Seven nights had passed since the fall of the Divine Beast.
The world hadn't been the same since.
The sky over Elandra glowed faintly crimson each dawn now, as though stained by the creature's blood. The winds carried whispers, faint but insistent, as if the gods themselves muttered from the heavens. The survivors had begun to call it the Sky's Mourning.
Kael stood at the edge of the great lake, watching the reflection of the red-tinted sky ripple across the water. The golden fragment of the beast's heart hovered before him, rotating slowly, threads of energy spiraling out into the air like smoke.
It pulsed once — thump — like a heartbeat.
Kael reached out, fingers brushing its surface. Pain flared through his arm, lightning racing through his veins. He gritted his teeth but didn't pull away. The power within it was intoxicating — sharp, endless, wild. It was divine mana, pure and unfiltered.
And it wanted to consume him.
He exhaled slowly, forcing his body to adapt to it rather than resist. That was something he'd learned here — you couldn't dominate this world's magic. You had to survive it. Let it tear you apart and rebuild you stronger.
As the energy settled, Kael's eyes glowed faintly gold. He looked up as he sensed someone behind him.
"Still playing with fire?" Seris asked, stepping out from the treeline. Her usual smirk softened a little when she saw his pale face. "You're going to burn yourself one day."
"Maybe," Kael said quietly. "But if this is what it takes to kill them, it's worth it."
Seris crossed her arms. "You talk like someone who's already dead."
Kael gave a small laugh. "Maybe I am."
For a moment, the two stood in silence. The air shimmered faintly between them, filled with the residue of divine energy. Then Seris said, "The others are waiting in the forge chamber. Lyria found something."
Kael's gaze sharpened. "What kind of something?"
"You should see for yourself."
---
The forge chamber was carved deep into the mountain's heart — a glowing cavern filled with rivers of molten mana and luminous veins of crystal. It had once been a natural formation, but over months of work, Daren and the others had reshaped it into the beating heart of Elandra's growth.
Lyria stood near one of the crystal conduits, her hands glowing faintly as she examined a pulsating stone embedded in the wall. When Kael entered, she turned, her expression grave.
"This vein," she said, tapping the rock. "It's not normal mana. It's divine residue — the kind that only appears when gods interfere directly."
Kael frowned. "Meaning?"
"Meaning they've touched this world more deeply than we thought," Lyria said. "These veins could connect to the same energy that powers them."
Seris let out a low whistle. "So if we can control the veins—"
Kael finished for her. "We can use their own power against them."
Daren grinned. "Now that's my kind of plan."
But Lyria shook her head. "It's not that simple. Divine energy is unstable. If we tamper with it carelessly, it could destroy the entire mountain — maybe even the planet."
Kael's eyes gleamed. "Then we'll learn how to tame it."
She gave him a look equal parts admiration and fear. "You really think we can fight gods with their own essence?"
"I don't think," he said softly. "I know."
---
That night, the thirteen gathered around a long table inside Elandra's Great Hall. The firelight danced on their faces as Kael stood at the head, the golden fragment of the Divine Heart hovering beside him.
"This world was made for their entertainment," Kael began. "A stage where we dance, bleed, and die for their amusement. But every stage has a foundation — something that keeps it standing. The veins Lyria found may be part of that structure."
Seris leaned forward. "So what's the next step?"
Kael looked around the room. "We stop surviving," he said. "We start building. Not just homes. Not just defenses. A kingdom powerful enough to challenge the heavens."
Murmurs spread around the table. Lyria's voice cut through them. "A kingdom? In seven months we barely managed to keep thirteen people alive."
Kael smiled faintly. "Then imagine what we can do in seven more."
Daren pounded his fist on the table. "I'm in. Been itching to make something that can punch a hole in a god anyway."
Ryn nodded. "We'll need structure. Guilds. Soldiers. Scholars."
Kael nodded. "We'll call it the Kingdom of Elandra. A haven for those the gods cast aside. A weapon disguised as hope."
Lyria sighed, but a small smile tugged at her lips. "You really don't do anything halfway, do you?"
Kael's smile was cold. "Not when I plan to destroy the sky itself."
---
As the meeting ended and the others dispersed, Kael lingered, staring at the glowing heart fragment still hovering near the throne. Its light pulsed softly, like it was listening.
"You want to be free too, don't you?" he murmured.
The fragment throbbed once, faintly.
Kael reached out, his fingers brushing the air around it. "Then lend me your power. And I'll show the gods what real creation looks like."
---
Outside, Elandra was alive. Magic filled the night air like mist. Workers shaped crystal towers, artisans carved runes into stone, and smiths used molten mana to forge weapons that hummed with power.
Every strike of a hammer echoed through the valley, a heartbeat of defiance.
Seris stood on one of the upper walkways, watching Kael below as he helped lift a mana conduit into place, sweat running down his neck. Her usual teasing grin softened into something else — something she rarely allowed herself to feel.
Lyria appeared beside her quietly. "You're watching him again."
Seris smirked. "And you're not?"
Lyria's lips curved faintly. "Maybe we both are."
For a while, the two women stood in silence, watching the man who had somehow turned despair into determination. Around him, the city rose — towers of light piercing the night, glowing runes weaving like constellations across the walls.
Seris murmured, "He's going to burn himself alive doing this."
Lyria nodded softly. "Then we'll make sure he doesn't burn alone."
---
That night, Kael lay in his chamber, exhausted but unable to sleep. The Divine Heart fragment hovered beside his bed, bathing the room in gold. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw flashes — not memories, but visions.
A throne of light.
Laughter that shook worlds.
A voice whispering from beyond reality:
> "You were chosen because you refused to kneel."
Kael woke with a start, drenched in sweat. The fragment pulsed softly, as if amused.
He stared at it for a long moment, then whispered, "Keep laughing. You'll choke on that laughter soon enough."
Outside, thunder rumbled faintly — but it wasn't from a storm. It was from something moving in the heavens.
Something watching.
Something angry.