"Jon! Quickly, point your shield toward me!" the black-haired guy screamed over the rushing wind, his messy hair whipping violently around his face as the crimson lake rushed up to meet them.
"Alright!" Jon yelled back. He awkwardly contorted his bulky frame in mid-air, angling his massive, thick iron shield toward his falling companion.
Without hesitating, the black-haired guy reached out and snatched the red-haired woman by the collar of her light armor.
"What are you doing, Theon?!" Rika shrieked, kicking her legs wildly as he pulled her tight against his chest.
High above, floating in the ethereal sky, Roya watched in sheer panic. "Silvi, they will die at that speed!"
"I can't do anything to help them," Silvi whispered, her fists clenched tightly in sorrow. "I have no control left."
Just as the trio was about to smash into the bloody surface of the lake, Theon twisted his body. He extended his leg and delivered a devastating, Aura-infused kick directly into the center of Jon's iron shield.
BOOM!
The massive transfer of kinetic energy acted like a mid-air explosion, violently launching Jon and Theon in completely opposite directions just inches above the water.
Theon and Rika hit the shallow water at an angle, skipping and rolling fiercely across the stone floor beneath the crimson lake, spraying waves of red water into the air before skidding to a painful halt.
Jon, however, took the absolute brunt of the force. He slammed into the water back-first.
SPLASH! "Ahaa!"
BUMP! "Ouch!"
CRASH! "Uff! My spine!"
Jon skipped across the lake like a heavy stone, smashing into the water three distinct times before finally rolling to a groaning, miserable stop.
Theon gasped for air, pushing himself up onto his hands and knees. He shook the dizzying ringing from his head.
"I think..." Rika groaned from the water behind him, clutching her ribs. "I think I broke multiple bones."
"Shut up," Theon hissed, his sharp eyes scanning the area. "It seems we have much bigger issues."
Rika forced herself to sit up. For the first time, she truly registered her surroundings. The water was a thick, horrific blood-red, and the sky was a surreal, unending afternoon.
"Yeah, we died," Rika muttered, her face completely pale. "We died, and we are in hell, right?"
"If so," Theon said, slowly reaching for his sword, "then what the heck is that?"
Rika followed his gaze toward the center of the lake.
Standing amidst the floating corpses of ancient knights was the Crimson Knight. He was an absolute monolith of terror, completely engulfed in a raging, hybrid storm of dark red and brilliant golden Aura. The glowing eyes behind the slits of his helmet seemed to pierce right through them. A freezing, paralyzing chill ran directly down Rika's spine.
"Whatever that is," Rika whispered, her voice trembling, "it's trouble."
A few dozen yards away, Lucas used their chaotic entrance to finally catch his breath. He pushed himself off the water, gripping his azure blade with his right hand. He looked at the three battered strangers.
"Hey, you idiots!" Lucas barked, his voice echoing bluntly across the lake. "If you don't wanna get sliced in half, help me fight this thing!"
Up in the sky, Roya's ghostly eye twitched violently. A massive, pulsing đź’˘ vein of pure irritation practically formed on her forehead.
(This IDIOT!) Roya screamed internally, staring down at him. (Who asks for help like that?!)
Down on the lake, Jon finally staggered to his feet, hiding behind his massive shield. "Hey, Theon! What do you think?!"
"Let's just listen to him for now—" Theon said.
SWISH.
The Crimson Knight bypassed the space between them in a single, terrifying blink. His sheer speed was incomprehensible.
He appeared directly in front of Theon, gripping his massive longsword with one hand high above his helmet, bringing it crashing down like an executioner's axe.
With exactly zero seconds to spare, Theon desperately threw his blade up horizontally to block.
BOOM!
The kinetic shockwave parted the crimson lake in a massive circle around them.
Cough!
A violent splatter of blood sprayed from Theon's mouth. His arms shook violently, his muscles screaming as the Crimson Knight's sword ground against his own. Theon's knees were driven hard into the submerged stone floor, cracking the rock beneath the water.
The pressure from the red-and-gold Aura was increasing by the millisecond, blasting away the surrounding water in continuous, concussive waves.
"THEON!" Jon roared, charging forward like a raging bull, holding his massive shield out to cover his captain.
The Crimson Knight's glowing eyes slowly turned toward the approaching knight. With terrifying casualness, the giant released his pressure on Theon, pivoting his sword to obliterate Jon instead.
"JON, COVER THEON!" Rika screamed from behind them.
The shock of the ambush had faded, replaced by pure adrenaline. Rika threw both of her hands forward. Her blazing amber hair floated wildly around her face, defying gravity.
Her own eyes ignited with a brilliant, fiery glow. Blazing amber Aether—thick, hot, and shifting like liquid fire—poured out of her palms, rapidly condensing into a massive, blinding sphere that looked exactly like a miniature sun.
Floating in the sky, Roya's strategic mind was instantly captivated. (Amazing... she isn't using a physical object like a needle to channel her energy. Her Aether isn't just raw energy; it actively mimics an element! It's like liquid fire!)
"EAT THIS!" Rika shrieked.
As Jon threw himself over Theon, shielding them both, Rika launched the massive, amber sun-ball directly at the Crimson Knight.
The red giant snapped his head toward the incoming attack.
BOOM!
The explosion was catastrophic. A deafening roar echoed across the entire realm. The sheer heat of the blast instantly evaporated thousands of gallons of the crimson lake, blanketing the battlefield in a massive, blinding cloud of thick white steam.
The Crimson Knight was blasted several feet backward, skipping across the water and crashing heavily into the lake.
As the dense steam slowly began to disperse, Rika collapsed onto her knees in the shallow water. She grasped her chest, huffing and gasping desperately for air, completely exhausted by the massive output of energy.
Through the fog, she saw Jon lowering his scorched iron shield. He had successfully protected himself and Theon from the blast.
"We have no time to wait!" Theon coughed, wiping blood from his chin as he staggered to his feet. "We have to finish him quickly!"
Lucas charged through the dispersing steam, his body once again cloaked in a blinding, brilliant blue Aura. But before he could strike, the water erupted.
The Crimson Knight launched himself out of the lake, landing effortlessly on his feet.
Lucas skidded to a halt. Theon, Jon, and Rika froze in absolute dread.
Despite taking a direct hit from a miniature sun, the Crimson Knight stood tall. His blood-red armor wasn't even scorched. In fact, the golden and red Aura surrounding him was spinning even faster, the suffocating magical pressure growing exponentially stronger by the second.
"Hey, blue-hair!" Theon yelled over the roaring wind, gripping his sword tightly. "Let's do this together!"
High above the battlefield, Silvi's ghostly form floated beside Roya.
"Roya," Silvi called out, her voice trembling with absolute urgency. "We shouldn't waste any more time. They won't be able to hold him off for much longer... he is regaining his strength by the second."
"Then what should we do?!" Roya pleaded, looking at the unfolding nightmare.
"You must destroy the Core," Silvi said softly.
"The Core?" Roya turned toward her.
Her breath hitched. Silvi's translucent, glowing body was actively breaking apart. Starting from her legs, her ghostly form was dissolving into fine, sparkling dust that blew away in the ethereal wind.
"This is all the help I can give you," Silvi smiled, a beautiful, heartbreaking expression of absolute peace on her face. "I trust you can do it, Roya."
"Wait! Silvi, what's happening to you?!" Roya screamed, reaching out to grab her.
VRRRRMMMM.
A violent, high-pitched ringing pierced Roya's skull.
Roya gasped, her eyes snapping open. She wasn't in the sky anymore. She was lying flat on her back on the cold stone floor.
A brutal, throbbing headache hammered against her temples. She groaned, slowly sitting up and clutching her head. (Looks like not much time has passed in this Realm...) she analyzed through the pain. (I still feel the exact same physical recoil from my Aether Burst against those cats.)
She looked around. The horrific, bloody throne room was gone. The room was back to its pristine, sunlit state, with the broken stone pillars and green vines.
But there was one massive difference.
The stone altar in the center of the room was no longer visible. It had been completely consumed and encased by a massive, impenetrable dome of thick, jagged green vines, absolutely covered in brilliant, blooming red flowers.
"Roya! Are you okay?!" Sam called out, rushing over to her side. "What happened? One second we were looking at those giant eyes in the sky, and the next, everything went completely dark for me!"
Roya didn't answer immediately. She stared at the massive dome of flora.
"Sam..." Roya whispered, her violet eyes widening. "Aren't those red flowers... the exact same ones Sir Kael gave to Lady Silvi on the balcony?"
She slowly stood up, looking at the impenetrable dome. Her chest tightened. (Is this your final effort to protect Silvi's body, Sir Kael?)
"Sam, keep your guard up," Roya ordered, her voice dropping into absolute, deadpan seriousness. "We have to destroy the Core of this Realm."
"Destroy the Core?!" Sam panicked, gripping his sword. "How are we supposed to do that? And where is the Core anyway?!"
"It's inside there," Roya said, pointing at the dome.
She reached into her pouch and pulled out a fresh silver needle. She aimed it directly at the center of the flower-covered dome.
She closed her eyes. She reached into her core and pulled her Aether out. A wave of dark purple energy rushed into the silver needle. The Aether extended, turning the tiny point into a glowing blade of energy.
"No," Roya gritted her teeth, holding her stance. "Even bigger. This won't work."
She pushed harder. The glowing blade of Aether grew larger and larger, expanding outward as she forced more raw energy into it to maximize its destructive firepower. It started to vibrate, humming deeply in the air. The tip of the massive energy blade began to turn pitch-black. Small pebbles and broken pieces of stone lifted off the floor, defying gravity as the atmospheric pressure around her dropped.
Sam took a terrified step backward, watching in absolute awe as the energy surged.
"NOT ENOUGH! MORE!" Roya screamed, pouring every ounce of her life force into the silver point. The Aether turned completely violent, roaring around her hand.
BOOM!
The Aether cannon fired.
The recoil threw Roya violently backward. She flew a few feet through the air, crashing hard against a broken stone pillar.
A colossal cloud of thick dust, shredded vines, and pulverized red flower petals exploded across the room. Sam, already flat on the floor to brace against the deafening shockwave, covered his head as the blast washed over him.
As the echo faded, Sam slowly opened his eyes and coughed through the thick dust. He looked toward the center of the room.
A massive, jagged hole had been blasted clean through the thick wall of vines.
"Roya!" Sam yelled, scrambling to his knees and looking back.
Roya was slumped against the pillar, barely conscious. Blood dripped from her nose.
"No..." Roya coughed, her vision going entirely black. "It wasn't enough... Sam... quickly... destroy the Core..."
Her head rolled to the side, and she passed out completely.
Sam panicked. "Where is the Core?!" he shrieked.
As he looked at the dome, a horrific, grinding sound filled the air. The massive, thick vines surrounding the blasted hole suddenly sprang to life. They began writhing and twisting like massive green snakes, rapidly growing to close the gap Roya had just created.
(It's closing!) Sam realized, his heart hammering in his throat.
"Here goes nothing!" Sam screamed.
He didn't hesitate. Scrambling on all fours like a panicked bear, he dove headfirst into the jagged hole with his sword tightly in hand, rolling across the stone floor inside the dark dome just as the vines began to snap shut behind him.
He gasped for air, looking up.
Laying on the stone altar, perfectly preserved but completely devoid of life, was Lady Silvi. Her skin was a terrifying, translucent pale, and the veins creeping up her neck were completely black from the ancient poison.
(The Core...) Sam realized, a cold dread washing over his soul. (The Core of this Realm... is her body.)
Sam forced himself upright. He raised his standard-issue longsword high above Silvi's chest. Tears pricked the corners of his eyes as he looked down at the tragic, innocent face of the girl who had started it all.
Just as his muscles tensed to strike, the vines inside the dome lashed out. Thick, thorny creepers wrapped violently around his ankles and waist, desperately trying to drag him backward away from the altar.
"I AM SORRY, SIR KAEL!" Sam screamed, fighting the crushing grip with everything he had.
With a brutal, downward thrust, Sam plung
ed his sword directly through Silvi's heart.
Thump.
A single, massive heartbeat echoed throughout the Realm.