The air sizzled as Kai and Rhea's combined beam of Raw and Pure Aether surged through the war-torn courtyard of the Solstice Citadel. A cataclysmic roar followed the devastating energy wave as it carved through broken towers, flames, and rubble—headed straight for Fen Yalyph, Number 4 of the World 5.
Her eyes widened—genuine fear flickering through the cold detachment of her expression.
But before the beam could touch her, the very fabric of reality seemed to pause.
A hand—calm, bare, and wet with seawater—rose between her and destruction. One single finger extended.
Boom.
The blast met the finger—and stopped.
Not resisted.
Not clashed.
Stopped.
The energy dispersed into harmless wind and vapor, sending spirals of red and white Aether into the sky like smoke from a dying star. Kai's eyes widened. Rhea's lips parted slightly in shock.
"...What?" Kai muttered.
Standing between them and Fen, like he had been strolling in from the sea itself, was a man draped in a sleeveless ocean-blue cloak, seaweed-wrapped boots, and with hair like storm-tossed waves. His grin was boyish, almost too casual for the battlefield.
Shoei Akechi.
Number 3 of the World 5.
The Rabid Sea.
He looked over his shoulder at Fen, tilting his head. "Had enough yet, Lord Yalyph?"
Fen's jaw clenched as she dusted debris from her shoulder, cheeks flushed with rage. "Don't call me that," she hissed.
Shoei chuckled, ignoring her venom. "You're lucky I showed up when I did. These two were about to make a puddle out of you." He turned back toward Kai and Rhea. "Not bad, little typhoons. That was quite a beam. Raw Aether, huh? You don't see that every tide."
Kai tightened his grip on his sword, stepping forward despite the tremor in his knees. "You're Shoei Akechi," he said through clenched teeth.
Shoei gave a mock bow. "In the salty flesh."
"You're a monster."
"Depends on who you ask." Shoei's grin widened. "But flattery won't get you far, kid."
Rhea raised a barrier of Pure Aether between them, but Shoei didn't even flinch. He walked toward it—and passed through like mist. Not broken. Not dodged. Simply… ignored.
"How are you—?" Rhea whispered, staggering back.
"Eclipsers of your level tend to forget there's more to Aether than just power," Shoei said casually, waving his hand. The ground beneath Kai and Rhea instantly turned to liquid, dragging them down to their knees. "There's flow. Form. Intent."
Kai roared, Raw Aether flaring again, pushing against the liquified earth. He leapt into the air and swung his blade down. Shoei raised one finger again.
Ting.
The sword hit his finger with a sound like metal tapping glass.
Kai was thrown backward by the rebound, tumbling across the cracked floor. Blood spattered from his mouth.
"Reckless. But spirited." Shoei offered a small clap. "That's what makes the young so fun."
Rhea lunged next, forming ten crystalline spears of Pure Aether and firing them in a spread. Shoei simply… smiled.
A massive wave surged behind him, summoned from nowhere. It devoured the spears whole, then splashed harmlessly behind him, leaving the courtyard soaked.
"Enough," Fen snapped, finally standing tall. Her Hollow Aether pulsed again. "You've made your point. Why are you really here, Shoei?"
He turned toward her, smile fading ever so slightly. "You're making a mess, Fen. I thought you were the quiet one. The thinker. But now you're dragging your whole army into a suicide siege over what? A boy?"
Fen's eyes narrowed. "That boy just awakened Raw Aether. He's a threat to all of us. Especially to Zerath."
Shoei leaned closer, voice lowering. "So what? You thought you'd win? Alone?"
Her jaw clenched again.
"You overreached, Fen," Shoei said, now with a hint of condescension. "You should've waited. Now everyone's watching."
Above them, an enormous glyph of water spiraled into the sky, reflecting the moonlight like a beacon. Shoei raised a hand to it, eyes glowing deep ocean blue.
"I'm calling back my fleet," he said. "You've proven your point, Fen. Let it go before this gets out of hand."
Fen hissed under her breath. Her agents were losing ground. Lysander had held the rear with the Solstice defenders, and the morale of her Twilight Order was thinning.
"Fine," she snapped, turning away. Her Hollow Aether dissipated into dark mist. "But the boy is marked."
She vanished in a blink of shadow.
Shoei turned to Kai and gave a small wave. "You've made quite the splash, Kai Sol. I'm looking forward to seeing how far those waves go."
"Why help us?" Rhea asked, still tense.
Shoei shrugged. "I hate Fen's face."
And with that, the sea rose again—devouring him in a sphere of foam and bubbles. When it receded, he was gone.
Silence followed.
Kai dropped to his knees, exhausted. Rhea knelt beside him, hand over his chest.
"You okay?" she asked softly.
He nodded, though his body screamed. "I saw him… my father. In that dream. He was real. He was powerful. And now... now I know what I have to do."
The fires around them slowly dimmed.
Above the Citadel, the symbol of the Solstice guild still stood—battered, cracked, but unbroken.
To be continued…