Part 1: The Eye of the Storm
The holographic feed on the deck of the Obsidian Leviathan was a mess of static and blinding white light.
The collision between the Red Tear and the Aegis of Heaven had created a shockwave so dense that even the magical sensors of the ship were blinding out.
"Captain!" Orion's voice rasped from the ship's timber. "The air pressure is critical. If we sail into that now, the hull will fracture. We are a ship, not a bunker."
Elian stood at the helm, his eyes fixed on the projection. His knuckles were white on the wheel, but he didn't turn it.
"We wait," Elian commanded, his voice cutting through the panic of the crew.
"Wait?" Valen shouted over the wind. "Zephyr is fighting alone! If we don't help him—"
"If we go in there now, we die before we draw our weapons," Elian interrupted cold. "Look at the mana readings. It's a grinder. We wait for the recoil."
For three agonizing minutes, they watched the two Kings tear the sky apart. Magma met compressed wind. Lightning met barriers. The floating continent shook to its core.
Then, slowly, the blinding light began to dim. The initial fury of the clash was fading, leaving both combatants exhausted. The mana density in the air dropped from 'Catastrophic' to merely 'Deadly.'
Elian's eyes narrowed.
"Now."
He turned to his team. "Squad One! To the launch deck! We take the drakes! The ship is too big a target!"
As Valen, Isara, Jax, and the others scrambled toward their mounts, a massive hand grabbed Elian's shoulder.
Elian turned. Prince Thal'dor stood there. The Storm-Prince was vibrating with repressed energy, his crystal spear sparking with blue electricity.
"I am coming," Thal'dor growled.
"You're injured," Elian noted, looking at the cracks in the Prince's armor from the earlier battle.
"That is my father," Thal'dor hissed, leaning down, his blue face inches from Elian's. "And that is my uncle. Do not tell me to sit on this boat while my blood bleeds."
Elian looked at the Prince's eyes. He saw the same desperation he had felt fifty years ago.
"Get on a drake," Elian ordered. "Try to keep up.
Part 2: The Flight of the Valkyries
"Launch!"
Twelve Wind-Drakes shot out of the Obsidian Leviathan's cargo bay.
The wind hit them like a physical hammer. Even with the storm calming, the turbulence was enough to snap a drake's wing if the rider wasn't careful.
"Caelum!" Elian shouted into his comms crystal.
"I have you," the blind elf's voice came back, strained.
Caelum was riding behind Elian. His hands were outstretched, weaving a tunnel through the chaotic air currents.
"Shields up!"
A violet barrier wrapped around the squadron, cutting through the wind shear. They flew fast, a spear-tip formation piercing the gloom.
Ahead of them, the battlefield came into view.
It was a tragedy.
Zephyr and Volcanis were floating amidst the debris of shattered clouds. Both were panting heavily. Zephyr's wings were dim, his robes shredded. Volcanis's obsidian scales were cracked, bleeding magma.
They were preparing for one last exchange. A final blow to end the war.
"Faster!" Thal'dor roared from the front, pushing his drake to the breaking point.
But just as they broke through the final cloud bank, Elian saw it.
"Stop!" Elian shouted.
A shadow fell over the two exhausted Kings.
It wasn't a cloud. It was a ship.
Descending silently from the stratosphere, cloaked in high-tier stealth magic until the very last second, was a sleek, black metallic vessel shaped like a dagger.
The Silent Lotus.
Part 3: The Voice in the Wind
The two Kings froze, looking up in confusion as the black ship hovered between them.
"A third player?" Zephyr whispered, his chest heaving.
From the underside of the black hull, seven figures dropped. They didn't fall; they descended slowly, suspended by humming anti-gravity devices strapped to their backs. They wore matte-black bodysuits and porcelain masks.
The leader landed on a chunk of floating debris between the Kings. His mask bore a single purple flower.
Viper. The Guild Master of the Black Lotus.
"Beautiful," Viper's voice echoed, distorted by a magic filter. "Truly cinematic. The bond of brothers... so easy to manipulate."
Volcanis growled, his tail lashing weak sparks.
He opened his mouth to roar, but then he froze.
His slit pupils dilated. He tilted his head, listening to the echo of the man's voice.
"That sound..." Volcanis whispered, the magma in his throat cooling. "I know that cadence."
Viper chuckled, tapping the side of his mask. "You have a good ear for a beast."
"It was you," Volcanis hissed, taking a step forward on the air. "The voice in the static. The whisper in the storm that told me the Human killed Glacius."
"Guilty," Viper bowed theatrically. "I merely pointed the gun. You were kind enough to pull the trigger."
"You used me..." Volcanis's voice trembled with a mix of humiliation and rising fury. "You used a King as a pawn to weaken the Aerie?"
"I used a monster to do my dirty work," Viper corrected coldly. "And you made it so easy. You left your domain completely undefended to come here and throw a tantrum."
Viper reached into his belt pouch.
"And since you were so helpful in leaving the Thunder Peaks empty... I helped myself to a souvenir."
Viper tossed a small, glittering object through the air.
Volcanis caught it. He opened his massive, clawed hand.
Resting on his palm was a small, delicate horn-ring made of polished pearl.
Volcanis stopped breathing. The rage in his eyes vanished, replaced by a hollow, terrifying confusion.
"My daughter's..." Volcanis whispered. "She never takes this off. Why... why do you have this?"
Viper smirked beneath his mask.
"What do you think?"
Part 4: The Red Mist
The realization hit Volcanis like a physical blow.
"RAAAAAAAGH!"
Volcanis didn't think. He didn't strategize.
[Forbidden Art: Lifeforce Burn]
His obsidian scales turned white-hot. He ignited his own blood, burning his remaining lifespan to generate mana he didn't have. He became a comet of pure, suicidal rage.
"YOU DARE!" Volcanis screamed, launching himself at Viper. "I WILL EAT YOUR SOUL!"
He was fast. Faster than he had been the entire fight.
But he was blind.
As Volcanis reached for Viper's throat, the Guild Master didn't move. He just stood there, hands in his pockets.
"Checkmate," Viper whispered.
SHING. SHING. SHING.
Six shadows materialized from the empty air around the Dragon King.
The six Elite Assassins of the Black Lotus had been waiting in stealth. They struck in perfect unison, their daggers glowing with [Armor Penetration] and [Vital Strike].
One in the neck. Two in the kidneys. Two in the heart. One in the base of the skull.
Volcanis froze mid-air. The fire in his hands sputtered and died.
He coughed, a massive torrent of black blood spraying onto Viper's pristine suit.
"W... why?" Volcanis gurgled, falling to his knees on the debris.
Viper leaned in, grabbing the dying King by his horns.
"You shouldn't have trusted a voice in the wind," Viper laughed, a cold, hysterical sound. "You knew you were the only deterrent in the Thunder Peaks. I slaughtered them, Volcanis. Every single one. Your daughter screamed the loudest."
Viper leaned closer, whispering the knife into the wound.
"You can greet them when you meet them on the other side."
Volcanis's eyes widened. Tears mixed with the blood. He turned his head slowly, looking past the assassins, past the ship, to the horrified face of Zephyr.
"Zephyr..." Volcanis wheezed, reaching a hand out to his brother. "I..."
The hand crumbled into blue light.
Volcanis, the Storm King, shattered into a billion pixels.
Clatter.
A glowing red orb—the [Heart of the Storm]—fell from the dying light.
Viper caught it before it hit the ground. He looked at the pulsating item, his eyes manic.
"Master," one of the assassins whispered, wiping dragon blood from his blade. "What now? We have the prize."
Viper looked at the orb, then turned his gaze toward the wounded Zephyr.
"This one is tricky," Viper said. "Even exhausted, a Sky-Kin King is dangerous. Be cautious. Give it everything."
Viper drew two serrated daggers.
"Roger," the six assassins replied in unison.
Part 5: The Speed of Light
They vanished.
"Defend!" Zephyr tried to raise a wind barrier, but he was too slow. His mana was gone.
SLASH.
A cut appeared on his thigh.
SLASH.
Another on his cheek.
They were faster than the eye could follow, teleporting in and out of his blind spots using Shadow Steps. Zephyr swung his wings, but he hit nothing but smoke. He was being dismantled.
"Goodbye, Sky-Father," Viper's voice echoed from everywhere at once.
A distortion appeared directly behind Zephyr's back. Viper materialized, his dagger positioned perfectly for a strike through the ribs, straight into the heart.
Zephyr closed his eyes. I am sorry, my son.
KRACK-BOOM!
A massive bolt of blue lightning slammed into Viper's dagger, deflecting the blow inches from Zephyr's skin.
Viper was thrown back, skidding across the air, looking surprised for the first time.
Hovering between the assassin and the King was a figure wreathed in electricity, sitting atop a screaming Wind-Drake.
Prince Thal'dor leaped from his mount, landing in front of his father. He held his crystal spear with both hands, his eyes glowing with the same fury his uncle had just lost.
"Get away," Thal'dor growled, the air around him sizzling, "from my father."
Behind him, Elian and the rest of Eclipse descended like hawks, weapons drawn, encircling the assassins.
Elian stepped off his drake onto the platform, Winter's Eclipse in his hand. He looked at Viper.
"You're in my seat, Viper," Elian said coldly. "And you made a mess of my alliance."