The clash below shook the world. Fire, thunder, and void tore against each other, every strike threatening to shatter the ground.

But far away, in a chamber draped in silence, two figures sat as though spectators to a theater. Before them, a vast screen of shimmering Shinrei rippled, displaying the battle in perfect clarity.

Lucere leaned back casually, pink wolf-cut hair catching the light, a bowl of popcorn balanced lazily in his lap. He extended it with a grin.

"Want some popcorn?"

Isen exhaled through his nose, golden hair gleaming faintly in the glow of the screen. He took a handful without looking.

"Tsk… you're too carefree."

Lucere chuckled, tossing a kernel into his mouth.

"Come on now. It's entertainment, isn't it? Look at them… three Eclipse Vanguards clawing at my Sloth. Who do you think will win?"

Isen's blue eyes narrowed at the screen, following the rag-draped figure of Sloth. His voice was low, edged with something heavier than anger.

"…They can't defeat Sloth. That's a fact."

Lucere's smirk sharpened.

"Hooh? And why's that? You're admitting it already?"

Isen's hand tightened on his knee.

"Look closely. That… thing isn't just one person anymore. You can see it in the way its aura moves—like a thousand whispers trying to overlap. Multiple souls crammed into one body."

Lucere tilted his head, expression unreadable for a moment. Then he chuckled.

"Heh. There's no way I could forget… what Master Yuna said about such things."

Isen closed his eyes. For a long moment, silence. Then he opened them again, calm, sharp, terrifying in their clarity.

"The man who is just does not permit the several parts of his soul to interfere with one another. He sets in order his own inner life, and is his own master and at peace with himself. And when he has bound together the three principles within him… he becomes entirely one, entirely harmonious, and strong."

The words hung between them, ancient and heavy, echoing from a teacher long gone.

Lucere's grin faltered just slightly.

Isen's gaze never wavered from the screen, from the shadowed figure that was Sloth.

Meanwhile the battlefield shook.

Zeke's magma erupted in waves, rivers of molten fire tearing trenches through the stone floor. Raiden's thunder cracked overhead, his Shinrei folding into a storm of paralyzing arcs. And behind them, battered but unbroken, Kurozawa gripped his blade, blood running from his side but eyes still burning.

Sloth stood at the center of it all. Draped in rags, unmoving. Their breaths came long and slow, as if none of this mattered. Shadows oozed from their form, painting the air black.

"Eclipse Art: Pyroclasm Fang!"

Zeke hurled himself forward, magma spiraling into a blade-like eruption. The ground beneath him hissed and cracked as molten claws raked toward Sloth.

But Sloth merely lifted a hand.

"Void Art: Hollow Palm."

The magma claw dissolved into ash the moment it touched the void-saturated hand. The force carried through regardless, striking Zeke square in the chest and sending him skidding across the field, armor sizzling.

Raiden appeared in the next instant.

"Eclipse Art: Ten Thousand Volts—Sever!"

Lightning condensed into a blade of pure electricity, his movements blinding. He slashed at Sloth's neck.

The rags tore, shadows spilling. Sloth's head tilted a fraction, letting the blade pass through air. With a lazy yawn, their elbow met Raiden's ribcage. The sound of cracking bone rang out, and Raiden spat blood as he flipped back, barely catching himself on a surge of lightning.

"Shit… he didn't even look at me."

Kurozawa roared, Shinrei flooding his blade.

"Eclipse Art: Mountain Breaker!"

The ground surged upward as his slash tore a canyon into the earth, a wall of stone meant to crush Sloth beneath its weight.

For the first time, Sloth actually moved their feet. One step forward. That was all it took—the entire canyon wall withered, stone crumbling into black dust before it even touched them.

Naomi and Darius, watching from the edge, felt their hearts seize.

"That's… not a fight," Naomi whispered, fists trembling.

"…It's slaughter," Darius muttered, eyes locked on Sloth's lazy movements.

Zeke staggered back into position, fire still burning across his arms.

"Don't falter! He bleeds, he can be hurt!"

Raiden wiped blood from his mouth, lightning sparking along his frame.

"Then we just keep hitting him till something breaks."

The three of them surged at once magma, thunder, and stone converging like a trinity of destruction.

Sloth exhaled slowly, almost bored.

"…How noisy."

Shadows erupted. Arms of darkness sprouted from the ground, dozens, hundreds grabbing, crushing, swallowing their combined Shinrei.

The clash lit the battlefield like a second sun, but when the dust cleared, Sloth still stood. Unmoved. Unimpressed.

And yet… for a fleeting second, blood dripped down their chin.

Kurozawa saw it. His eyes widened.

"They can bleed! Keep pushing!"

Sloth wiped the crimson away with one ragged sleeve, staring at it. Their voice came soft, almost curious.

"…Emotion. Resolve. It keeps you moving even when you should stop. Perhaps… this is the difference between humans and a voidborn."

They smiled faintly.

"…Then show me. Show me how long it lasts."

A new voice rang out, steady and sharp.

"We will show you how long it lasts."

The shadows trembled as figures stepped forward.

Khael Corzedar stood at the front. His body, still bruised from Pride's battle, already knit itself back together under the pulse of his dragon bloodline. Emerald scales shimmered faintly across his arms, but now a new brilliance joined them silver scales like starlight, catching the storm-fire wings unfurling behind him. His eyes glowed, not with arrogance, but with clarity.

Behind him stood the others:

Juno Arkai, fists clenched, body trembling with the strain of opened gates. His breath steamed in the night air, each inhale a vow to fight until he could no longer stand.

Ceyla Nox, eyes burning, storm chains crackling faintly around her. Her lips curled in defiance, but the way she glanced at Khael carried something softer, something stubbornly human.

Baek Suwon, navy coat torn but wave crest pin still intact. His gaze flicked briefly at Ceyla, memory of old humiliation tightening his chest but resolve steadied him.

Tessa Veyra, her fingers ink-stained even now, metallic constructs orbiting her shoulders like guardian blades. Her glasses reflected the faint storm-light, hiding tears that had not yet fallen.

Enji Morada, sparks leaping nervously from his fingers, sleeves singed. His jaw was clenched, but his eyes burned with the need to prove himself.

Izan Korrel, bandaged knees shaking, wind Shinrei whispering weakly around him but still he stood, remembering Kara's last laugh before she fell.

Milo Drehn, cheeks streaked with dirt and tears, a half-crushed snack still in his pocket. His Bloom Shinrei pulsed stronger than it ever had, because this time he wasn't fighting for himself, he was fighting for Kara.

Together they formed a line behind Khael. Not soldiers. Not even survivors. But something more dangerous: children who had lost too much and still refused to bow.

Sloth's shadowed gaze swept across them. Their tone was light, almost mocking.

"…More children. Do you truly believe you can walk the same path as those broken men?"

Khael's wings unfurled wider, emerald flame crackling into silver light. He did not raise his voice, but every word carried weight.

"We're not here to walk their path. We're here to carve our own."

Ceyla stepped up beside him, storm chains clinking faintly.

"…And this time, Khael isn't going alone."

Juno cracked his neck, fists burning with red steam.

"Taishin Gates don't know fear. If I fall, it won't be while kneeling."

Baek exhaled, water coiling like serpents around his arms.

"I've run from storms before. Never again."

Enji twitched, sparks surging across his knuckles.

"I'm done being too slow. You'll see lightning at its sharpest."

Tessa adjusted her glasses with a trembling hand, gears spinning into orbit.

"…And my sketches… finally mean something."

Izan stumbled but caught himself, wind Shinrei fluttering.

"Kara… this one's for you."

Milo clenched his fists, Bloom Shinrei blooming in wild green around his chubby arms.

"No more snacks till I crush you, bastard!"

For the first time, Sloth's eyes narrowed, the lazy amusement fading just slightly. The shadows around them stirred like a restless tide.

"…So many voices in defiance. Perhaps… you might even be entertaining."

Khael's eyes locked on them, burning with something beyond fury beyond destiny.

"Sloth… your time ends here."

The battlefield cracked beneath their steps as the two forces human will and voidborn eternity collided.

To be continue

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