⸻ Celestial Vault, Bordering the Riven Dimension ⸻
The vault thrummed like a cathedral made of laws. Pillars of starlight rose endlessly into the void, each inscribed with verdicts written by the gods themselves. It was here Rhazakel appeared—kneeling, his half-decayed, half-metallic body hissing with molten fire that bled from his veins. Ash fell around him like snow.
The Voice of Judgment spoke first, low and immovable.
"Rhazakel. What do you see of the Riven Dimension?"
No hesitation. His tone was calm, almost casual.
"…It is already crumbling."
Judgment's helm tilted as if confirming what was already known. The other Voices shifted.
The Voice of Fate laughed, mockery dripping like honey.
"How quick you are to ruin. Do you not tire of breaking toys too soon? What if destiny wished them to struggle longer?"
The Voice of Order cut across, flat and clinical.
"Choose your words carefully, Fate. Disorder spreads quickest through arrogance."
Rhazakel said nothing more, his stillness louder than their barbs.
Judgment turned back to Fate and Order.
"Prepare. We depart."
Fate's smile faltered. With a wave of her fingers, a rift split reality.
"Fine. But fate does not play nice when interrupted too early," she hissed, vanishing into her own design.
Order and Judgment followed, their departure humming like the closing of a cage.
When they were gone, Rhazakel stood. His skeletal wings cracked open, glowing faintly crimson. His molten eyes narrowed.
"…They waste breath on formality."
He turned toward the Riven edge. He would not walk into filth. He would unmake it instead.
⸻ The Battlefield Roared ⸻
Reality fractured underfoot. Rivers of warped time bled into cracked abysses. Glyphs bled light from the sky.
At the crater's edge, Ryu stood reborn in resonance—no longer only fire, but rhythm. His crimson-tipped dreadlocks flared with every pulse of his cosmic aura. His breath came heavy, his fists trembling, yet his stance radiated unbroken will.
At his side, Ignovar grinned wide, blackened armor shimmering with solar veins.
"Still standing? Good. Thought I'd have to drag you."
Behind them, the Fyr Domain's guard drew their lines:
• Seravynn Pyrelash, commander, hair blazing like solar flares, spear burning with volcanic sigils.
• Veynar Ashborn, shield-bearer, every strike a quake.
• Kaelen Drakemire, twin-blade duelist, blades flickering like cinders.
• Orvess Emberveil, mystic pyromancer, runes singing with flame.
And at their center, kneeling in radiant calm—the Aelyndari healer, weaving dark-green soul-threads into Onyx's chest.
Further back, Luto rose unsteadily beside Kaelen. His eyes glowed faintly, hair tousled by cosmic wind. Kaelen chuckled.
"You look like death warmed over."
Luto scowled. "And you look like a distraction. Focus."
⸻ The Sentients Surge ⸻
Kaelor the Final Brand stepped forward, chains glowing like suns, voice rumbling toward Ignovar.
"You got lucky last time, Fire Sovereign. That luck burns out now."
Ignovar laughed, slamming a gauntlet against his chest.
"Then burn me twice, chains-boy!"
They clashed—Ignovar's fire colliding with Kaelor's judgment, space warping with each strike. Ryu dove in beside him, rhythm syncing with Ignovar's tempo. For every blow Kaelor sent, Ignovar absorbed, and Ryu cut through the openings.
Meanwhile, Draelith the Iron Mandate descended, his perfect symmetry looming over Luto and Kaelen. The ground quaked beneath his steps.
"Deviation detected. Disease will be purged."
Kaelen grinned nervously. "I think he likes you."
Luto groaned. "Why do I miss the dragon already?"
Above, Velissara the Threaded Oracle smirked, her red strings unraveling into divine beasts. One hundred summoned horrors tore forward—shades of rebellion chained to fate.
Veynar and Orvess held the line with the healer, shields flaring and pyromancy igniting. Seravynn leapt atop Pyrrhagon, the dragon roaring in protest as Ignovar joked about "saving the ride for later."
Ryu's eyes lit. "Ignovar, I'm riding that thing."
The dragon roared louder.
Ignovar snorted. "Talk to her, not me."
⸻ Resonance in Fire ⸻
Ryu blurred forward. His strikes no longer clashed—they flowed. His flames bent around allies, slid through weakness, and resonated with the chaos of battle. He didn't just fight the storm.
He conducted it.
Every punch was music. Every kick, a drumbeat. His fire sang in harmony with Ignovar's roars, with Luto's calculations, with Onyx's very pulse still fighting to live.
Luto pressed harder against Draelith, folding space milliseconds before strikes landed, calculating angles like a grandmaster. Kaelen's blades danced to fill the gaps, the two warriors in sync if not equals.
And for a moment—it almost looked winnable.
⸻ Collapse Surge ⸻
Then Rhazakel moved.
At the edge of the Riven Dimension, he sneered. "Filth." His molten veins ignited, hands spreading wide.
"Collapse Surge."
The first ripple was silent.
Then—the Dimension screamed.
Valleys collapsed into dust. Rivers of time imploded into nothing. Entire ranges dissolved mid-air, their echoes erased.
At the epicenter, gravity coiled. Then—ignited.
A newborn singularity flared open, spewing molten plasma. Spirals of violet-red lightning lashed outward, bending physics until the Riven Dimension twisted like breaking glass.
The Gravitational Maelstrom was born. Its pull reached across the battlefield—breath heavy, bones dragged toward oblivion.
And in that moment—
Ryu faltered.
Kaelor saw it. Chains coiled, forming a cosmic wrecking ball, swung with satisfaction.
"Judgment ends you here."
Ryu turned too late.
⸻ The Blade That Returned ⸻
CRASH.
A warhammer the size of a mountain slammed into the wrecking ball, scattering chains into sparks.
From the smoke stepped a towering figure, armor cracked but glowing with emerald healing runes. His dreadlocks flowed behind him, his weapon shifting back to its staff-spear form.
Varkal'Zir – The Gravemark of Oblivion.
And the voice—low, heavy, impossible to mistake.
"…You two really don't know how to wait."
Ryu froze.
Luto's breath caught.
Onyx.
He patted Ryu's shoulder, grin small but real.
"I was dead."
A pause.
"Got better."
Ryu laughed weakly. "Took your time."
Ignovar roared with laughter. "So this is the brother! About damn time!"
Onyx nodded. "…Thanks."
Ignovar waved him off. "Save it. It's all them. I'm just hired muscle."
But then Ignovar's smile faded, gaze turning to the skies.
"The pressure's shifting. We need a way out soon. Our 'guests' won't let us walk."
He clapped Onyx's shoulder.
"This is your second chance. Protect them."
And then he dashed into Kaelor's chains, fire sovereign laughter echoing as he vanished into combat.
⸻ Ember and Echo ⸻
On the other end, Luto and Kaelen reeled as Draelith activated his Geometric Lockdown and Erasure Protocol—space folding into symmetrical prisons, chaos stripped from existence.
Mandate Edge swung for the kill—
CLANG.
Varkal'Zir intercepted, crescent blade sparking. And then a flash of crimson—
"Ember Vein Strike!"
Ryu's kick detonated fire straight into Draelith's mask. For the first time in centuries, a Sentient staggered. He coughed blood.
Even Velissara lost her smile.
Kaelen gawked. "He made a Sentient bleed."
Ryu smirked. "Guess he's not perfect after all."
But Draelith's eyes flared. "Deviation… cannot… stand."
His roar devastated the terrain, Velissara's beasts surging.
The brothers stood united. For the first time in ten years.
⸻The Storm⸻
Then—flame rained from above.
Seravynn's voice thundered across the battlefield as Pyrrhagon's breath cut a line between the Sentients and the brothers.
"Enough! We're leaving!"
Confusion swept the field.
"Leaving?!" Ryu barked. "It just started getting fun!"
Seravynn's voice shook with urgency.
"There's a Gravitational Maelstrom!"
Ryu blinked, then chuckled. "A what-now?"
But Luto froze. Onyx's eyes widened. Even Ignovar fell silent.
The battlefield stilled.
And the storm began to swallow.