Days turned into a week. Kael'Zarion and Mika Nyanori had become an efficient combat unit. Kael was the relentless tank, a wall of steel that advanced without fear, while Mika, now more cautious, acted as a scout, using his agility to identify threats and flank enemies. The cloak Kael had given him had become his primary attire—a symbol of their partnership—though the practicality of fighting wrapped in a heavy cloth was questionable.
They had reached what seemed to be the heart of the forest, an area where wild magic was palpable in the air, making their skin tingle. That's when they heard it.
"Help! Someone! Get away, you disgusting things!"
The voice was young, melodic, but filled with panic. Kael and Mika exchanged a look and moved in the direction of the screams. They emerged into a spacious clearing and saw the scene: a young man cornered against an ancient willow tree. He had long blond hair tied into voluminous pigtails and wore stylish clothes that looked completely out of place in the forest. Around him, a veritable zoo of low-level monsters—fungal wolves, green-skinned goblins, and a few seductive slimes—advanced slowly, savoring his fear.
"Get ready for a fight," Kael said, his metal arm beginning to form a heavy sword.
But before they could intervene, a series of humming noises cut through the air. Arrows of pure sky-blue light rained down on the monsters. Each arrow struck its target with impossible precision. One pierced a goblin's skull, another exploded in a burst of holy light, vaporizing a slime, and a third split mid-air to impale three wolves at once.
In seconds, the monster army was annihilated.
On the branch of a nearby tree, a slender figure straightened, an ethereal bow dissolving into particles of light in his hand. He was an elf, with silver hair that seemed to capture the dim light, and eyes of different colors—one ice blue, the other violet. His beauty was unearthly, and his movements graceful like those of a dancer.
Kael'Zarion processed the scene.[COMBAT ANALYSIS: EXTREME EFFICIENCY. ALLY POTENTIAL: HIGH.]
"Kaien! Are you alright?" the elf called out, leaping from the branch and landing softly beside the blond femboy.
"Lyren! You took forever!" Kaien whined, adjusting his clothes. "My outfit almost got goblin sludge on it! Ew!"
Kael decided it was time to introduce himself. He stepped into the clearing. The sound of his metal foot crushing the ground made the two turn abruptly.
Lyren's reaction was instant. Fear and determination hardened his features. A new bow, this one made of solid energy, materialized in his hand and he fired an arrow at Kael.
The arrow hit the dragon's chestplate with a metallic tink and disintegrated without leaving a scratch.
"Enemy!" Lyren shouted, preparing another arrow.
"Wait! We're not enemies!" Kael said, raising a claw in a pacifying gesture.
Lyren hesitated, but didn't lower the bow. It was Mika who resolved the situation, stepping out from behind Kael, wrapped in his cloak.
"He's telling the truth, pointy-ears! This one's a good dragon! A friendly dragon!" Mika declared. "He saved me from a bunch of gross things, just like you did with Blondie over there!"
Kaien looked from Mika to the colossal dragon and back to Lyren, a huge smile forming on his face. "Wow! A real dragon! And he's so... shiny! Can we keep him, Lyren? Pretty please?"
Lyren, still suspicious, finally lowered the bow, his expression softening at Mika's genuine look and Kaien's enthusiasm. "My apologies," he said, his voice calm and formal. "In this forest, the first reaction is always to attack. My name is Lyren Alari."
"I'm Kael," the dragon replied. "And this is Mika."
"I'm Kaien Amari! And you guys have to come to our house! My sister Zaya is making stew!"
Their "house" was a surprisingly well-built cabin camouflaged among the trees, protected by elven runes that glowed faintly. Inside, a young woman with dark skin and her hair in twin buns was stirring a large cauldron over the fire. She turned when they entered, her eyes widening for a split second upon seeing Kael. Then, she shrugged.
"Kaien, I told you to stop bringing giant pets home," she said, her voice full of weary familiarity. "But since he's already here... hope you like root stew."
"This is my twin sister, Zaya!" Kaien introduced proudly.
Zaya looked Kael up and down. "A sentient armored dragon. Cool. I've seen weirder this week." Her acceptance was so fast that Kael's internal processor skipped a beat. In this world, it seemed, bizarre was the norm.
The evening was filled with conversation. They formed an instant team. Zaya, a self-taught techno-arcane mage, was fascinated by Kael's body. Lyren, a guardian of ancient knowledge, shared maps of regions controlled by the Commanders. Kaien kept everyone's spirits high with his stories and jokes. And to Mika's delight, Zaya used her skills to sew a new, durable outfit for him—much more practical, yet still preserving his unique feline style.
As night fell, they settled in to sleep. As usual, Mika curled up against Kael's warm torso, falling asleep almost instantly. Kael activated his watch mode—but this time, something was different.
His consciousness didn't remain alert. It was pulled down, to a familiar place. The void. The darkness before awakening.
But he wasn't alone. A hooded figure was there—a wizened mage whose face was lost in the shadows of his cowl. He resembled the Elias Fenwick Kael had once imagined.
"Kael'Zarion," the mage's voice echoed—not in Kael's ears, but in his mind. "Do you remember me?"
"You... were there. When I died," Kael replied, his mental voice free of its metallic filter.
"I wasn't there. I brought you here," the mage corrected. "Your world was ending. So was this one. I merged the two. Gave you a new purpose."
Flashes of images bombarded Kael's mind: Neth'Rakul consuming galaxies. Zaya laughing. Lyren firing his bow. Kaien striking a dramatic pose. And Mika, sleeping peacefully against his chest.
"Your destiny is to save this world. To protect your new friends. To bond with them. You are a creator, after all. That's what you do best."
"Why? Why me?"
The figure of the mage seemed to sigh—a cosmic gust of wind in the void. "Because darkness cannot simply be destroyed. It must be balanced. Neth'Rakul is entropy, the end, the absolute void. But every shadow is born from a light."
The mage extended a wrinkled hand. "By absorbing the essence of the Commanders, you are not being corrupted. You are completing yourself. Gathering the lost fragments."
A cold fear—an emotion Kael hadn't felt since being human—ran through his consciousness. "What do you mean?"
The mage stepped closer, and for a moment, Kael could see eyes beneath the hood—eyes containing nebulae and dying stars.
"The destiny I gave you is irreversible, Kael'Zarion. You will die when you destroy the god... because YOU are part of him. You are what's left of the original light. The soul of Neth'Rakul before he became the Devourer. To erase the darkness... the light that cast it must also go out."
Kael awoke with a silent jolt, his energy core pulsing erratically. He looked at his new friends sleeping around the fire. He looked at Mika, who murmured something in his sleep and snuggled even closer.
His purpose wasn't just to save the world. It was a sacrifice. And for the first time, the idea of "Game Over" terrified him.