Steel met steel with a sharp clang that echoed across the misty water. Kiel's blade moved like liquid fire, slicing through the first wave of Council enforcers before they could even react. Every strike sent a jolt through his hybrid core — the gold-and-black energy inside him flaring in tandem with his fury.
Jalen was a whirlwind beside him, dual blades flashing. For every enforcer he downed, another replaced them, but Jalen didn't falter. His movements were precise, deadly, like a shadow dancing in time with Kiel's power.
"Keep moving!" Kiel shouted to Lyra and Merek, who had taken cover behind crates near the boat. The mist made it nearly impossible to see, and the docks groaned under the pounding boots of the enforcers.
One of them lunged from above, a chain-whip crackling with dark energy. Kiel caught it mid-swing with his bare hand, and the hybrid flame surged, burning through the weapon like it was paper. The enforcer staggered, smoke rising from his armor, before Jalen's blade finished him.
---
Lyra, refusing to stay idle, drew her twin daggers and cut across the ropes holding the boat. The vessel drifted away slowly, giving them a potential escape route, but the enforcers weren't letting them go that easily.
Merek, crouched low on the dock, grabbed a barrel of gunpowder lying nearby. With a grin that didn't quite reach his eyes, he ignited it. The explosion threw several enforcers into the water, sending black smoke and splintered wood flying in all directions.
"Nice one!" Kiel yelled, ducking a spear thrust just in time. The hybrid core's energy flared, and the blade in his hands glowed gold-black as if alive. Every strike he made now carried the weight of his qi and shadow fusion, cutting through steel and armor with frightening ease.
---
The leader of the enforcers stepped forward again, spear in hand, eyes gleaming behind the angular mask. "Impressive," he said. "But you cannot hold this power forever, Kiel Veyran."
Kiel gritted his teeth. "Try me."
The spear struck first, faster than any human could move. Kiel twisted, deflecting it with his sword, but the hybrid energy in him pulsed uncontrollably. Sparks of gold-black lightning arced across the dock, and the water hissed where it touched.
The leader smirked beneath the mask, stepping back. "Good. Show me the full extent of it."
With a roar, Kiel pushed his hybrid system to the limit. Shadows and qi intertwined around him, forming a vortex of energy that lifted off the docks, scattering debris and knocking enforcers off balance. His sword slashed through the air, leaving arcs of molten light in its wake.
Jalen shouted, "Kiel! Don't let it consume you!"
Kiel's eyes flared brighter as the shadow within the hybrid system threatened to take over, but he clenched his fists. He would not let it. Not now. Not when his friends were in danger.
---
The leader launched again, this time with the entire group backing him. Spinning strikes, blasts of dark qi, and coordinated assaults rained down. Kiel met them with a furious combination of sword strikes, hybrid bursts, and qi-enhanced reflexes. The dock trembled under the force of their clash.
Lyra and Merek fought valiantly, taking down any enforcer who got too close, while Kiel's energy tore through the battlefield like a storm incarnate. Each strike sent shockwaves across the water, illuminating the night with black-and-gold fire.
---
The battle was far from over, but one thing was clear: Kiel was no longer just a man — he was the hybrid storm, and the Council had underestimated the force they had provoked.
And as the moonlight reflected off the rippling water, he realized the docks weren't just a battlefield—they were the beginning of a war that could destroy everything if he lost control.