Scene: Halron Fortress, Inner Chamber – Chaos All Around
The war outside raged.
Flamebearers pushed into the city.
Walls burned. Towers fell.
But inside the shattered cathedral hall—
Kaien Everflame stood alone
facing Commander Rhagur, the Hollow Flame.
No crowd.
No banners.
Just two monsters built by gods.
---
💀 Rhagur's True Form
His armor twisted as he moved.
Crest shards glowed across his ribs, pulsing violently.
> "I was their final project.
The one meant to fix the flaw in you.
They called me 'Reclamation.'"
Kaien circled slowly.
> "Then why do you look like something even they abandoned?"
Rhagur roared—voice laced with pain and power.
> "Because I survived their rejection!"
---
💥 The Fight Begins
Rhagur charged—swinging his fused blade with unholy force.
Kaien dodged—barely. The shockwave shattered the ground.
Every strike from Rhagur came with afterburn—fire that didn't burn skin, but memories.
Kaien's left arm went numb—
A flicker of his mother's face disappeared from his mind.
> [Memory erosion detected.]
> "I remember who I am because I choose to."
He activated Shadow Recall—
A flickering past version of himself joined the fight.
---
⚔️ Tactical Combat – Real Strategy
Kaien didn't overpower him.
He out-thought him.
Dodging wide. Baiting attacks.
Countering with speed and timing, not brute force.
But Rhagur adapted.
Learned every second.
And the longer it went on, the faster Kaien bled.
---
💢 Rhagur Speaks Truth
> "You're not free.
You're scared.
You build this little rebellion because you're terrified of what happens if you stop moving."
Kaien's breath faltered.
He'd been told worse.
But this time… it felt true.
Until—
Seris's voice echoed from the corridor.
> "Then I'll move for him!"
---
🗡️ Seris Intervenes – But at a Cost
She dashed in, blade slicing through Rhagur's side.
A clean hit.
Rhagur screamed.
But before Kaien could stop it—
Rhagur's blade slammed into her chest.
She hit the ground.
Hard.
Not dead.
But not moving.
Kaien's scream shook the chamber.
> "NO—!"
---
🔥 Kaien Snaps
His Crest surged.
> [Crest Sync: 109% – Stability Breach]
> Calamity Reborn – Stage 2 Engaged
Flame poured from his body—black and gold, wild, untamed.
Not a weapon. Not divine.
Just wrath wrapped in grief.
He rushed forward.
Not clean. Not planned.
Just violent.
---
💀 Final Blow – Kaien Ends Rhagur
Kaien shouted—
Not a battle cry.
A grief cry.
> "You don't get to take anything else from me!"
He stabbed Rhagur through the chest.
The corrupted Crest shattered—
exploding inwards, not out.
Rhagur collapsed, coughing.
> "You… were never meant… to win…"
Kaien leaned close.
> "I wasn't.
That's why I did."
Rhagur's body crumbled to dust.
---
🩸 Aftermath – Seris Clings to Life
Kaien held her, blood soaking through his hands.
Lyra arrived—crest glitching, voice cracking—
> "We can't move her. Not yet."
Kaien just held Seris tighter.
Eyes empty.
Hands shaking.
---
🔥 Final Line – From Kaien
> "No more mercy.
No more lines.
If they come for what's mine again—
I burn the whole damn sky."