It was not long before a rift shimmered before the trio, a swirling vortex of fractured light carved into the very fabric of reality. Zyren rolled his shoulders, the lingering adrenaline in his veins still tense from the battle. With a sharp exhale, he stepped forward, crossing through in a single stride. The warped energy pulsed around him for a brief moment before the sensation of solid ground settled beneath his boots once more. They were back.
The castle's grand halls stretched before them, their walls pulsating faintly with the remnants of condensed temporal energy. The ever-present hum of reality itself being stabilized within these sacred corridors was a stark contrast to the chaos of the battlefield they had just left behind. And waiting for them: leaning casually against one of the intricately carved pillars near the entrance, was Elyssar. Her golden-amber fur glowed under the ethereal lights, her tail flicking lazily behind her as she took in their arrival. A slow smirk curled across her lips. "Tch. Took you long enough," she quipped, her sharp feline eyes gleaming with amusement. "Did you take a nap out there, Duskbane? Or were you too busy trying to look cool?"
Zyren let out a low chuckle, shaking his head as he wiped the last streak of golden Leviathan blood from his face. "Oh, don't worry, sunshine. I had to make sure I gave the beast a proper farewell. Unlike you, I like my fights thorough." He shot her a lazy grin, his ember-like eyes flickering with mischief. "But if you're that impatient, next time, I'll let you deal with the damn thing alone." Elyssar snorted, flicking her ears back in mock offense. "You? Give up a fight? Now that would be a first." Lorith let out a deep, gravelly chuckle as he hefted his massive greatsword onto his back. "Enough flirting. Let's report in and be done with it." Kai, walking just behind them, sighed. "I wouldn't call that flirting. It feels more like a battle of egos."
Zyren clapped a hand on Kai's shoulder as they passed Elyssar, his grin widening. "Tch. Kid, you'll learn soon enough, it's the same thing." With that, he stretched his arms overhead, before he let out a satisfied sigh. "Well, the job's done. Time for me to go slack off." He turned on his heel, making his way down the hall with a leisurely gait. Right as was alone, deep within the winding corridors, a voice cut through the air, sharp, steady, and all too familiar. "Zyren." He halted mid-step. Selara stood a few paces ahead, her arms crossed, amber eyes steady as they locked onto his. Unlike Elyssar's casual teasing, Selara's gaze carried an air of authority that Zyren knew better than to ignore.....though that didn't mean he wouldn't at least try to.
He exhaled through his nose, turning toward her with a lazy smirk. "If you're here to tell me what a great job I did, I already know." Selara's expression didn't waver. "Did the plan go as expected?" Zyren's thought back to the time when they first came up with this plan, right before the breach had occurred. Right after his initial conversation with Selara, as he was about to head to the library, when her voice had called out to him, steady and unmistakable. He had stopped but didn't turn immediately. Instead, he had let out a low sigh through his nose before glancing back over his shoulder. Selara stood a few paces away, arms crossed, her amber eyes trained on him with that unreadable sharpness she always carried.
He arched a silver brow. "Something on your mind, boss?" Selara stepped closer, her expression unreadable. "There's something I need you to do the next time you fight alongside Kai." Zyren turned fully, his usual smirk creeping onto his face. "Let me guess: you want me to go all out? Wipe the damn field out before the monsters get a chance to breathe?" He stretched an arm over his shoulder with a lazy roll. "Come on, Selara, you don't need to tell me twice." She didn't react to his banter. Instead, her gaze remained steady, calculating. "No," she said calmly. "I need you to do the opposite." That made Zyren pause. His smirk faltered.....just a little. ".....The hell is that supposed mean?"
Selara exhaled, crossing her arms tighter. "I suspect there may be a way to confirm any anomalies within Kai." Zyren's brows drew together, interest flickering behind his ember-like eyes. "You think this will help us ensure that something's off about the kid?" he asked. "I think there's more to his abilities than what meets the eye." Selara's voice was calm, measured, but Zyren could tell this wasn't a random guess. She had been watching Kai closely. Testing him, in her own way. Zyren tilted his head, his silver hair shifting slightly with the motion. "So... what? You want me to sit back and let him handle the fight alone?" "Not completely," Selara clarified. "But I need you to hold back....just enough to observe. See how he reacts under pressure. If he struggles, let him. If he adapts, watch how." Her amber eyes narrowed slightly. "And if something....manifests that shouldn't, you'll be the first to witness it."
Zyren let out a low hum, rocking back slightly on his heels. "Huh." He wasn't against the idea. Hell, he'd seen firsthand that the kid had potential....perhaps more than just potential. But this? This was something else entirely. He folded his arms loosely over his chest. "And what if whatever's inside him isn't something we want coming out?" Selara met his gaze, unflinching. "Then I trust you to handle it." Zyren let out a quiet chuckle, shaking his head. "That's a whole lotta faith in me, boss." Selara's expression didn't change. "Well, you've never failed before." He let out a slow breath, his amusement fading slightly as he took in her serious expression. Then, after a brief pause, he gave a small shrug. "Alright, fine. I'll play along." He offered her a lazy grin. "But if the kid ends up hating me for it, I'm blaming you."
Selara didn't react to that, only giving him a small nod before turning and walking away, leaving Zyren standing in the hallway, hands still in his pockets, a thoughtful look lingering in his ember-like eyes. And then, without another word, he had continued toward the library.
Back at the present time, Zyren exhaled slowly, rolling his shoulders as he recalled everything that had transpired. He could still feel the remnants of Kai's energy lingering beneath his skin, like an echo of something unnatural yet precise. He finally met her gaze. "Yeah," he said. "And I got my answer." Selara's expression didn't change, but there was a subtle shift in the air between them. "Go on," she said. Zyren tilted his head slightly, his silver hair catching the ethereal glow of the hall's light. "You were right to suspect something," he admitted. "I held back, gave the kid room to struggle. And he did, at first." His ember-like eyes flickered. "But then he adapted. Too fast." Selara's fingers tightened slightly against her arms. "How fast?"
Zyren let out a small, humorless chuckle. "Fast enough that it didn't make sense. One moment, he was struggling to keep up. The next, it was like his body knew what to do before his mind caught up. Reflexes sharpened, movements refined. Like something inside him just kicked in." Selara remained silent, her gaze unreadable. But Zyren wasn't done. His voice dropped slightly. "That's not even the weirdest part." Selara's amber eyes narrowed. Zyren ran a hand through his messy silver hair. "He transfused his own temporal energy into me mid-fight." That made her straighten slightly. "He did what?"
"You heard me," Zyren muttered. "I took a hit....not bad, but enough to notice. Next thing I know, the kid is channeling his energy into me without even thinking about it. Controlled. Precise." His jaw tightened. "And it worked." Selara's expression remained composed, but he could see the flicker of thought behind her eyes, gears turning. "That shouldn't be possible," she finally said. "Not yet. Not for him." Zyren huffed a quiet laugh, shaking his head. "Yeah, well. Guess no one told him that." Selara was quiet for a long moment. Then, finally, she exhaled. "This confirms my suspicions." Zyren's ember-like eyes narrowed slightly. "Which are?" Selara's gaze flickered toward a mural on the wall, it depicted warriors from different times charging against leviathans, together as a team. The warrior in the very front had her sword held high, ready to strike as a symbol glowed on her wrist, a complex array of interlocking patterns that roughly formed an hourglass.
She murmured, "There's more to him than even he knows." Zyren followed her gaze, watching the mural, the way the warrior carried herself, the way her energy was shown to spread over to her allies, healing and strengthening them. His fingers flexed at his side." Yeah.....things are about to get a lot more interesting from here on out....."