The piercing alarm still echoed faintly in Kai's mind as he sprinted alongside Elyssar through the corridors of the Primarium Castrum. The walls seemed to pulse with urgency, veins of energy glowing brighter with each step they took. Elyssar moved with fluid grace, her emerald eyes sharp. Both she and Kai had their suits shift to combat mode.
Elyssar's combat suit was a blend of elegance and lethality, designed to enhance her natural agility and sharp instincts. The suit clung to her frame like a second skin, crafted from a flexible matte-black material with subtle iridescent undertones that glowed a vibrant dark green when caught in the light. Intricate emerald pattern's traced along the seams, resembling ancient runes fused with claw-like motifs. On the back of her suit, the emblem of two single edged one-handed swords, the blades similar to that of a Spanish Espada, crossing over a double edged dagger in perfect symmetry glowed in a vibrant shade of green, the same color as her eyes.
Along her forearms and shins, reinforced guards curved like stylized fangs, the green shade etching sharp lines on the black surface, that mirrored the pattern of her fur. Her shoulders were adorned with small, angular pauldrons designed to flow with her movements, the edges flaring slightly like blades. the collar of her suit was modified into a hood, dark green in the inside and fading to black on the outside. She wore black fingerless gloves, leaving her claws uncovered, enhanced by thin strips of crystalline armor running along the backs of her fingers, amplifying the force of her strikes. The most striking feature was her long, whip-like tail was partially armored with segmented bands that followed it's natural curve, the tip of the armor was sharpened into a flexible bladed extension.
They reached an arched doorway, pulsing with streams of temporal energy much denser than any other part of the castle. As the metallic doors slid open, the sight made Kai's breath hitch. The 'Vortex Chamber', as Elyssar had called it, was immense. The domed ceiling stretched high, marked with constellations of shifting lights. The floor beneath them was smooth polished dark brow marble, etched with spirals and glyphs that pulsed faintly like a heartbeat. In the center of the chamber stood an enormous circular platform, embedded with crystalline conduits channeling streams of energy towards a singular device, a complex circular elevated platform, that hummed with restrained power.
Near the device, Saphielle stood, her wings folded neatly behind her back. Her eyes ere narrowed in focused intensity as her elegant but steady fingers danced across the surface of a panel attached to the side of the platform. Sparks of temporal energy flared briefly with each adjustment she made, the serene precision of her movements contrasting with the urgency in the air. Leaning against one of the chamber's crystalline pillars, Zyren grinned lazily. His scarlet eyes flickered with a playful glint as he talked with Lorith, who was standing in front of him. Selara, who had standing next to Saphielle, looking dawn at the panel she was tinkering with, looked up when she heard the sound of Kai's footsteps.
Elyssar broke the silence, her voice sharp but with a hint of her usual teasing tone. "Sorry to keep you guys waiting. Hope you didn't miss us too much." Saphielle didn't spare a glance, her fingers still working with mechanical precision. "If I was capable of missing distractions, perhaps," she replied calmly, her tone was devoid of malice but still cutting nonetheless. Zyren chuckled softly, his scarlet gaze drifting towards Kai. "Ah, there's out little rookie. Thought you might've tripped over yer own feet on the way." Kai didn't say anything, his focus shifting to the device Saphielle was working on. Streams of temporal energy surged through it's core, patterns growing more erratic as she adjusted it.
Elyssar stepped forward, her teasing tone fading. "How far has the leviathan breached?" Saphielle finally looked up, her gaze locking onto Elyssar's. "Too much. The leviathan has almost managed to break through the boundaries, it might successfully breach into the planes of reality in a matter of minutes." Kai swallowed hard, the gravity of the situation pressing down on him. Zyren pushed off the pillar, "then how bout we don't keep the beast waiting. Are you almost done with the rift yet? I am itching for a fight." A sudden shift in the chamber's energy snapped Kai's attention back to the platform. The crystalline conduits flared with a brilliant light as a tear in the fabric of reality split open on the platform, jagged and swirling with chaotic streams of light and darkness.
"Alright I have established a pathway to lead us right to the beat. Let us not waste a single moment." Saphielle announced. Kai stepped forward, instinctively manifesting his Hex, gripping the hilt tightly. His heart raced with anticipation, the urge to face battle along with his new comrades burning like wildfire. But just as he was about to step onto the glowing platform, Selara's voice cut through like a razor. "Kai, stop." Kai froze mid-step, turning towards Selara. Her sharp amber eyes pinned him in place, her presence radiating an authority that left no room for argument. She approached him with measured steps, her long black hair flowing behind her.
"You are not ready for this, Kai. You are much too weak, if you join us you will only be in our way." Selara said, her voice cold and firm. "How am I not ready? I have already fought a leviathan before and managed to destroy it's core, all on my own." Kai protested. "The Leviathan you fought, was only a D rank threat. The one we are about to face is a B rank." Selara explained calmly, "you barely managed to hold your own in a controlled mock battle. Out there, one mistake is all that it takes to get yourself, or worse, someone else killed. Kai clenched his fists, frustration boiling beneath the surface, but the weight in her gaze made it impossible to argue. "Very well" he let out a sigh, unclenching his fists as disappointment washed over his face.
Selara turned away from him, her sharp gaze landing on Zyren, who had been watching the exchange with an amused glint in his eyes. "Zyren", she said, her tone shifting to command. "Stay behind with Kai. Teach him how he can use his temporal energy to fight without relying his Hex." Zyren's smirk faded instantly, her expression twisting into a scowl. "Seriously? Babysitting the rookie?" He sighed dramatically, running a hand through his wild, mercury like hair. "You know I ain't exactly the 'patient mentor' type." He said, making air quotes with his fingers. Selara didn't flinch. "I am not asking for patience. I am asking for responsibility."
"Ugh, why me?" Zyren groaned as he rolled his eyes. His posture was slouched like someone forced into a chore they didn't sign up for. "Fine, but if the Kid cries, I ain't dealing with it." Kai's frustration sharpened, "I'm not a damn child". Zyren shot him a grin full of teeth and mischief. "Yer right, whelp. Yer something much worse: a rookie with an ego. Les fix that." Selara gave one last glance over her shoulder before stepping into the rift alongside Saphielle, Lorith and Elyssar. The swirling light swallowed them whole, leaving Kai alone with Zyren in the vast chamber. When the rift closed up, Zyren clapped his hands and rubbed them together. "Well then," he said slowly, his scarlet eyes glinting with a mix of annoyance and intrigue, "Let's see if you are as pathetic as you look. To the atrium!"
The journey back to the atrium felt longer than Kai remembered, though it wasn't the distance that stretched it out, it was Zyren. The silver-skinned Time-keeper strolled ahead in a lazy and unbothered gait that grated Kai's nerves. His wild hair shifted with every step, shining under the faint light of the castle's corridors. "Ya know," Zyren drawled, stretching his arms behind his head, "I was reaaallly itching for a fight after that alarm. But nooo...here I am babysitting you" Kai's brow twitched. Babysitting duty? He clenched his jaw, quickening his pace to match Zyren's relaxed strides.
"Is it that hard for you to act like you care?" Kai muttered, annoyance creeping into his voice. Zyren shot him a lazy sideways glance. "Oh, I care. Just....selectively." He stretched out the word like it was some profound wisdom. "Besides, stress causes wrinkles. You'll thank me later." Kai exhaled sharply through his nose, deciding that silence is better than feeding into Zyren's antics. How is this guy even a Time-keeper? When they finally stepped into the atrium, Kai let out a sigh of relief. Zyren didn't stop, he walked right to the center, rolling his shoulders before halting abruptly. "Try yer best to keep up rookie." Then, with a flick of his wrist, he held out his hand, as he commanded the atrium to shift. The walls blurred and stretched, and then...disintegrated. The ground trembled violently, Kai stumbled barely managing to maintain his balance.
The atrium melted away into a harsh rocky landscape. Massive cliffs jutted sideways, defying the laws of physics. Floating debris hovered midair, spinning lazily. Patches of the ground twisted upwards like jagged shards of glass, while chunks of terrain floated upside down above them, their surfaces littered with scattered stone and broken fragments of ancient ruins. Strange distortions zipped through the air, warping the light around them. Kai stumbled, trying to adjust as the ground below him tilted slightly, like standing on the edge of a ship caught in a slow, rolling wave. Zyren didn't even flinch, his relaxed posture remained but something about him felt different. "Welcome to my favorite place to train, I call it the Fractured Vale," he said casually, as he lifted his arms up to his sides. The air around him shifted as his scarlet eyes now burned with an intensity that put Kai's nerves on end.
"This is where you will learn to stop relying on that shiny toy of yours," Zyren continued, the playful vibe on his tone was now layered with an undertone of quite authority. His aura radiated a sense of deadliness. Kai swallowed hard, glancing around at the chaotic terrain. "You expect me to fight here?" Zyren, who had his back turned to Kai, finally turned to stand face to face with him. "No," he said softly, his eyes narrowing and his smirk fading into a razor-thin smile. "I expect you to try and survive."
A pulse of temporal energy surged through the Vale, and the distorted figures: fragmented, shadow-like beings, materialized from the floating debris. Their forms flickered, phasing in and out like broken reflections as they began to come closer, extending out razor sharp claws and opening their jaws to reveal rows of long, slender teeth.