Chapter 36 — The Twin of Storms
The Echo Grove shivered under the presence of the Hollow Queen, her silver armor gleaming like moonlight on a blade. Shadows stretched unnaturally, curling and twisting around the trees. Lyra's hand gripped Kai's tightly, the warmth of his skin grounding her in the chaos.
"Stay close," she whispered, her voice trembling but firm. "Whatever happens…"
Kai nodded, though his chest rose and fell with the heavy strain of near-death still lingering. His eyes never left hers. "I'm not letting anything happen to you," he said. "Not now. Not ever."
A sudden roar shattered the fragile calm. The ground beneath them cracked, fissures glowing with silver-blue energy. A figure descended from a storm-wracked rift above, landing with a shockwave that flattened trees in a fifty-foot radius.
Kai's breath caught.
The figure resembled him perfectly — same dark hair, same silver eyes — but older, broader, radiating a terrifying aura. Every inch of him screamed power, danger, and authority.
"I am Kevin," the figure said, voice deep and resonant, carrying across the forest. "Guardian of the Crown of Two."
Kai froze. His heart thumped wildly. "Kevin… my brother?"
Kevin's silver eyes met Kai's, and a slow, almost imperceptible frown crossed his face. "I am your brother," he said coldly. "And yet… I resent you."
Lyra gasped. "Resent him?"
Kevin's gaze shifted to her briefly, cold but appraising. "And you… Lyra. You are the one tied to the Crown, the one who binds their hearts." He paused. "Do not let your affection blind you."
Kai took a step forward, fury mixing with confusion. "Resent me? You left me to face this world alone while you carried the Crown!"
Kevin's expression didn't soften. Instead, he raised a hand. The ground trembled. Wind ripped through the trees, carrying shards of stone and splinters of wood like missiles. In one motion, he drew a sphere of swirling energy that seemed to bend the very space around it.
"Your ignorance is your weakness," Kevin said. "I endured centuries of this burden. I trained while you lived in comfort, unaware of what destiny demanded."
Kai clenched his fists. "Destiny doesn't excuse cruelty."
Kevin's eyes narrowed. With a motion so fast that even Lyra gasped, he released the energy. A vortex of pure force slammed into the forest, flattening dozens of trees in seconds. Thorne barely managed to leap out of its path.
Lyra grabbed Kai's arm. "He's… unstoppable!"
Kai's shards flared as he instinctively summoned dark-fire blades. Lyra followed with white-light spirals, merging their magic into a silver arc. The combined attack struck Kevin, but the Guardian laughed.
A wave of wind and energy blasted back, throwing Kai and Lyra onto the forest floor. Trees bent like twigs, leaves shredded into the air. Kevin walked through the devastation, untouched, his aura practically burning with power.
"I am immortal," Kevin said calmly, his voice cutting through the chaos. "Unlimited strength and stamina. Every attack you launch is… beneath me."
Kai struggled to his knees, panting. "Then why fight us at all?"
Kevin's lips curved slightly. "Because you are not ready. Because you are emotional children playing at war while the realms depend on this Crown." His eyes softened, just slightly, as they lingered on Kai. "I resented you for surviving, for being allowed a life while I bore the burden. And yet… you have strength, Kai. Strength I cannot deny."
Lyra's heart pounded. She stepped closer to Kai. "We'll prove ourselves," she said, her voice firm. "Together."
Kevin's gaze flickered to her. "Ah. This is why the Crown chose you. Not power, but heart. But a heart alone cannot govern it. You must master it."
Before anyone could respond, the Hollow Queen raised her hands. Shadow energy erupted, twisting into colossal tendrils that lashed toward the three of them.
Kai grabbed Lyra. "Hold on!" he shouted. Together, they unleashed a spiral of silver energy from their shards. The blast collided with the Queen's shadows, sending shockwaves in all directions.
Kevin moved like a blur. One second he was across the clearing, the next he was above them, floating, his aura radiating untouchable power. With a gesture, he ripped through one of the Queen's shadow tentacles as if it were paper.
Kai's eyes widened. "He's… moving faster than thought."
Lyra pressed against Kai's chest. "We can't even keep up with him!"
Kevin's voice rang out, calm and terrifying. "You will learn. Or you will perish."
The ground itself split beneath the trio. Kevin's powers bent space, creating miniature rifts where light and shadow collided. Every movement he made shattered the forest floor, yet he moved with absolute control, each strike calculated, flawless.
Kai's dark-fire blades met Kevin's starlit aura mid-air. Sparks erupted, and for a moment, Kai thought he might be swallowed. But then Lyra's shards flared, her light weaving into Kai's dark energy. Together, they managed to stagger Kevin — just for an instant.
Kevin's silver eyes locked onto them. "Impressive," he said softly, almost a whisper. "But raw emotion will not master the Crown."
He extended both hands. The air thickened. Wind screamed. Energy spiraled into a vortex so massive that it lifted Kai and Lyra into the air.
"Stay close!" Kai shouted. He clutched Lyra tightly.
Her heartbeat pressed against his chest. Their fingers intertwined instinctively, a tether against the storm of Kevin's power.
Kai shouted, "Lyra! Focus our shards together!"
They flung their magic forward. Silver light erupted, twisting into shapes of dragons, shields, and piercing beams. Kevin blocked effortlessly, his movements precise, terrifyingly fast, yet he didn't strike to kill. Instead, he tested them — analyzing, measuring, teaching through combat.
"You are strong," Kevin said, flying above the spiral of magic. "Stronger than I anticipated. Perhaps… you might be worthy."
Kai's jaw tightened. "Worthy? Worthy of what?"
Kevin landed, the ground quaking beneath him. His gaze softened just slightly, the hint of a brother buried beneath centuries of resentment. "Of the Crown. And of each other. But first… you must survive me."
Lyra pressed her forehead to Kai's as they hovered above the forest floor, catching their breath. "We can do this," she whispered.
Kai brushed her hair back, holding her face tenderly. "Together," he promised. "Always together."
Kevin's aura flared again, a storm of unstoppable force. The battle wasn't over — it was only beginning.
And in that moment, Kai realized: the fight would push them to the edge of death and magic, but Lyra by his side made him unafraid.
No matter how overpowered Kevin was, no matter how impossible the Crown's demands, no matter how terrifying the Hollow Queen grew… they would face it all.
Together.
Their hands clasped, their powers merged, and their hearts beat as one.
The Twin of Storms had arrived.