The sky cracked.
Brent shot forward, flames spiraling off his body in radiant arcs. His Unity Form pulsed brighter than ever before — but Her presence, now fully unfurled from the Gate, was something no system, no training had prepared him for.
Rae's voice cut through the comms: "Brent! Stay linked!"
He gritted his teeth. "I'm not letting this end here."
Around them, the battlefield was chaos — mutated monsters, warped by the Gate's leaking power, surged in endless waves. Some had no recognizable shape, just tendrils of warped energy and jaws made of light. Rae and Lysa fought side by side, their Soul Bond blazing, weaving threads of restoration and precision strikes to clear their half of the field.
Suddenly, Her shadow lengthened, sweeping across the horizon. With a flick of Her hand, entire lines of Nexus Guardians shattered like brittle glass. Brent felt the Echo of Her trait shudder inside him, resonating painfully.
"You were made to carry my spark," Her voice boomed inside his head. "Even your flame belongs to me."
But Brent's Twilight Core burned hotter. "I don't belong to you."
He surged forward, striking at the heart of the twisting dark flame at Her center — only for Her to open Her hands and reveal a hidden core, pulsing and alive. It wasn't energy. It was Kalen. What remained of him, fully fused into Her essence.
Rae gasped. Lysa choked back a sob. The realization hit all of them: Kalen had never been a puppet. He was the key.
System Notification:
New Directive: Sever the Host Link.
Warning: Critical Risk. All Resonance Levels Required at 120%.
Brent roared, summoning the last reserves of his Flame Resonance, pushing beyond limits he hadn't even known existed. Rae matched him, drawing deep into her Lunar Core. Lysa's Emberheart ignited in full bloom, lighting the entire battlefield.
The three launched forward — a blinding triad of energy — aiming not at Her, but at the chain binding Kalen's soul.
Unpredictable Twist:
Her laughter shattered the sky. "Did you think I wouldn't prepare for this?"
With a violent pulse, the Gate split.
A second figure emerged — Vaelrick — but not as they remembered him. His body, fused with shards of the Gate, stood monstrous and glowing with stolen powers.
"If you want to save your world," Vaelrick sneered, "you'll have to go through me first."
The final battle had just doubled.
The ground trembled beneath Brent's feet as molten cracks webbed across the chamber floor. Rae's breath hitched as shadows surged, twisting into monstrous forms with eyes like burning coals. Lysa braced herself, hands glowing with emberlight, heart pounding so loud it echoed in her ears.
Above them, the Second Gate pulsed—its runes no longer dormant, but alive, churning with wild, chaotic power.
"They're coming through!" Rae shouted, spinning her lunar blade in wide arcs as the first wave of mutated beasts crashed against them. Tentacles of dark bone lashed out, fanged maws snapping at the trio. Brent surged forward, shield ablaze, Twilight Paladin Core flooding his veins with a searing rush of strength.
"Lysa! Hold center!" Brent bellowed, swinging his sword with an explosive flare. Each strike carved light-soaked trails through the mass of creatures. Lysa closed her eyes, her Emberheart expanding outward—a dome of radiant warmth bolstering them all. Rae danced along its edge, weaving Soulflame strikes that lashed enemies apart mid-lunge.
Suddenly, a jagged crack tore across the Gate, and from it—Vaelrick emerged.
But he was no longer merely a man.
Twisted, monstrous, crowned in black flame, his skin armored with a chitinous sheen, Vaelrick's voice scraped across reality itself: "You have grown… but not enough."
Behind him, the cloned Kalen shuddered, his body half-dissolved, strings of corrupted energy binding him to the Gate's heart. His eyes flickered, and for a moment—just a heartbeat—Brent saw the boy he once knew, hidden deep beneath the monstrous shell.
Rage surged inside Brent.
System Notification:
Challenge Activated: Gate Tyrant Confrontation.
Bonus Objective: Sever Kalen's tether without killing him.
Reward: Unknown Core Evolution.
"Rae! Lysa!" Brent roared, his Flame Resonance igniting to full force, the Ashen Halo expanding with golden brilliance. "We take him down—together!"
Rae's Soul Core shimmered, fusing tighter into Brent's aura, her Lunar Aspect threading into his flame. Lysa's Emberheart flared as she linked into the Unity Form, her healing waves ready to counter every brutal hit.
The battle ignited.
Vaelrick swept a clawed hand, unleashing waves of black fire. Brent raised his shield, but the force hurled him back, cracking the stone beneath him. Rae leapt in, striking from the side with a blinding Resonant Flare, while Lysa rushed to Brent's side, mending his wounds in real time.
"We need to break Kalen's bond!" Rae cried, spinning into another barrage.
Brent gritted his teeth, vision blazing. System, he commanded silently, show me the path.
System Response:
Weak point detected: Core Tendrils—sever at nexus points near Kalen's chest and spine.
With a roar, Brent surged forward, dodging Vaelrick's sweeping claws, his blade igniting with fused flame and shadow resonance. Rae matched his speed, creating a vortex of mirrored strikes. Lysa unleashed waves of Emberlight, disorienting Vaelrick's assault just long enough.
Together, they reached Kalen.
Brent drove his blade deep into the nexus point, feeling the tremor of corrupted energy splintering. Kalen's scream echoed—a sound both monstrous and human.
"Hold on, Kalen!" Brent snarled, twisting the blade as Rae pierced the second nexus, unleashing a blast of pure light.
For a heartbeat, everything stopped.
Kalen collapsed, gasping, freed from the Gate's grip. Vaelrick howled, the Gate behind him destabilizing as his monstrous form began to unravel—but his eyes burned with fury.
"This isn't over!" he spat, lunging forward.
System Notification:
Core Evolution Unlocked: Infernal Ascendant.
New Ability: Phoenix Veil — brief resurrection upon fatal strike.
As Vaelrick's claws tore through Brent's chest, a blinding surge of light erupted—engulfing the battlefield.
Brent opened his eyes, gasping as power surged through him, his body knitting back together, flames roaring in his veins.
"Rae. Lysa." His voice was steady, fierce. "Let's finish this."
Together, they rose, the final strike looming before them.