Scene 1: Tragedy blooming
The sky burned crimson above New York. Lightning cracked across the clouds as the Anti-Meta units struggled to hold formation, their synthetic voices flickering through damaged comms. Streets lay in ruins, buildings split open, fires raging unchecked. Every blast from Lord Leonard's aura tore through concrete and metal alike.
Katherine knelt at the center of the crater, blood streaming down her arm, her breathing shallow. The Anti-Meta units stood around her, their bodies cracked and sparking. One stepped forward, arms morphing into shields as Leonard descended from the sky like a storm.
"Protect the Sentinel," the unit commanded.
Leonard landed with such force that the shockwave flattened the remaining drones. He walked through the smoke, each step echoing against the fractured ground. His armor pulsed with violet light, and his eyes glowed with amusement.
"So this is what mankind built to defy gods," he said, stepping over a shattered Anti-Meta shell. "Machines wearing human faces. How poetic."
The two remaining units moved to block him. They extended their arms, scanning his energy signature.
"Analyzing… power exceeds threshold… initiating adaptive countermeasure."
Their forms flickered, mimicking Katherine's aura from stored DNA data. For a brief moment, two duplicates of Katherine stood between her and Leonard, radiating identical blue energy.
Leonard tilted his head, impressed. "They even copy your defiance."
Both copies charged. Lightning met darkness as they struck, but Leonard caught them by their throats before they landed a second blow. "Magnificent design," he said, squeezing until their necks cracked. "I think I'll make them mine."
Violet energy poured from his palms, corrupting their systems. Their eyes flickered red. "New directive accepted—serve Leonard."
The corrupted Anti-Metas turned toward Katherine, their faces expressionless. Katherine forced herself to stand, fury burning through her exhaustion. "You won't use them against me."
She summoned a surge of raw energy, slicing through both units with a single arc of light. Their bodies fell in pieces, sparking out one final time.
Leonard clapped slowly. "Still fighting. Admirable. Futile, but admirable."
He stopped a few paces away, his aura pressing down on her like gravity. Katherine struggled to stay upright, blood dripping onto the scorched ground. Leonard leaned closer, voice low and taunting.
"You know, it would be fitting," he murmured. "For you to bear my child. A reminder of your failure to protect this fragile world."
Katherine's eyes widened in disgust. "You monster."
Leonard smiled faintly. "Monster? I am nature's balance. You are the chaos pretending to be order."
Then his expression shifted. His gaze moved past her shoulder.
Katherine followed his eyes—and her heart froze. Jeremiah was running toward them through the rubble, his aura faint but steady, his healing energy glowing like a beacon.
"No," she whispered. "No, no, Jeremiah… run!"
Jeremiah didn't stop. He raised his hand, light flaring around his palm. "Get away from her!"
Leonard turned slowly, almost curious. "Ah… the healer."
Before Jeremiah could react, Leonard blurred forward. A flash of movement—and his hand clamped around Jeremiah's throat.
"Such courage," Leonard said softly. "Such waste."
He slammed Jeremiah into the ground. The impact cracked the pavement, sending dust and debris flying.
"JEREMIAH!" Katherine screamed, staggering toward them.
Leonard looked down at the motionless figure beneath his hand. "A fragile species, humans. They break so easily."
Katherine's aura ignited again, raw power trembling in the air. "Let him go!"
Leonard turned his gaze back to her, smirking. "Then make me."
Scene 2 – "The Blade Between Worlds"
Leonard's laughter echoed through the shattered ruins of the Guild courtyard. Smoke coiled around his towering frame as he lifted his obsidian blade, its edge still dripping with corrupted aura. Jeremiah coughed blood and tried to stand, his hands trembling, his eyes defiant.
Leonard tilted his head, grinning. "Then make me."
He lunged. The blade cut through the air with a sonic hiss. Before it reached Jeremiah's heart, Tiffany appeared between them in a flash of light. The sword pierced through her abdomen.
The sound stopped everything.
"Tiffany!" Katherine's voice cracked. Jeremiah's pupils widened, horror sinking deep into his chest as Leonard slowly pulled his blade free, amused by the sight of human suffering.
Leonard sneered. "Such weakness. You humans drown in emotion. Love, pain, pity… all useless illusions." He flung Tiffany aside like broken glass. Her body hit the ground near Jeremiah's boots.
Jeremiah dropped to his knees beside her. "Tiff… hey, stay with me." Her breathing was shallow. Her blood pooled around his hands. He pressed his palm against her wound, ice forming instantly over it to slow the bleeding.
"Don't move," he whispered. "I'm not losing you too."
Her lips quivered. "Jeremiah… don't… please…"
He looked up, rage rising in his chest. His tears evaporated in the cold aura that began to surge from his body. Frost spread across the battlefield, freezing debris, machines, and even the blood-soaked soil beneath his boots.
Leonard's smile faded. "You think you can challenge a king?"
Jeremiah rose slowly, gripping Tiffany's fallen sword. His aura burned with frostfire, a rare fusion of elemental energy. His eyes glowed pale blue.
"Let's find out."
They charged. Metal met crystal, and the courtyard erupted in sparks. Leonard swung with brute strength, each strike shaking the ground. Jeremiah parried, slid, countered. His movements were sharper, faster, more controlled.
Leonard smirked. "You've grown stronger since the boy who begged me for mercy."
Jeremiah snarled. "And you've grown predictable."
Their blades clashed again, each impact echoing like thunder across the battlefield. Katherine tried to stand, blood trailing from her lips, watching the fight unfold with helpless fury. Tiffany's faint breathing behind her reminded her what was at stake.
Jeremiah's energy flared. The frost around him exploded outward, forming shards of ice that circled Leonard like blades. "This ends now."
Leonard's grin widened. "Then show me your resolve, boy."
They both roared and charged again, the sound of their duel shaking the heavens.
Scene 3 – "The Fall of the Healer"
Jeremiah's ice aura burned bright against Leonard's dark energy, but the difference in power began to show. Every clash sent shockwaves across the cratered battlefield. Each strike from Leonard carried centuries of rage, each parry from Jeremiah chipped away at his strength.
Leonard's laughter filled the air. "You fight like a god, yet bleed like a man."
Jeremiah gritted his teeth, blocking a downward swing that nearly shattered his arm. He slid back several meters, leaving frozen trails in the dust. He raised his blade again, panting hard, blood dripping from his lips.
Katherine tried to move, but pain chained her to the ground. "Jeremiah… stop! He'll kill you!"
Jeremiah's eyes never left Leonard. "I told you… I don't quit."
Leonard lunged again, his blade swinging with brutal precision. Jeremiah ducked, countered, landed a hit across Leonard's chest — a clean strike that sent a ripple of frost through the Obsidian King's armor. But Leonard didn't flinch. His grin widened, his blood-black aura expanding.
"Impressive," he muttered. "But you're done."
Before Jeremiah could react, Leonard vanished in a blur of speed and reappeared behind him. A blinding flash followed, and the sound of metal piercing flesh echoed through the ruined courtyard.
The world froze.
Leonard's blade was buried through Jeremiah's abdomen, black energy searing through his body like fire.
"Jeremiah!" Katherine's scream split the air. Tiffany, still weak and pale, tried to lift herself, her eyes wide with horror.
Jeremiah's body shook violently. He coughed blood, gripping Leonard's wrist, trying to push the blade out, but his strength failed him. His ice aura flickered, melting away into steam.
Leonard leaned closer, whispering. "This is mercy. You should thank me."
He yanked the blade free, and Jeremiah collapsed to his knees, clutching his stomach. Blood stained the ground beneath him.
Katherine crawled forward, tears burning her eyes. "No! Jeremiah!"
Leonard turned toward her, lifting his sword again. "Your turn, little phoenix."
Katherine's eyes glowed faintly with firelight as she reached for her weapon, fury shaking her voice. "Touch him again, and I'll end you."
Leonard smiled coldly, wiping Jeremiah's blood from his blade. "Then stand, and die beside him."