The water hissed and fumed, blackened by the mana that still lingered. Splintered docks floated like driftwood around me. My sword, slick with dark water and energy residue, hummed softly in my hands. Every nerve in my body screamed: stay sharp.
The orchestrator wasn't gone. I could feel the pulse of his Soul Resonance beneath the water's surface—a heartbeat still tethered to the world. The constructs that remained were scattered, broken—but not inert. Their corrupted mana clung to the air, waiting, observing.
Ryn knelt beside me, panting. "Kael… he's still alive."
I nodded, scanning the harbor. Every shadow flickered with potential danger. The orchestrator had tricks left. Always did. "Then we finish this—now."
The water exploded.
Black shards of mana shot upward like jagged spears, piercing the night air. He rose, dripping with seawater, eyes blazing with fury. The void around him pulsed, twisting reality in a tight vortex.
I adjusted my grip on my blade, Soul Resonance roaring in response. "Finally. Show me what you've got."
The orchestrator moved like liquid shadow, every strike a whip-crack through the air. I dodged, leapt, spun. Each attack was faster than instinct, fueled by anticipation and desperation. Sparks flew as steel met shadow, and the dock groaned under the pressure.
He struck with sweeping arcs of mana, thick and heavy, each hit powerful enough to splinter bones. But I adapted, letting Soul Resonance guide my movements, moving beyond human limits. Every parry, every strike carried a fraction of pure energy, cutting deeper into his defenses.
Then came the vortex.
He slammed his hands into the ground, and the black mana beneath the dock rose like a living wall. Boards cracked, water churned, and the air became a vacuum of oppressive energy. I felt the pull, threatening to drag me in, but I countered, channeling Soul Resonance into a spinning strike that carved through the core of the vortex. Energy exploded outward, scattering the black mana like ash in the wind.
He staggered back, eyes wide with shock. I pressed forward, every step precise, every strike calculated. My sword glowed like molten sunlight, each slash igniting the lingering constructs around him. They shrieked, flinching from the intensity of pure Soul Resonance.
"Kael Draven," he hissed, breath ragged. "You can't—"
I cut him off. A single, clean strike—a flash of light, a scream of energy. His mana barrier shattered, fragments exploding outward. I leapt, driving the blade straight into the heart of his power.
The harbor shook. Waves crashed against the docks, carrying the shock of my strike across the harbor. Mana surged, screaming, twisting, tearing itself apart. The orchestrator screamed, a sound full of rage and disbelief, and tumbled back into the water, vanishing beneath the black waves.
I didn't wait. I dove after him, the water cold but manageable, Soul Resonance burning through me like a living flame. He tried to pull me under with a surge of corrupted energy, but I twisted mid-dive, slashing through the current, cutting chunks of black mana that threatened to drag me down.
I surfaced behind him. His chest heaved, eyes wide and wild, mask shattered, face revealed: pale, twisted with desperation.
"You… you're not human," he spat.
I smiled, feeling the raw, unbroken power thrumming through me. "Neither are you."
The final exchange was chaos incarnate. Claws of mana, waves of energy, blasts of Soul Resonance collided in a storm over the harbor. I moved faster than thought, faster than instinct, striking with precision that shattered armor, severed limbs of the remaining constructs, and broke his focus.
Then I saw the opening.
A flicker—a hitch in his rhythm, tiny but enough. I lunged, Soul Resonance flaring to blinding white, and drove my blade through the center of his chest. The corrupted mana screamed, twisting around us, before collapsing into nothing.
He gasped, eyes wide, then sank beneath the waves. Silence followed. The harbor lay in ruin, the docks half-sunken, water steaming and swirling. Not a single construct moved.
I surfaced, chest heaving, heart pounding. Ryn and Loran rushed to me, both staring in disbelief.
"You… you did it," Ryn whispered.
I let the sword sink into the water, letting the glow fade. "We did it," I corrected. "But this isn't over. There's more out there, and Dareth will know what happened tonight."
Loran's hand rested on my shoulder. "And when he comes… you'll be ready."
I looked out over the blackened harbor, Soul Resonance still thrumming beneath my skin. Every scar, every battle, every ounce of power had brought me here. The city, the Council, the entire system of power—I was rising, and nothing would stand in my way.
"Kael…" Ryn said softly. "What now?"
I smiled, eyes cold and sharp. "Now? We make them remember who they tried to hunt. We make the world bleed for every wrong done to me, to everyone I've lost. They'll know—Kael Draven is no longer a shadow. He's the storm."
The wind tore across the harbor, carrying the scent of brine and smoke. Somewhere in the distance, a lantern flickered, caught in the chaos. I didn't flinch.
The hunt wasn't over. Not by a long shot.
But I was ready.
And when I struck next, the world would shatter.