Chapter 32: Hearts and Fragments
The air of the shattered realm trembled as Kazuki stood at the edge of a scar in reality. His hand rested lightly on the hilt of his legendary weapon, the one that had become a second pulse to his soul. Behind him, Aria placed a hand on his shoulder, her touch grounding him even as the void around them threatened to tear all meaning away.
The fragments of Velzaryth's essence were growing bolder. Each one they faced carried not only destructive force, but whispers, riddles, and shadows that pressed into Kazuki's mind. Tonight, another had awakened.
A low hum, like a thousand heartbeats layered together, rolled through the fractured plain. The ground rippled like liquid glass, reflections of Kazuki and his allies twisting into grotesque versions of themselves. From the warped mirror-surface rose the fragment — a towering silhouette of broken light and shadow, its form constantly shifting, as if it could not decide whether to exist or vanish.
"Another one…" Riku muttered, tightening his grip on his glaive.
"No," Kazuki whispered, narrowing his eyes. "This one is different. It's… calling to me."
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The Battle Unleashed
The fragment struck first. Beams of light like spears ripped from its form and tore through the battlefield. Kazuki leapt, the ground cracking beneath his departure, his blade igniting in a surge of golden-white. He intercepted one of the beams midair, slashing it into particles before it could reach Aria.
"Aria, stay behind me!" Kazuki barked, though his voice carried more desperation than command.
But Aria did not retreat. She raised her own seal, a shimmering lattice of violet magic, deflecting another strike. "If you fall, Kazuki, then I fall too. Don't forget that."
Her words fueled him. His strikes grew sharper, fueled not only by the rage of combat but by the unshakable truth of her presence. Every swing carved trails of fire across the darkness. Still, the fragment regenerated endlessly, each wound unraveling into another illusion, another storm of light and shadow.
Riku and Mei joined the fray, flanking the monstrous figure. Blows rang out, explosions of energy colliding, but even together they struggled. The fragment laughed — a sound that wasn't sound at all, but rather an echo inside their very bones.
"You are incomplete," it whispered in Kazuki's mind. "You fight me, yet you are me. Deny yourself, and you will never win."
Kazuki's blade faltered for a moment. The whispers pierced into him, memories flooding back — the training, the void, the rage he carried, the way his powers never seemed fully his own.
But then, a different memory burned brighter: Aria's smile, the way she held him when he doubted, the promise they shared in blood and tears.
Kazuki roared, a sound that shook the mirrored plain itself. His aura ignited into a storm of golden fire threaded with violet — Aria's energy intertwined with his. He surged forward, his weapon glowing like the first dawn.
With one mighty strike, he cut through the fragment, splitting its core in two.
The battlefield went silent. The mirror surface cracked and dissolved into nothingness.
The fragment's dying voice echoed in the air:
"You cannot kill what is already part of you… Kazuki…"
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The Comfort After Battle
The silence that followed felt heavier than the clash itself. Kazuki staggered, his chest heaving. His weapon dimmed as if it too were exhausted.
Aria rushed to him, catching him before he fell. Her arms wrapped around him tightly, her forehead pressing against his shoulder.
"You did it…" she whispered, though her voice trembled. "But I felt it. That thing was speaking to you. What did it mean?"
Kazuki's hand lingered on her back, gripping her as though she were the last solid thing in a dissolving world. He wanted to lie, to say it meant nothing — but Aria deserved the truth.
"It… said it's part of me," Kazuki admitted, his voice low. "That every fragment of Velzaryth is bound to my soul. Maybe… maybe I was never meant to destroy them. Maybe I'm meant to… become them."
Aria pulled back just enough to look into his eyes, hers fierce despite the fear glimmering within them.
"No," she said firmly, cupping his face with both hands. "You are not Velzaryth. You are Kazuki. My Kazuki. Don't let their poison rewrite who you are."
Her lips met his then, sudden and desperate, as though she feared the void might snatch him away if she let him breathe alone. The kiss wasn't soft — it was fire, defiance, and a promise all at once.
Kazuki clutched her close, his arms tightening as though her heartbeat was the only rhythm keeping him alive. When they broke apart, his forehead rested against hers.
"I needed that," he admitted hoarsely.
"You'll always have that," she replied, her voice steady now. "As long as I'm here."
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The Revelation
Later, as the group gathered around the fading remnants of the battlefield, Mei inspected the shard left behind by the fragment. It pulsed faintly, a piece of light that didn't belong to this world.
"This isn't just a piece of Velzaryth," she murmured. "It's… a memory. A piece of his will."
Kazuki reached out, his hand trembling as he touched the shard. In an instant, visions seared into his mind — Velzaryth standing in a sea of stars, speaking to an unseen force.
"…The boy will inherit what I could not finish. My failure… will be his choice."
Kazuki tore his hand away, gasping.
"He planned this," he muttered. "Every fragment we face — it's part of a design. He's not dead, Aria. He's waiting for me to either fall or become him."
The shard dissolved in his palm, leaving only the chill of the truth behind.
Aria squeezed his hand, her warmth cutting through the dread. "Then we'll face it together. Even if Velzaryth himself stands before us, he won't take you from me."
Kazuki nodded slowly, but deep inside, he couldn't shake the words of the fragment: You cannot kill what is already part of you…
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The Cliffhanger
The group set up camp on the edge of the shattered plain, the void sky swirling with fractured stars above them. As Kazuki lay awake, Aria curled against his chest, he stared into the sky and wondered how many more fragments awaited.
That was when the stars blinked.
No — not blinked. Something vast and black moved across them, a shape so massive it swallowed entire constellations. From its form radiated whispers louder than any fragment's — a voice that shook the soul.
"Kazuki…" it breathed, the sound filling the night like a storm. "Return to me."
Kazuki froze, his arms tightening around Aria as the voice vibrated through him, a command, a plea, a promise all at once.
The shadow in the sky shifted closer, and Kazuki realized with horror — it was not just a fragment.
It was Velzaryth himself.
And he was waking up.
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