The silence shattered in an instant.
The moment Kairos—no, the Abyssal Warborn—declared himself, the air erupted into chaos. His corrupted lightning tore across the battlefield, devouring the ruins in arcs of black fire. Stone melted. Trees incinerated into ash. Even the ground beneath his feet was scorched into a glassy black sheen that radiated with malevolent energy.
Celestial Tempest stood their ground, though their hearts raced in unison. This was no longer the comrade they knew, no longer the brother-in-arms they trusted, no longer the guy that was a spy for the lightning warborn a minion but still deep within was a good person. What stood before them was a weapon of the Abyss, a storm forged only to destroy.
"Formation!" Bolt's voice cracked like a whip. His body thrummed with electricity, azure sparks crawling along his arms. "We fight him together. No one faces him alone!"
Ren tightened his grip on his sword, nodding. "Then let's cut this demon down."
But as soon as the words left his mouth, Kairos moved.
One heartbeat he stood before them, grinning with abyssal arrogance. The next—he vanished. A thunderclap roared through the air, and before anyone could react, a streak of black lightning flashed across the battlefield.
"Ren!" Valea screamed.
Ren barely managed to cross his blades as the strike landed. The sheer force of it sent him flying, his swords screeching as sparks rained around him. He smashed into the earth, carving a crater, his hands trembling from the shock. His bones ached from the single exchange.
Kairos—no, the Abyssal Warborn—appeared above him, suspended in the air as arcs of black lightning writhed around his body like serpents. "Is this the best the Celestial Tempest can muster? You are insects beneath the storm."
"Not while I breathe!" Akane roared, her flames bursting alive. She hurled herself skyward, her body wreathed in blazing crimson fire. Her fist collided with his chest, igniting a blast so fierce the sky itself lit red.
But when the smoke cleared, Kairos didn't even flinch.
He grinned. "Pretty sparks." His hand lashed out, grabbing her by the throat mid-flight. With effortless cruelty, he hurled her into the ground. The earth ruptured, a fiery explosion of dirt and flame erupting where her body struck.
"Akane!" Aether shot forward, wind spiraling around him. His blades of compressed air howled like screaming banshees, tearing through the blackened storm that surrounded Kairos. Dozens of slashes cut across the corrupted Warborn's form—yet not a drop of blood spilled.
Instead, Kairos tilted his head, almost amused. "You dare challenge the storm with a breeze?"
He flicked his wrist, and black lightning erupted outward in a dome. Aether was caught midair, the impact sending him crashing to the ground, blood trickling from his lips as his lungs struggled for air.
Sylva planted her hands into the ground, her eyes glowing. "Earth, answer me!" Spires of stone erupted upward, wrapping around Kairos in a crushing prison. Vines twisted, binding tighter, while Darian added his voice to the attack, summoning torrents of water that surged upward, hardening into ice that encased the corrupted Warborn in a frozen tomb.
For a moment—just a moment—they thought it worked.
Bolt's eyes hardened. "Now, Ren!"
Ren burst forward, his blade glowing with radiant steel as he slashed downward with all the power he could muster. His strike cleaved into the frozen pillar, splitting it into shards of ice—
And there, standing untouched in the center, was Kairos. His grin widened.
The black lightning surged again. Shards of ice exploded outward like shrapnel, tearing across the battlefield. Sylva screamed as a piece ripped into her shoulder, sending her sprawling. Darian's water shield barely saved him, though the recoil sent him stumbling back.
Ren was caught in the backlash, thrown off balance.
Kairos appeared before him in a blink, his corrupted lightning blade forming in his hand. "Die."
Ren raised his sword desperately—
CLANG!
Bolt appeared in the nick of time, his lightning-clad blade intercepting the strike. Sparks of pure azure clashed against abyssal black, the impact splitting the ground beneath them. The collision sent a shockwave so violent it toppled broken pillars and hurled everyone else back.
Bolt's teeth clenched as his muscles strained. Even with his lightning roaring at full strength, even with every ounce of willpower burning in him… he was being overwhelmed.
"You're weak, Bolt," Kairos hissed, pressing down harder. "I've inherited Zelthar's storm, magnified by the Abyss. You're nothing but a child playing with sparks."
Bolt's eyes burned with fury, his own lightning flaring brighter, streaks of blue intertwining with threads of green wind, crimson flame, and even glimmers of earth's steadiness. He roared, forcing Kairos back a step. "Then I'll show you what a Warborn truly is!"
"Enough talk!" Kaori's voice rang out. Spirit energy flared from her body, luminous and ethereal. Her form shimmered, as if dozens of spirits moved in unison within her. She thrust her palm forward, a beam of pure spirit light surging at Kairos.
For the first time since his transformation, Kairos's expression shifted. His eyes narrowed as the blast collided with his chest, forcing him backward. The corrupted lightning screeched against the spirit energy, sparks of darkness and light exploding across the battlefield.
Valea seized the moment, weaving her celestial magic into the attack. Light cascaded like falling stars, merging with Kaori's spirit energy. Together, their powers forced Kairos a few paces back, his sneer deepening.
But then—he laughed.
"Good. GOOD! Show me more! The Abyss doesn't want your weakness—it wants your despair!"
His aura exploded outward, black lightning storming in every direction. The ground beneath Celestial Tempest cracked, the pressure suffocating, their knees nearly buckling under the sheer force.
Bolt's vision blurred, sweat dripping down his face as he tried to hold his ground. His friends, his family-in-arms—they were faltering. Every strike, every clash, proved one truth clearer than ever:
Kairos was no longer theirs to save.
He was their executioner.
And if they didn't stop him here… the Abyss would consume everything.