shadow aura flickered slightly.

He did.

Something ancient was watching them.

And then—

A voice.

Low. Echoing.

"You are not the first."

---

The First Riftborn’s Curse

A figure stepped forward from the shadows.

Tall. Cloaked in shifting darkness and light, mirroring Ethan’s own golden-shadow energy.

The First Riftborn.

The warrior Ethan had seen in his vision.

But something was wrong.

His aura was unstable—fractured—like it couldn’t decide if it was whole or breaking apart.

Ethan clenched his fists. "You were the first."

The figure nodded slowly. "Yes. And I was the first to fail."

The air grew heavy.

Mia whispered, "This guy gives me serious ’haunted ghost’ vibes."

Selene, watching closely, asked the real question. "What do you mean, ’fail’?"

The First Riftborn’s golden eyes locked onto Ethan.

"You are the 14,086th Riftborn," he said. "You are the last."

Ethan frowned. "Last?"

"The others fell. One by one. Some to power. Some to despair. Some... to the Rift itself."

The shadows shifted.

And suddenly, they were not alone.

---

The Forgotten Riftborn

Figures emerged from the ruins.

More warriors.

Some clad in golden energy, some shrouded in blackened shadows, and others flickering between both—caught between what they were and what they became.

Ethan’s team tensed immediately.

Mia raised a dagger. "Okay, I don’t love this."

Orion muttered, "How many are there?"

Nefera whispered, "Too many."

And then—

The First Riftborn spoke.

"These are the Lost Ones. Those who took the test and failed."

Ethan’s heart pounded.

Some of them had golden eyes—like his.

Some of them had black, empty voids—like Nihilor.

And some had both.

One warrior, her armor cracked and glowing with unstable Rift energy, stepped forward. Her voice was hollow.

"We were like you once."

Another, taller than Orion, his body flickering like static, added, "We fought for the right to reshape reality."

A third, his face half-burned away by golden energy, whispered, "We lost ourselves instead."

Ethan clenched his jaw. "You all failed?"

The First Riftborn nodded.

"And now—we are trapped here."

The air shifted.

And Ethan realized—

They weren’t just trapped.

They were waiting.

For him.

---

The Battle of the Lost Ones

A low hum filled the air.

A test.

Ethan could feel it—the Rift itself was watching.

The Lost Ones stepped forward in unison. Their voices echoed across the ruined battlefield.

"Prove you will not fall as we did."

Ethan sighed. "Of course."

Then—they attacked.

Orion fired first, sending a hail of bullets into the closest Lost One—only for them to phase through like mist.

Kieran cursed. "Great. They don’t play fair."

Mia vanished, reappearing behind one—only for her dagger to pass straight through them.

Nefera slashed forward, her blade igniting with divine energy—and finally, one of them flinched.

Selene caught on immediately. "Only divine power works!"

Ethan nodded. "Then we go all in."

He moved.

Faster than light.

Faster than thought.

His golden-shadow energy exploded, shattering the ground as he clashed with the First Riftborn. Their punches met—BOOM!—sending shockwaves that cracked reality itself.

The Lost Ones swarmed.

Selene impaled one with her spear, her golden aura erasing them.

Nefera cut through another, her sword glowing brighter than ever.

Mia flipped mid-air, dodging strikes as she delivered precise, lethal attacks to their weak points.

Orion fired a single divine round, striking through two at once.

Kieran sent a pulse of disruptive energy, knocking back a wave of them.

And Ethan—

Ethan fought the First Riftborn.

Their fists collided again and again, each strike shaking the very air. The First Riftborn was strong—but he was not complete.

And Ethan was.

Then—Ethan saw it.

The First Riftborn hesitated.

Just for a second.

And Ethan struck.

His fist—glowing with golden-shadow energy—slammed into the First Riftborn’s chest.

For the first time—

The First Riftborn fell.

And the Lost Ones froze.

---

The Rift’s Decision

Everything stopped.

The air settled.

The Lost Ones... disappeared.

Not in pain.

Not in death.

They simply—ceased.

As if finally released from their curse.

The First Riftborn, still kneeling, exhaled. "You are... different."

Ethan lowered his fists. "I know."

A long silence.

Then—the First Riftborn smiled.

"Then maybe... you are the one we were waiting for."

The sky rumbled.

And the Gate of Nihilor behind them began to change.

Ethan turned toward it.

The next trial was waiting.

And this time—

It would be against something beyond any Riftborn.

---

To Be Continued...