The world trembled as the glyph on Kael's palm continued to burn with a bright golden light. Beneath him, the ground cracked, splitting open in jagged lines like the veins of an ancient being. The invaders above had halted their descent, gazing down at him with an ominous stillness that made Kael feel like an insignificant insect under the eyes of giants.
But he wasn't afraid. The power that surged through him, awakening something primal deep inside, was far beyond anything he had felt before. It was a calling. Not just to fight but to conquer.
The girl—who had saved him moments ago—was still standing on the edge of the mountain, her dark cloak billowing in the wind. She had drawn her blades once more, their edges shimmering under the pale light of the broken sky.
"Kael! Get away from that thing!" she called again, her voice desperate.
But Kael didn't move. His eyes locked onto the sky's tear, where the Sovereigns lingered, watching. He could feel their gaze, each of them weighing him in some unfathomable way. It was as if they were judging him. As if they were deciding.
He wasn't sure why, but he felt... special.
"I'm not running," Kael said quietly, his voice steady. "They've been waiting for me. For this."
A flicker of doubt passed through the girl's eyes. She stepped toward him, her movements precise, her form almost ghostly against the backdrop of the destruction. She wasn't afraid either—yet there was something about her stance that suggested she'd seen this before, faced dangers far greater than Kael had.
"You don't understand, Kael. These beings—whatever they are—they aren't just invaders," she said urgently. "They've come to claim the skies, to crush everything below them. Including us. You have to run!"
"No," Kael said again, shaking his head. The power in his hand swelled, and for the first time, he understood what it was: not just a mark, not just a symbol of power, but a key. A key to something greater than him. "I'm not running. I'm fighting."
His words were clear, resolute, and something about them made her pause. She studied him for a moment, her eyes flickering with doubt, curiosity... and something more.
"You're insane," she muttered, but there was a strange admiration in her gaze.
Kael turned to face the dark sky again, the broken moon casting an eerie glow over everything. The world was changing. And he wasn't just going to watch it happen.
He was going to make it happen.
Suddenly, a figure descended from the heavens, trailing a blaze of violet light in her wake. Her form was sleek, and her movements graceful—every step calculated, every motion perfect. She landed before Kael with the sound of wind crashing against stone. Her hair, long and silver, flowed like a waterfall around her shoulders. Her eyes were violet, glinting with an unreadable emotion.
"You!" the girl who had been watching Kael spat, her voice filled with disdain. "Another one of them."
The silver-haired woman turned to her, unbothered. "Not quite," she replied coolly, her voice calm but carrying an edge. "I'm not here to fight you, little shadow. I'm here for him."
Kael's heart skipped a beat. He could feel the shift in the air—the weight of her presence, the intensity of her gaze. She wasn't just an opponent; she was something far more dangerous.
"I don't need your help," Kael said, his voice sharp. The woman looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Oh, you don't have a choice." Her lips curved into a faint smile. "You may not need it now, but you will soon enough. You've made a terrible mistake, boy. And you'll find out why soon enough."
Before Kael could respond, the ground shook beneath them again. Something large and monstrous emerged from the tear in the sky—an armored beast, covered in obsidian scales, its eyes glowing a fiery red. It roared, a deafening sound that shook the very earth.
The silver-haired woman didn't hesitate. With a single motion, she raised her hand, and a swirl of energy erupted from her palm, crackling through the air like a lightning bolt. She charged forward, moving faster than Kael could follow, and in the blink of an eye, she clashed with the beast, her silver blades flashing in a deadly arc.
Kael stood there, watching as the two collided in a storm of power. The beast roared, but she was quicker, more precise. In a series of fluid movements, she shattered its armor, leaving it vulnerable. She drove her blade deep into its chest, and it fell with a heavy thud, lifeless.
Kael blinked. The battle had been over in an instant. He had barely had time to process the magnitude of it before the woman turned to him, her violet eyes narrowing.
"Are you going to stand there all day, or are you going to do something?" she asked, her voice laced with amusement.
Kael's mind raced, his thoughts swirling. He could feel the power growing within him, urging him to act. But even as the words left his mouth, he realized something. This woman—she wasn't just another ally. She was a challenge. She was an enigma he wanted to understand.
"I don't need your help," Kael repeated, though this time, the words were less certain. "But... you're not leaving."
The silver-haired woman smiled, her eyes glinting with interest. "I'll leave when I'm ready. You'll learn that soon enough. And I'll be here when you need me."
Before Kael could respond, another figure appeared, this time dropping from the skies with a gust of wind. A tall, striking woman with flaming red hair, wearing a set of black armor. Her eyes blazed with fierce determination as she landed gracefully in front of Kael, her armor gleaming under the fractured sky.
"You're getting cocky, boy," the woman said, her tone teasing but sharp. "You think you can take on everything that's coming? You think you're ready?"
Kael stared at her, unbothered. "I'm not running," he said again. "And if you want to fight, I'll fight."
The woman chuckled, clearly amused by his defiance. "I like you," she said, a mischievous glint in her eye. "You've got spirit. But remember this, Kael Kairis. I'm not here to help you. I'm here to watch you burn."
With that, she turned and walked away, vanishing into the haze.
Kael stood there for a moment, his mind reeling from the sudden appearance of these powerful women. His hand clenched around the glyph that still blazed on his palm. He didn't understand it, but he was starting to realize that the threads of fate were weaving around him. And some of them were tied to people he didn't yet know, but who were already bound to him in some way.
And this was just the beginning.