The square was silent. Dust hung in the air. Sight stood with Lily in his arms, his scarf drifting in the breeze, his fist clenched so tight it trembled.
Sight: Touch her again… and I'll kill you.
The words carried like thunder, calm yet sharp, and every villager felt the weight behind them.
The envoy tilted his head, his sneer twitching, though the flicker of fear in his eyes betrayed him.
Envoy: One boy… dares to threaten the Kingdom of Steel? [he chuckled thinly] Arlock. Kill him.
The mage's hood shifted slightly, the blue crystal in his scepter pulsing with light. His voice rolled calm and steady.
Arlock: As you command.
The soldiers moved first. Their spears snapped back together, shards fusing into long metallic points. The ground shook as they advanced, their movements sharp and perfect, like puppets pulled by invisible strings.
Villagers gasped.
Villager: Sight don't! They'll kill you!
But Sight didn't move until they were almost on him. Then, with a blur, he shifted.
CRACK!
His foot slammed into the earth, the shockwave bursting outward. Dust exploded beneath him as he ducked, his free arm sweeping. The nearest soldier was launched skyward, spear flying from his grasp.
Another thrust forward. Sight twisted, his scarf whipping as he slid past the strike, his shoulder crashing into the soldier's chestplate. The impact sent the armored figure skidding across the square, embedding into a wall with a thunderous clang.
Gasps tore from the villagers.
Villager: He's… fighting with one hand while holding the child!
Sight ducked under another spear, spun, and his heel connected with the back of a soldier's knee. Metal buckled with a sickening screech before he slammed an elbow into the helmet, dropping the armored figure instantly.
The envoy's smirk wavered.
Envoy: Tch… useless scrap!
Arlock: Stand down.
His voice silenced even the envoy. The soldiers froze. The mage stepped forward, water already swirling around the orb of his scepter. His calm tone cut through the tension.
Arlock: A brute, nothing more. But to challenge me with water nearby… unfortunate for you.
The orb flared. A whip of water lashed outward, striking like a serpent. Sight leapt aside, cradling Lily against his chest. The whip gouged a trench in the earth where he'd stood.
Another lash followed, then another, striking in rapid succession. Sight dodged each, the air hissing as the water snapped past. Then a surge burst upward a tidal wall collapsing toward him.
He skidded back, boots digging into the dirt as the wave crashed down. He shielded Lily with his arm, water hammering against his body, driving him several paces before he planted his feet and stopped it.
Gasps erupted.
Villager: He… he stopped it?!
Steam curled from Sight's scarf, his hair dripping, his eyes burning.
Arlock's lips curled faintly.
Arlock: Prison Water should have held you… but very well. I am the greatest mage of water the Kingdom has ever seen. No one, no peasant, no child surpasses me.
He thrust the scepter forward. The ground erupted, water spears forming in dozens, each one sharp as steel. They shot forward in a deadly volley.
Sight's body tensed. He shifted, weaving between them, his feet blurring across the square. But as the last spear closed, something changed.
Droplets rose.
Tiny beads lifted from the air, shimmering in the light. The water spear slowed then split, halved by an unseen force.
Sight blinked. The droplets responded by moving with him.
Arlock's composure cracked.
Arlock: No… Impossible. That's—
The villagers murmured in shock as the water swirled around Sight, obeying him, breaking the mage's spells apart before they touched him.
Villager: He… he's controlling the water…
Arlock's voice shook, disbelief breaking through his calm.
Arlock: N-no! That's my magic! My life! My everything! I trained for decades—
Another whip lashed out, this one larger, fueled by rage. Sight shifted Lily into his left arm, his right fist coiling back.
Sight: …Then watch closely.
He struck.
BOOOOOOM!
His fist tore through the whip, the water exploding outward in a storm of droplets. Rain burst across the square, pouring down in sheets as if the sky itself had broken.
The villagers shielded their faces, staring in awe.
Sight stepped forward, setting Lily gently into her mother's trembling arms. He brushed her hair once, his voice quiet.
Sight: Stay with her. I'll handle this.
Then he turned back to Arlock.
The mage's face twisted, his pride unraveling. He raised both hands, the scepter blazing. A massive sphere of water formed above, swirling, compressing, a dome ready to crush the boy beneath it.
Arlock: I AM THE STRONGEST! NO ONE SURPASSES MY WATER!
The dome fell.
Sight lifted his hand. The droplets in the air quivered, pulling, twisting, coiling into a spiral around his fist. He stepped into the strike—
—and punched.
CRAAAAASH!
The dome shattered like glass, exploding into a torrential downpour that drenched the entire square. Arlock's eyes went wide, his body lifted and thrown back, his scepter dimming as he crashed into the mud.
Silence.
Arlock groaned weakly, unable to rise.
The envoy stood pale, trembling, his sneer gone, his jeweled handkerchief falling from his fingers. He staggered back, his voice cracking.
Envoy: Y-you… a hydrokinetic?! Here?! This isn't… possible!
He turned, scrambling toward the ship.
Envoy: This isn't over! The King will hear of this, you'll all pay!
The soldiers dragged Arlock's limp body back up the ramp. The engines roared, the envoy's screams fading as the massive ship lifted into the sky, retreating.
The villagers stared in stunned silence. Then, slowly, voices rose.
Villager: He… he saved us…
Villager 2: Sight… defeated the Kingdom's mage…
But Sight didn't smile. He turned his gaze upward, droplets still clinging to his hand, dripping to the ground. His scarf swayed in the wind as he muttered under his breath.
Sight: …The Kingdom won't stop now.