Kael stood in the heart of the crater, wind howling around him as black lightning coiled at his feet. Raizen's voice echoed in his head.
"That energy within you… Kurothar's rage, your Will's purity, and your heart's fire—when they align, you'll unlock a form beyond raw power. You'll enter what I call… Surge State."
Kael's breathing slowed as he tapped deeper into the new energy.
His muscles tightened. His vision sharpened—colors brightened, and every sound around him became clear as day. His feet barely touched the ground now, and the black electricity no longer sparked—it flowed.
Then he heard it.
Screams.
Explosions.
Will-signatures vanishing—one after another.
He turned his head northwest. Through his newly mastered Spirit Pulse, Kael sensed Wielders falling fast—both students and veterans overwhelmed by Kurojin's army of monsters and corrupted warriors.
Tetsu's energy was flickering.
So was Hana's.
Ryuu's pulse beat like a war drum—strong but cornered.
Kael's fists clenched.
"I'm too far…"
He leapt forward.
With each step, he blinked between dimensions, warping, phasing, blurring across terrain and time. The sky blurred past him—snow whipping against his skin as he dashed from mountaintop to riverbend to canyon.
But the battlefield was still distant.
And with every second, more lives slipped away.
Back on the battlefield…
Tetsu screamed as he blocked a massive beast's claw with only one arm. His left shoulder was torn open.
"Where's Kael?!" he yelled.
"Still not here!" Ryuu shouted, slashing down three corrupted beasts but falling to one knee.
Hana gritted her teeth. "We can't… hold much longer…"
Meanwhile…
Kael surged through the air. Each warp left behind a ripple of black light. His eyes locked on the battlefield ahead.
"Just hang on… I'm almost there…"