The chamber was a storm of energy—Aether of every kind howled in deafening waves. Coral walls cracked, the floor surged with flooding water, and the ocean itself seemed to rumble in response to the rage that was Kohakuu Hageshi.
Kai Johan and Fen Johan stood shoulder to shoulder, brothers not by trust, but by blood and necessity. Kohakuu towered before them, her Pure-Hollow Aether cloak whipping around her like a living tempest. Her glaive, Kairikō, now glowing with tidal sigils, pulsed in rhythm with the Tidal Eclipse Shard embedded in her armor.
"You two, side by side?" she scoffed, spinning her glaive once. "Tell me—is this the redemption arc or the final act?"
Kai's eyes narrowed, his Raw Aether surging violently. "This is where you stop."
Fen flared his Hollow Aether, black tendrils wrapping around his arms like coiled serpents. "No more talking."
The three launched at once—Kohakuu a raging cyclone of glaive sweeps and water surges, the Johan brothers a fusion of explosive aggression and sharp precision. Kohakuu met Kai's upward slash with the shaft of her weapon, then twisted, slamming her knee into his chin, sending him skidding across the marble.
Fen moved behind her like a shadow, his Hollow blade carving toward her side. She pivoted mid-spin, slamming her palm into his chest and firing a Torrent Pulse, sending Fen crashing through a coral pillar.
Blood streamed from Kai's mouth. He wiped it and muttered, "We're not enough—not like this."
Fen groaned from the rubble, "Then evolve, little brother."
Kohakuu rushed them again.
---
Perspective Shift: Lysander Hutchman
Elsewhere in the flooded lower halls of the Spire, Lysander, Rhea, Zara, and Lynn were locked in a brutal skirmish against Kohakuu's elite guard—five seasoned Eclipsers, each one wielding a refined form of Aether and elite military precision.
The leader of the guard, Captain Sevv, was a stoic Pure Aether swordsman who moved with divine precision. His attacks sliced clean lines through the very air.
Lysander met him head-on, the clash of Pure Aether blades creating aftershocks that buckled the walls.
"You're strong," Sevv admitted. "You could've led a battalion."
"I did," Lysander replied, parrying a thrust. "Then I learned men like you obey power, not reason."
Their blades clashed again, sparks and golden light rippling around them.
Nearby, Rhea Solarin danced through the battlefield, her sword infused with pure Aether and fire. She faced off against Velra, an archer who used crystalline water arrows with sniper-like precision. Velra fired in rapid succession, but Rhea weaved and rolled between pillars and broken marble.
"You move well," Velra grinned. "But fire dies in water."
Rhea twirled mid-air and launched a Nova Slice, her sword's flames enhanced by her Eclipse Shard. The flames didn't burn—they exploded, forcing Velra into retreat behind a water barrier.
Across the hall, Zara was locked in combat with a brute named Drask, who wielded a sledgehammer fueled by Raw Aether. His strikes cratered the ground. Zara, more nimble and strategic, used her earth-imbued Aether to create walls and launch herself with aerial mobility.
"You're fast for a juggernaut," she quipped, deflecting a downward slam.
"And you're still gonna die slow," Drask grunted, missing by inches as she backflipped and countered with a shockwave from her boot.
Then, there was Lynn Salisbury.
The youngest, the most unstable—his Raw Aether was wild, volatile, barely controlled. He faced twin siblings—Maru and Mina, Hollow Aether users who moved like ghosts, blinking in and out of sight. Every time they reappeared, they slashed.
Lynn spun his scythe like a wheel of light, laughing wildly. "You two are annoying."
"Then stop missing," Mina taunted.
"I'm not trying to hit you," Lynn grinned, unleashing a chaotic wave of Raw Aether that distorted the battlefield like a broken mirror. It destabilized the Hollow space they moved in, forcing them to misstep.
He caught Maru with a backhand slash, sending him flying into a coral pillar.
"You really think Kohakuu's going to lose?" Mina said, her expression cracking with worry.
"She's not fighting just one Johan," Lynn replied, his scythe glowing. "She's fighting two."
---
Back to Kai and Fen
Blood dripped from Fen's mouth. Kai's sword hand trembled. Kohakuu stood above them, slightly bloodied, but grinning, high on the thrill of dominance.
"You're both strong," she panted. "But you're not him. Not your father. Not Jin."
"We don't have to be," Kai growled, pulling himself up. "Because we're better together."
Their Aether surged in unison.
Kai unleashed a Raw Aether burst that ignited the floor around him. Fen's Hollow energy coiled into a dome of shadows.
They didn't speak.
They just moved.
Kai launched upward, clashing with her glaive again, keeping her locked in the air while Fen darted below, slashing at her feet. Kohakuu created a tidal shield—but Fen shattered it with a Hollow Spiral, forcing her to overcorrect.
Kai roared, his Eclipse Shard responding, his blade becoming searing white—unstable, powerful.
"Tidal Severance!" he shouted, his blade releasing a line of Raw energy that cleaved through her outer Aether armor.
Kohakuu screamed, landing on one knee.
She wasn't down.
Not yet.
But for the first time, she was bleeding, visibly shaken, and glaring at them both with something other than hate.
Fear.