The Sanctum School buzzed with an electric undercurrent, its halls were alive with whispers of Kelvin's triumph in the Abyss Vault. The Obsidian Division students parted like a tide as he walked, their eyes moved with curiosity and respect.
Kelvin felt the weight of their gazes, but his focus was elsewhere, tied to the scroll that had arrived at dawn which was delivered by a sleek, obsidian-scaled drake with eyes like burning coals. Its words were burned into his mind.
This time it is a real-world mission, beyond the Sanctum's protective wards, into the Crimson Rift—a tear in the world where beast and it's kind thrived in chaotic splendor. The mission promised danger, glory, and rewards beyond the school's trials. Kelvin's blood flowed with anticipation.
He stood in the training yard and Xerion sprawled beside him, the End-Tyrant's scales was catching the morning light like molten black glass. Darius and Lyra approached with their beasts—RHOAM, the thick armored shadow-panther, and Avian Salaris, the thunder-wolf—trailing close.
The scroll had named them as Kelvin's companions for the expedition, a rare honor for Obsidian Division students.
"You read the scroll?" Darius asked, his grin was wide as he tossed a training orb into the air. Rhoam fur crackled, sensing his tamer's excitement.
Kelvin nodded with his hand resting on Xerion's flank. "We are in for a Crimson Rift. A live mission with no simulations, no safety nets. We are to secure relics from an ancient tamer outpost and neutralize any hostile beasts."
Lyra's silver hair shined as she tilted her head, her expression revealed her intent joy with mixed feeling. "The Crimson Rift is a death trap. It is a beast place of connection—wild, untamed, crawling with apex predators. The relics are probably guarded by something nasty and mystic."
"Good," Kelvin said with a spark in his eyes. "I am tired of arenas. Let's see what the real world throws at us."
Xerion's wings flared with a low growl rumbling from his chest. "The Rift will test us and I welcome it."
Darius laughed while tapping Kelvin's shoulder. "That is the spirit. Let's go loot some ancient swag and show those beasts who is the boss."
Lyra rolled her eyes but couldn't hide a smile. "Just don't get cocky. We will need every ounce of our bonds to survive this."
The trio prepared swiftly, packing light but essential gears: soulstones to amplify their Convergence, runic daggers for close encounters, and talismans to ward off rift-spawned miasma.
At midday, they met Master Caelum at the Sanctum's outer gate, where a gleam portal awaited, its edges were crackling with red energy. The master's stern gaze swept over them.
"This is not a trial," Caelum said, with his voice like a stone. "The Crimson Rift is alive, unpredictable. Your bonds will be your anchor. Retrieve the relics, neutralize threats, and return intact. If you fail, and the Sanctum will not mourn you."
Kelvin met his gaze, unflinching and said. "We won't fail."
The portal opened and swallowed them in a rush of heat and the world shifted.
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The Crimson Rift was a scar that is across a desolate plain. The air was thick with the scent of a sulfur. Towering the spires of blackened stone that sticked out from the ground with their surfaces etched with runes that pulsed faintly.
Beasts roared in the distance, their calls was a harmony of hunger and power. The tamer outpost, half-buried in a crater, loomed ahead—a crumbling fortress of obsidian and bone, its walls scarred by claw marks.
Kelvin's heart raced, but he kept his stance steady, Xerion's presence was a blazing anchor in his soul. "Stay sharp," he said with a low voice. "We are not alone."
Avian Salaris's ears twitched, her shadow-cloaked form blending with the haze. Lyra's eyes narrowed. "I sense at least three signatures and they are big ones."
Rhoam growled, his fur sparking. Darius cracked his knuckles. "Let's give them a welcome party."
Before they could move, the ground trembled. From the haze emerged a pack of riftspawn—beasts born of the Rift's chaotic essence.
The leader was a massive Gorefang Wyrm, its serpentine body is covered in bony plates, its maw were dripping with black ichor. Flanking it were two Storm claw Raptors, their feathers crackling with lightning with it's eyes glinting with a predatory move.
"Convergence, now!" Kelvin shouted, diving into his bond with Xerion. Light flared from his chest, and he and the End-Tyrant moved as one, their forms were blurring in a spiral of flame and soullight.
The wyrm lunged, its jaws snapping, but Kelvin rolled aside, Xerion's claws raking its flank. The beast roared, ichor was spraying as it coiled to strike again.
Lyra and Avian Salaris darted left as the thunder-wolf form was flickering like smoke. Lyra channeled her Convergence, her hands weaving runes that summoned tendrils of shadow to bind a raptor's legs.
The beast screeched with lightning arcing wildly, but Avian Salaris pounced on it as her claws tear through its feathers.
Darius and Rhoam charged at the second raptor, the amore red panther howl shaking the air. Darius's runic dagger glowed as he leaped onto the beast's back, driving the blade into its spine. The raptor bucked, but Rhoam jaws closed around its throat, ending its existence with a crack of bone.
Kelvin faced the wyrm alone, its massive tail were whipping toward him. He ducked, feeling the air burn as it passed. "Xerion, skyward!" he called, and the End-Tyrant took flight with it's wings igniting.
Kelvin leaped onto Xerion's back, their Convergence was blazing brighter. They dove, a comet of flame and light, and Kelvin drove a soullight blade into the wyrm's skull. The beast collapsed, its body dissolving into ash as the Rift reclaimed it.
With panting, the trio regrouped and their beasts were bloodied but yet unbowed. "First, wave down," Kelvin said, wiping ichor from his face. "Let's move before more show up."
The outpost's entrance was a gaping inclination of stone, its interior was lit by flickering runes. Inside, the air was cold, the walls were lined with shelves of ancient relics: soulstones pulsing with trapped essence, runic tablets etched with tamer lore, and orbs that hummed with latent power.
Kelvin's fingers itched, but he stayed focused. "Grab what we can carry, but don't linger."
Lyra's eyes gleamed as she lifted a tablet, its surface was glowing faintly. "This is a Convergence Codex—rare, even in the Sanctum. It could amplify our bonds."
Darius hefted an orb, its core swirling with blue light. "Soulcore. Bet this could juice up Rhoam lightning."
Kelvin found a gauntlet of blackened steel, its surface were etched with a sigil that matched the one on his bracer. He slipped it on, feeling a surge of warmth as it bonded with his soulstream. "This is ours," he said to Xerion, who growled in approval.
The looting was cut short by a low roar as the ground shook, and a new beast emerged from its depths—a Riftbeast- Behemoth that looks like a hulking creature of stone, its eyes were burning with fire. Smaller riftspawn—Spectral Hounds—flanked it, their forms were flickering like ghosts.
"Split up!" Kelvin shouted. "Lyra, take the hounds. Darius, flank the behemoth. Xerion and I will draw its attention."
Lyra and Avian Salaris vanished into the shadows, their Convergence were weaving a net of darkness that ensnared the hounds. Lyra's runes flared, and Veyra's claws struck with surgical precision, tearing through the spectral forms.
One hound lunged at her, but she rolled, her dagger slicing its throat, and it dissolved into mist.
Darius and Rhoam circled the behemoth, the armored panther's lightning was arcing across its stone hide. Darius threw his soulcore orb, which exploded in a burst of electricity, staggering the beast.
Rhoam leaped with his jaws clamping onto a crack in the behemoth's armor, but the creature pushed him away, sending him skidding across the floor.
Kelvin and Xerion faced the behemoth head-on. The beast's fist lodged down, but Kelvin dodged it. His new gauntlet was glowing as he channeled their Convergence. "Do it now, Xerion!" he roared, and the End-Tyrant unleashed a flame that was scorching the behemoth's chest.
Kelvin leaped with his soullight blade slicing through the beast's arm while severing it. The behemoth roared, but Kelvin didn't relent. He and Xerion struck in unison, their Convergence was a blazing storm that shattered the beast's core. It collapsed with its body crumbling into rubble.
The outpost fell silent, the riftspawn were defeated. The trio gathered their loot, their breaths were heavy but their spirits were high. Kelvin held the gauntlet, Lyra the codex, and Darius the soulcore.
They split the remaining relics, soulstones, runic shards, and a small vial of rift essence equally, each piece a testament to their victory.
"We did it," Darius said, grinning as he pocketed his share. "And we're walking out with some serious swag."
Lyra's smile was softer, but her eyes shone. "We are stronger together. That is what got us through."
Kelvin nodded with his hand on Xerion's scales. "The Rift tested us, but we are not done. This is just the beginning."