Maya stepped beyond Walid into the Eye's iris — inside the Triangle, where reality folded like burning papyrus. Sigils rotated endlessly, whispering in tongues of clay tablets. Her face pale, eyes glowing faintly, Whispercall translated: "Sumer… the first covenant." Dust cleared, revealing a blade buried in obsidian stone. The sword hummed like thunder, inscriptions glowing. Not all thrones are chairs. Some thrones are swords.
She approached, light from the sword searing the ground into rivers of glyphs. Her fingers trembled as she reached for the hilt — scorching her hand. Whispercall boomed: "Only the Chosen One may wield." Maya gasped: "The five pillars… plus the dark flame…" The sword knew its heir. She was not it.
The Eye's iris showed visions — warriors throughout history failing to lift the Sumerian Sword. Corpses dissolved into the stone beneath it. Maya whispered, "Justice… carved in despair." She remembered Lacolone, scarlet-white aura bending fate. Her tears glowed: "He mastered all five pillars… and holds the shadow." Her hope coiled back to him.
Jessica stumbled inside the Triangle, bleeding heavily from her cracked side. She coughed blood but raised her pistol. "You can't lift it… but Lacolone can." Maya protested: "You're too hurt!" Jessica grimaced: "Then I'll hurt them back until you bring him." Her defiance was louder than her wounds.
Outside the Eye, Elito halted mid-motion — sensing Maya's pull toward destiny. He smiled faintly: "The sword… it stirs again." The Kid tilted his knives, intrigued: "So the heir steps forward?" The four Sovereigns shifted uneasily. Walid shouted to Maya: "What did you find?!" The hidden relic changed the battlefield before being touched.
Maria the Murder Mechina descended again, pistols blazing toward Maya. Jessica leaped in the way, deflecting bullets with Thunderbrand-charged shots. Sparks and blood scattered from her side wound. Maria smirked: "Still dancing, one-armed angel?" Jessica gritted her teeth: "One arm's enough to buy a future." Her bullets were promises Maya needed fulfilled.
Maya channeled Whispercall deeper, veins glowing scarlet-white, listening for the Sword's will. Her wings crackled, threads of starlight unraveling. The sword whispered: "Bring me the hand of five. Bring me the shadow that bends." Maya gasped, falling to her knees. Jessica blocked another volley: "Go! Find him!" The sword's hunger nearly crushed her — but the message was clear.
Maya saw Lacolone's past battles — wielding each Pillar, bleeding scarlet-white. She remembered his scarred hands closing her wounds. A tear dripped onto the blade, sizzling into smoke. The sword whispered: "He will not just wield me. He will end me." Maya whispered: "Lacolone… you are the Chosen." Her certainty hardened into steel.
Outside, Lacolone dueled Basim, swords clashing in a spiral of sparks. Valgor tackled Thano, fists bleeding. Walid deflected chains of the Blood Artist. Elito glanced toward the Eye, smiling: "She found it." The Kid's grin sharpened: "So the test begins." The Eye was not hidden — it was a stage.
Maya burst from the Triangle, aura cracked, eyes glowing faintly. She screamed Lacolone's name across the battlefield. Her voice echoed inside his skull, Whispercall carrying the vision of the Sword. Basim recoiled, knives faltering as Lacolone's aura spiked. "The Sword… is calling me," he whispered. Prophecy traveled not by words, but by bonds.
Back inside the Eye, Jessica faced Maria alone. Gunfire blazed, ricocheting in lightning arcs. She spat blood, laughing: "I'll stall you till my last bullet." Maria twirled midair, but one shot grazed her mask. Jessica whispered: "Maya, hurry…" Her heartbeat measured the seconds left.
Lacolone pushed Basim back, Riftquake blasting with each step. He locked eyes with Maya across the collapsing arena. His blade vibrated, resonating with the Sword within the Eye. Valgor shouted: "Go! We'll hold them!" Walid cut a path open. The battlefield parted for destiny.
Elito folded his arms, Eclipse Blade humming faintly. "At last, the heir approaches," he murmured. The Kid frowned: "And if he claims it?" Elito's shadow lengthened unnaturally: "Then the true game begins." The four Sovereigns stirred, torn between striking and observing. Kings watched as kings were born.
Maya collapsed into Lacolone's arms, gasping: "The sword… inside…" Her wings sputtered, feathers burning into ash. "Only you can pull it," she whispered. Lacolone steadied her, fire in his eyes. He nodded once: "Then I will." Her strength carried the torch. His hand would lift it.
Inside the Eye, Jessica dropped to one knee, Maria's bullet tearing through her shoulder. Her pistol shattered. She smiled faintly, whispering: "Not bad for one arm…" Maya felt the bond snap, gasping. Maria stood over her, mask cracked, fury in her grin. Her fire dimmed — but her delay had worked.
Lacolone strode into the Triangle, aura flaring scarlet-white-dark. The Sword vibrated, inscriptions blazing as if recognizing him. He reached for the hilt. The ground shook; the Eye dilated, thunder booming. Maya whispered: "He's the one…" The chosen hand touched justice.
The Sumerian Sword exploded in light, chains unraveling across the Triangle. Lacolone gripped it with both hands, muscles tearing under the strain. His aura fused — the five Pillars spiraling, the shadow flaring. The sword screamed as if alive, yet did not reject him. The Eye's iris trembled: "The heir awakens." For the first time, the Sword bent — but did not break.
Splash: Lacolone stands in the center of the Eye, gripping the Sumerian Sword, its blade glowing with five intertwined Pillars and a core of shadow. Maya kneels nearby, hands clasped. Jessica's body lies bleeding at the edge of the Triangle. The four Sovereigns recoil. Elito grins, raising the Eclipse Blade.
"The Chosen had claimed the weapon. But in the 33rd Degree, claiming meant war without end."