The arrival of Regulated Order shifted the battlefield.
The pressure around Aurora Covenant's formation loosened almost immediately. Lightning ripped across the bone desert as Caelum drove forward like a living storm. His fist struck the ground and a bolt of electricity exploded outward, scattering a cluster of skeletons that had been clawing their way from the sand.
"Now this," Caelum said with a grin, "is more like a fight."
Another bolt leapt from his hand, striking a second wave before they could surround Garrick's barrier. Helena moved beside him with the calm efficiency of a battlefield tactician. Her spear flashed once. Two skeletons collapsed. A third lost its head before it fully stood.
"Mob density decreasing," she said calmly.
Viktor advanced through the battlefield like an executioner. His crimson blade moved in wide, deliberate arcs. Every swing shattered another line of skeletons, bone fragments scattering across the desert floor.
"...Weak opponents," he muttered.
But even as the outer battlefield stabilized, the center of the fight remained unchanged. The guardian. The massive creature towered over the desert, violet light pulsing through the fractures in its armor. It roared again. The sound shook the sand beneath their feet.
At the center of the battlefield, Lucien stepped forward. Golden wings erupted behind him as the Authority of Michael surged once more. His blade ignited with radiant light.
"Opening," Orion said from behind them.
Lucien moved immediately. He launched forward in a streak of gold. The guardian swung. Lucien twisted midair, narrowly avoiding the strike before driving his blade across the creature's shoulder. Bone shattered outward. The creature staggered.
Then Elias appeared beside him. Lucien glanced at him briefly. "I really thought you preferred the view from outside."
"The view became inconvenient," Elias replied calmly.
The guardian roared again. Its massive arm swung toward them. Elias stepped forward. For a brief moment—his silver eyes flickered. The creature's movement slowed. Not enough for anyone else to notice, but enough.
Lucien recognized the opening instantly. His blade drove deeper into the guardian's chest. The impact forced the massive creature backward. Sand exploded beneath its feet.
Behind them, Orion's voice cut across the battlefield. "...Armor integrity dropping."
Another arrow streaked across the battlefield, striking the guardian's shoulder joint. The violet glow across the creature's body surged violently. Then the bone plating across its chest cracked apart. Segments of armor shifted, pulling away to reveal a hollow cavity deep inside the creature's torso.
Orion's eyes narrowed. "...There."
Lucien didn't hesitate. "Core."
Golden wings flared brighter as he launched forward again. The guardian reacted instantly. Its burning gaze snapped toward him, then its arm swung upward. Fast. Too fast.
Lucien saw the strike coming, but he was already committed to the attack. There was no time to dodge. The massive arm cut through the air toward him.
Nox saw the moment unfold. Distance. Speed. Timing.
For a brief instant—the world fractured. The battlefield split into overlapping possibilities.
Lucien pierced the core. The guardian's arm crushed him midair. Blood across the sand. Lucien falling; dead.
Another future—Lucien dodged, but the core sealed again. The guardian regenerated. The gate collapsed; everyone inside died.
Another—Lucien missed entirely. The battle dragged on. The guardian evolved further; the outcome spiraled worse.
Too many endings. Too many failures. Every path led to the same conclusion: Lucien died.
Something inside Nox recoiled. No.
The fractured possibilities twisted. Reality hesitated. Then, it collapsed back into one.
Orion's arrow struck the guardian's shoulder a fraction of a second earlier than it should have. The impact shifted the creature's balance. The strike veered. The massive arm tore past Lucien instead of through him.
Lucien slammed into the ground and rolled across the sand as the attack crushed the earth where he had been. The desert exploded. Shockwaves rippled outward. Everyone nearby felt the impact.
For a moment, the battlefield froze.
Lucien pushed himself up slowly. His eyes moved toward the crater beside him. That should have killed him. He knew it.
Behind him, Elias had seen it too. His silver gaze flickered toward Nox. For a fraction of a second, the probabilities had been wrong. But when he looked again, Nox stood perfectly still, calm and silent. As if nothing unusual had happened.
Lucien stood fully now, brushing sand from his coat. "...That was close."
Above them, another fracture split across the sky. This one was wider. A piece of the violet heavens broke loose and shattered against the desert like falling glass.
Orion looked upward. "...The gate is destabilizing."
The guardian roared again. Its chest cavity pulsed violently around the exposed core. The battlefield trembled. And the collapse accelerated.
Lucien lifted his blade again. "Then we finish this."