Chapter 40 – Echoes of the Skyburn Oath
The hum of static energy lingered in the air as Aaron Velcris stood amidst the broken remains of the skirmish zone. The ground crackled beneath his boots, still echoing with the residual force of the newly awakened Symbiosis Tier-III: Skyburn Edge. Flames licked the edge of his coat, harmless to him but devouring the corrupted wildlife scattered around him.
Above, Reality Sync Interface (RS-I) flickered with glowing intensity.
> [Symbiosis Evolution Completed]
[Reality Tier: Advanced Symbiotic Interface Level 3 Unlocked]
[New Traits Available: Skyburn Charge, Reverb Slash, Symphonic Pulse]
[Synced Core Limit Increased to 4]
[Warning: Energy strain at 87% capacity. Rest recommended.]
He exhaled deeply. "Rest... not yet."
The battlefield smelled of ozone, ash, and blood. Beyond the rise, the jagged spires of Citadel Karnyx loomed under the burnt-orange horizon, its towering gates now visible, barely guarded—a consequence of his full-force assault.
Behind him, the echo of boots crushed gravel. Commander Riven approached with a limp and a blood-smeared blade. "You're insane, Velcris. That pulse wave... it ruptured a third of our symbiotic squads' shields."
Aaron didn't apologize. He couldn't afford to.
"We're out of time. Karnyx controls three Ether Spires. If the Skyburn Beacon is activated inside that Citadel, all of Western Sector-Four falls under Sovereign Sigil control."
Riven spat to the side. "And you think marching in solo buys us victory?"
Aaron tapped the hilt of his blade. Symbiosis Core: Noctis-Reaver vibrated subtly—alive, watching.
"No. But I'm not marching in alone."
From the shadows of scorched earth and broken steel, four silhouettes emerged.
Cayle, the windborn tactician. Aela, bonded with the Astral Howl. Dr. Vyne, symbiosis tech-savant wielding disruption rigs. And finally—Solan, his brother reborn from the Ash Gate, skin now etched with golden circuitry.
Their presence wasn't just reassuring. It was orchestrated. A calculated crescendo in his grand strategy.
"You've built a team," Riven muttered, eyes shifting between them. "You actually believe this is winnable?"
Aaron's eyes glinted with a new purpose.
"Not just winnable. Necessary."
---
The descent into Citadel Karnyx was neither quiet nor cautious.
The outer perimeter, long abandoned, was a trap-laden wasteland. Plasma tripwires shimmered between jagged monoliths. Pressure mines were woven into stonework like clockwork flowers. But Aaron's Reality Sync had adapted. Each trap appeared in shimmering overlaid outlines within his HUD.
> [Cognition Sync Active: Pattern Recognition +37%]
[Projected Detonation Radius: 4.8m]
[Suggested Evasion Path: 17.3° East, Downshift Roll Recommended]
He moved like water through smoke, guiding the others in kind.
Aela dispatched a mechanical observer drone mid-air with a flick of her wrist, her astral blade singing through steel. "They've reactivated internal surveillance," she whispered. "This isn't just defense. They're monitoring our evolution."
Cayle snorted. "Let them watch. They'll get a good look before they die."
At the central square, the trap they'd expected arrived: The Virex Hounds.
Mutated amalgamations of wolf, mech, and echo-entities born from failed experiments. Their arrival was marked by bone-splitting howls and static distortion.
Aaron's HUD flared.
> [ALERT: Hostile Hybrid Entities – VIREX Class D+ Detected]
[Weak Points Identified: Cranial Node, Rear Thrusters]
[Optimal Strategy: Skyburn Charge + Aela Disruption Loop]
"Engage in four," he commanded. "Cayle, set wind reversal. Vyne, ready pulse nullifiers. Aela—flank north."
The plan moved like a symphony of destruction.
Cayle reversed air pressure, disorienting the hounds. Vyne unleashed EMP pulses, stalling their tech. Aela appeared like a ghost, her blade severing their spinal nodes. And Aaron—he burned.
Skyburn Charge ignited his body in cascading flame wings. He surged forward, slashing in a brilliant arc of heat and sound—Reverb Slash—ripping three hounds apart in a single motion.
It was not a battle.
It was an execution.
---
Beneath the citadel, deep within the Sovereign Sigil's chamber of resonance, the true threat waited.
Not machines. Not beasts.
But the Echo-Lord.
A half-sentient remnant of the first failed Sync experiment—Xeraph. Once human, now transcendent data fused with organic will. His voice seeped through the walls like whispered prophecy.
"You chase purpose through blood, Aaron Velcris," it murmured. "But what happens when purpose consumes the soul?"
Aaron stepped into the chamber. The others stood back. This was his fight.
RS-I flared again.
> [Boss Encounter Detected: Echo-Lord Xeraph | Tier Omega-2]
[Adaptive Sync Activated]
[Timefield Instability Detected: Reality Density Shift -4.7%]
[Symbiosis Core Noctis-Reaver Requesting Override Access: Y/N?]
"Yes," he whispered.
Noctis-Reaver surged to life in his grip. The blade shimmered black and crimson, absorbing surrounding light. With it, he felt every heartbeat in the chamber, every pixel of artificial thought.
"You were once human, Xeraph," he said, circling the glimmering core at the room's center. "You chose data over destiny."
Xeraph's laughter echoed like a broken violin. "And you'll choose sacrifice over survival."
The chamber collapsed into chaos.
Digital spears rained from above. Memory-fragments struck like blades of regret. Space bent with logic paradoxes—walls of forgotten timelines slamming into existence and vanishing again.
Aaron's HUD barely kept up.
But he had something Xeraph had forgotten: Symbiosis with the living world.
Every step became fire. Every swing rewrote the law of physics in his wake. Skyburn Edge and Noctis-Reaver danced through digital storms, weaving defiance into each motion.
"You think you understand the system!" Xeraph screamed, his form unraveling.
"I am the system now," Aaron roared back, voice echoing with Reality Sync's power.
One final slash.
Reality split.
Xeraph vanished.
---
In the aftermath, silence reigned.
The Citadel's core dimmed. Its spires fell quiet. Ether Spires disengaged across the Western Sector.
Riven's voice came over comms, staggered with disbelief. "We're receiving unlock codes from Sector Command. You... you did it."
Aaron stepped out of the chamber, his coat torn, blood trailing down his cheek.
But in his eyes—clarity.
"I only began it."
---
That night, as firelight flickered across a reclaimed outpost, the team gathered.
Solan brought drinks. Aela strummed her blade like a harp. Cayle mapped new territories. Vyne dissected data.
Aaron stood beneath the stars, watching. Listening.
> [Reality Sync Interface Updated]
[Campaign Progress: Volume I – "Symbiotic Awakening" COMPLETE]
[Volume II Unlocked – "Ascension Protocols"]
[New World Access Pending: Sector-Theta Prime | Unlocking in 3 Days]
He smiled.
Tomorrow would be harder. Deadlier.
But tonight, they had won.
And in that fleeting moment of victory...
He allowed himself to breathe.
---
>End of Chapter 40-