Lucian surfaced from unconsciousness the way a drowning man breaks through ice—
not with breath,
not with relief,
but with a violent gasp that ripped through his chest.
Air filled his lungs in jagged bursts.
Sound returned next—
a dense, echoing roar that took several seconds to separate into distinct pieces:
Sera arguing.
Draven cursing.
Kaelis breathing hard.
The Warden's footsteps.
And the faint hum of his own Core flickering, stabilizing, recovering.
Lucian opened his eyes.
The world wavered once, twice, then settled into clarity.
He was lying on a long stone table inside one of the deeper infirmary chambers beneath the Arena Pits. Torches burned low on the walls, casting warm orange halos on the ceiling.
Kaelis sat beside him.
Not standing guard.
Not sharpening her blade.
Just sitting, elbows on her knees, fingers laced together, staring at the ground with her jaw tight.
She looked… tired.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
Lucian swallowed.
Everything hurt—
bones
skin
muscles
veins
even his breath felt too heavy for his ribs.
A dull burn radiated from his chest, pulsing with the slow throb of a wounded star.
**ASH-IGNITED STATUS: STABILIZING**
**CORE DAMAGE: MANAGEABLE**
**BURNOUT RISK: 63%**
Yeah. That checked out.
Lucian tried to sit up.
Pain shot through every nerve.
Kaelis's hand was on his shoulder instantly, pushing him back onto the table with careful pressure.
"Don't," she said softly.
Lucian blinked at her.
She didn't look angry.
She didn't look annoyed.
She looked scared.
"Kaelis…?"
Her jaw clenched.
"You almost died."
Lucian let out a shaky breath. "That's been the theme lately."
She didn't smile.
He didn't expect her to.
Her voice dropped to a whisper ragged at the edges.
"You don't understand. The Null Sequence wasn't something you survive. It's designed to destroy even Ascended beings. You—"
She broke off, staring at him, searching his face for an explanation he didn't have.
Lucian whispered, "I'm still here."
Kaelis exhaled, eyes closing for a moment.
"Yes," she murmured. "But not because of luck."
She looked at him again, this time with something deeper, more conflicted.
"Your Core chose to evolve. Even when you refused."
Lucian didn't respond.
He didn't have to.
Her words weren't accusation.
They were fear dressed as truth.
Sera Thorn stormed into the room.
Her hair was wild, face smudged with soot, daggers strapped across her back.
"You're awake!" she exclaimed, ignoring all medical restraint and throwing her arms around his shoulders.
Lucian groaned as fire shot down his spine.
"Sera—ribs—"
She jumped back instantly. "Sorry! Sorry. You look terrible."
"Thank you," he muttered.
Draven limped in right after her.
His forehead was bandaged.
One of his ribs was taped.
His knuckles were raw.
He looked Lucian over and scoffed.
"You look better than I expected."
Lucian raised an eyebrow. "That supposed to be comforting?"
Draven shrugged. "You're alive. So yes."
The Warden strode in next, expression grim.
He closed the door behind him.
"Sit," he commanded.
Sera was already standing.
Draven leaned on the wall.
Kaelis stayed seated beside Lucian.
Lucian looked at the Warden.
He had never seen the man's eyes colder.
"What happened today," the Warden began, "is the kind of thing the Arena world will feel for years."
Sera folded her arms. "The Hunter attacked _him_. That's the part that matters."
"No," the Warden corrected sharply. "The part that matters is that the Hunter recognized him."
Lucian felt the air thicken around those words.
Kaelis straightened. "He didn't ascend. He didn't awaken the Sovereign inside him."
"Yet," the Warden said. "Hunters don't attack until a threshold is crossed."
Lucian swallowed. "I didn't choose that threshold."
The Warden stepped forward, placing a small metal object on the table beside Lucian.
It was a shard-shaped tracker—
the same type Hunters used to mark prey.
Lucian's chest tightened.
"You removed it?" he asked.
The Warden nodded.
"It wasn't fully embedded yet. If it had been, you would not be breathing."
Sera shivered. "Those things are cursed."
The Warden ignored her and looked directly at Lucian.
"Do you understand the consequences?"
Lucian lifted his gaze.
"What consequences?"
"Hunter interference means the world has already felt your presence," the Warden said. "Arena Guilds will notice. Cults will notice. War Marshals will notice. Even the Emperor will feel the ripple."
Lucian clenched his fists.
"I didn't ask for any of this."
"No one said you did," the Warden replied. "But it is yours now regardless."
Kaelis stood.
"That's enough," she growled. "He just woke up. He doesn't need your fear list."
The Warden looked at her.
For the first time, his tone softened.
"Kaelis… you were trained to kill him if he ever returned. Are you forgetting your role?"
The room froze.
Sera stiffened.
Draven tensed.
Lucian's stomach dropped.
Kaelis's expression was unreadable.
"I remember my role," she said quietly. "I'm choosing my duty."
The Warden studied her for several long seconds.
Then nodded once.
Almost imperceptibly.
"Very well."
He turned back to Lucian.
"When your body stabilizes, you will train. Harder than before. Because Hunters don't abandon their prey."
Lucian swallowed.
Sera stepped closer. "We'll help you."
Draven grinned. "Break some bones together."
Kaelis simply rested a hand on the table beside him—
close, steadying, unwavering.
Lucian breathed deeply.
For the first time, the weight didn't crush him.
Not entirely.
Lucian exhaled and focused inward.
The world dimmed.
The Core brightened.
A soft, rhythmic pulse radiated through his chest, glowing faint green with threads of white ash-like sparks.
**ASH-IGNITED TIER — ACTIVE**
**NODE UNLOCKED: CORE IGNITE**
**COPY RATE: 2%**
**SECONDARY EFFECT: BURN DAMAGE ENABLED**
**NEW SKILL WINDOW AVAILABLE**
Lucian opened the window.
And froze.
Because a new line of text had appeared beneath the usual status:
**SOVEREIGN CONTAINMENT LEVEL: 96%**
**WARNING: EACH EVOLUTION LOWERS CONTAINMENT**
**NEXT BREAK: BEAST COLOSSEUM ARC**
Lucian's pulse quickened.
He whispered, "It's inside me… waiting…"
Kaelis looked at him sharply. "Lucian. What did you see?"
Lucian swallowed.
"Something I didn't want to."
The Core pulsed again.
A faint whisper echoed through it—
not words,
not memory,
more like gravity pulling him toward something ancient, enormous, and patient.
Sera placed a hand on his arm, grounding him.
"You're not alone," she said.
Draven nodded. "We're here."
Kaelis didn't speak.
She didn't need to.
Her presence was enough.
Lucian looked at all of them.
Then at his hands, still faintly glowing green.
Hunter.
Shards.
Sovereign.
Evolution.
Danger.
He didn't choose any of it.
But now he had to face all of it.
Lucian exhaled, voice steady.
"Tell me everything I need to know."
Kaelis's eyes softened.
"Tomorrow," she said gently. "Tonight, you heal."
Lucian shook his head.
"No. Now. Because the Hunter said something before it left."
Everyone looked up sharply.
"What did it say?" the Warden asked.
Lucian's voice dropped.
"It said…
'We will finish this when the **next shard** calls your name.'"
Silence filled the room.
Sera stepped back.
Draven cracked his knuckles.
Kaelis's hand tightened on the table.
The Warden inhaled slowly.
"Then the next shard is already waking."
Lucian sat up straighter despite the pain.
"Where?"
The Warden answered with a single word:
"**Beast Colosseum.**"
Lucian's Core pulsed violently.
Kaelis whispered:
"Then that's where we go next."
The Warden did not sit.
He walked toward the center of the chamber, hands clasped behind his back, boots echoing with a rhythm that carried authority—and tension.
"The Beast Colosseum," he began, "is not an arena. It is a prison for creatures that were never meant to live among men."
Sera crossed her arms. "Prison is generous. It's a slaughter cage."
Draven smirked. "Only if you're weak."
The Warden ignored them.
He turned to Lucian.
"Every Arena Continent has a single Colosseum," he said. "But ours is the oldest. It houses beasts touched by evolution's first experiments—some natural, some… not."
Lucian frowned. "Not?"
Kaelis answered quietly:
"Beasts altered by Sovereign energy. Your energy."
Lucian froze.
The Warden continued.
"The shard you carry—the Sovereign Fragment—resonated with a creature deep within the Colosseum. It will rise soon. When it does, your Core will feel it, and that resonance will pull every major Guild's attention."
Sera added, "Beast shards fetch fortunes. Wars have started over weaker fragments than the one you found."
Draven grinned. "Perfect place for a fight."
Lucian's pulse steadied. "Why would a shard appear in a beast?"
Kaelis rested her elbows on her knees.
"When the Sovereign fell, not all fragments landed in humans," she said. "Some embedded into beasts—warped them, enhanced them, cursed them. The strongest became Colosseum legends."
The Warden nodded.
"The creature that holds your next shard is known as the **Ash-Howler**. A Tier-3 apex beast with instinct-level Sovereign influence. It reacts violently to anyone with an unstable Core."
Lucian exhaled.
"So it's hunting me. Just like the Hunter."
"No," Sera said. "Worse. It will try to devour your Core to strengthen its own. A beast doesn't understand the difference between Sovereign energy and survival fuel."
Lucian tried to sit up straighter.
"How long do we have before it rises?"
The Warden's eyes were grave.
"Two days. At most."
The door slammed open.
A gust of cold air swept across the room.
Everyone turned.
A tall man entered—
armor of blackened steel,
a red cloak trailing behind him,
and a single beast-claw gauntlet etched with runes.
Lucian had never seen him before.
But Kaelis had.
Her expression darkened.
"…Marshal Corven."
He smiled—a razor-edged expression.
"Kaelis Dorne. Still protecting lost causes, I see."
Lucian's instincts prickled.
The new arrival carried presence.
Power.
Precision.
And something else—
**SCAN FAILED**
**NOT ENOUGH CORE STABILITY TO ANALYZE**
Lucian's stomach dropped slightly.
Corven's gaze slid over the room, lingering briefly on Sera and Draven, before settling firmly on Lucian.
"So this is the one who survived the Hunter."
Lucian stiffened.
"Who are you?"
"Marshal Corven of the Iron League," he said smoothly. "I oversee all shard-containment operations for this continent."
Sera muttered under her breath, "Which means he wants the shard for himself."
Corven heard.
He smiled again.
"I want what belongs to the League. And a Sovereign Shard is not something a condemned fighter should be allowed to hold."
Kaelis stepped between them before Lucian could respond.
"He's under _my_ charge."
Corven's eyes cooled.
"I read your report, Kaelis. Interesting interpretations. Selective memory. Omitted details."
Kaelis's grip tightened on her sword.
Lucian noticed.
And so did Corven.
He smirked. "Defensive. Curious."
The Warden cut in sharply.
"What business brings you here, Corven?"
Corven's gaze locked onto Lucian.
"I've come to claim the boy for the Iron League's custody. He is a danger to himself and to everyone around him. And now that a Hunter has marked him, the rules are clear: he must be delivered to higher authority."
Lucian stood—pain lancing through his body but his voice steady.
"I'm not going anywhere with you."
Corven chuckled. "You don't have a choice."
Kaelis moved again, blocking Corven's path completely.
"He does," she said.
Corven raised a brow.
"This is treason."
Kaelis didn't blink.
"This is judgment."
Draven stepped up beside her, cracking his knuckles.
Sera drew a dagger.
The Warden remained unreadable.
Corven surveyed them all—unbothered.
"The Beast Colosseum opens tomorrow night," he said. "The Ash-Howler rises within forty-eight hours. The shard will surface. And when it does, I will collect Lucian Raine—alive or dead."
Lucian met his gaze.
"You'll fail."
Corven grinned.
"We'll see."
He turned and walked out, cloak sweeping behind him like the final note of a war song.
Silence settled after Corven left.
Draven broke it first.
"I don't like him."
Sera snorted. "No one likes him."
Kaelis looked at Lucian, expression unreadable.
"He will be waiting for you at the Colosseum."
Lucian didn't hesitate.
"Then I'll be ready."
Kaelis stepped closer.
"You barely survived the Hunter. You are not ready for Corven."
Lucian exhaled.
"Maybe not. But I'm going anyway."
The Core pulsed in agreement.
The Warden nodded slowly.
"Then we prepare."
Sera approached with a small box. "I brought something for you."
Lucian frowned. "What is it?"
She opened the lid.
Inside lay a thin metal clasp shaped like a broken fang, etched with glowing ash lines.
"A Core Stabilizer," she said. "Temporary. Helps reduce burnout."
Lucian touched it.
It vibrated faintly against his fingers.
Draven tossed him a pair of reinforced gauntlets. "And these. So you don't break every bone in your hands next time."
Kaelis placed her hand lightly on the table beside him.
"And I'll train you myself."
Lucian blinked. "…Why?"
Kaelis held his gaze.
"Because the Beast Colosseum doesn't test strength," she said. "It tests will. And yours is fractured."
Lucian absorbed that.
Slowly, he nodded.
"When do we start?"
Kaelis stepped back and lifted her blade.
"Now."
Lucian stood, Core flickering, pain lacing every movement.
But he stood.
Because the shard was waiting.
The Hunter was watching.
Corven was hunting.
And his own past was waking.
He looked at all of them.
And said the only words that mattered:
"Let's go."
Kaelis didn't lead Lucian to a training hall.
She led him deeper—
past the recovery chambers,
past the locked corridors used for condemned fighters,
past rusted doors with claw marks from beasts that had once been held there.
The air grew colder.
Darker.
Heavier.
Lucian recognized the place instantly.
"The decommissioned arena pit," he said.
Kaelis nodded. "No one comes down here. Perfect for what we need."
The space opened into a massive underground chamber—
a circular arena half-filled with collapsed stone pillars,
broken walls,
and sand stained from battles forgotten long ago.
Draven whistled.
"Looks like every fighter who died here still haunts the place."
Sera elbowed him.
"Can you not jinx things?"
Lucian stepped into the center.
His Core pulsed—slow, steady, stabilizing.
Kaelis walked in front of him and drew her blade.
"We start simple."
Lucian nodded.
"What do you need me to do?"
Kaelis raised her sword and pointed the tip at his chest.
"Survive."
She attacked.
Not with killing intent—
but without mercy.
Lucian barely dodged.
Her blade sliced across his sleeve, leaving a scorch where the metal resonated against his unstable Core.
"Faster," she said.
Lucian dodged again—rolling behind a pillar fragment.
Kaelis kicked the stone.
It shattered.
Lucian's eyes widened. "Was that necessary?"
"Yes," she said. "Again."
She rushed him.
Lucian activated **CORE IGNITE**, and green flame flickered along his arm—
but Kaelis didn't give him time to steady the energy.
She forced him to move before he was ready—
to balance the flame while dodging blows,
to stabilize his Core while managing breath,
to adapt while under overwhelming pressure.
Lucian stumbled, caught himself, then parried with a burning palm—
Kaelis twisted around the attack, blade grazing his ribs.
Pain flared.
"Your flame is reactive," she said. "Uncontrolled. You let it answer danger instead of guiding it."
Lucian grit his teeth. "It's new."
"And so is the threat you face."
She attacked again.
Lucian blocked with his forearm.
The flame sputtered—then aligned into a clean arc across his skin.
It wasn't perfect.
But it was intentional.
Kaelis nodded once.
"Better."
Lucian exhaled.
The training continued—
relentless, rhythmic, merciless.
Kaelis drove him to the edge of collapse, then forced him to hold himself together anyway.
Sera occasionally shouted corrections from the sidelines.
Draven occasionally mocked his footwork.
The Warden, silent, watched everything with a tactician's eye.
Finally—
Lucian's flame stabilized.
Not a wild surge.
Not an accidental burst.
A steady, burning aura.
Kaelis lowered her blade.
"There," she said. "That is the beginning of control."
Lucian wiped sweat from his forehead. "Beginning?"
Kaelis nodded.
"You're still unstable. But now you can fight without tearing your body apart."
Lucian breathed heavily.
"What's next?"
Kaelis looked toward the corridor leading out of the pit.
"The Colosseum. We leave at dawn."
Far above them—
far from their hidden training chamber—
another world stirred.
The Beast Colosseum.
A towering structure carved into the black stone of the arena cliffs, its outer walls covered in chains thicker than tree trunks, its entrance sealed with iron gates etched with beast runes.
Inside—
in the deepest cell—
the Ash-Howler slept.
A massive creature, fur the color of smoldering ash, bones glowing faintly beneath its skin like molten cracks in earth.
Its breathing was heavy.
Disturbed.
Growing unstable.
A shard of green-white crystal pulsed embedded in its throat—resonating faster with every exhale.
A Beast Handler—a grizzled veteran with scars across both arms—walked past the cell.
He paused, frowning.
The beast stirred.
The Handler stepped back.
Chains groaned.
The Ash-Howler lifted its head.
Its eyes opened.
Twin spheres of burning green fire.
The Handler swallowed.
"…Oh no."
The beast rose—
slowly,
powerfully,
inevitably.
Its chest expanded.
Ash drifted from its fur.
The shard glowed brighter.
The beast let out a low growl—
a sound not meant for mortal ears.
A sound tied to Sovereign energy.
The Handler dropped his torch and ran.
Back in the underground pit, the Warden's assistant sprinted in, breathless.
"Warden—urgent message from the Colosseum!"
Everyone turned.
"What happened?" the Warden demanded.
"The Ash-Howler has awakened—early."
Kaelis straightened.
Draven grinned.
Sera paled.
Lucian's Core pulsed violently.
**SHARD RESONANCE DETECTED**
**DISTANCE: MODERATE**
**INTENSITY: RISING**
He pushed himself to his feet, pain forgotten.
"When?"
The assistant swallowed.
"Now. It's awake now."
Lucian felt the Core shake inside him.
Kaelis grabbed her sword.
"We leave immediately."
Draven cracked his neck. "Finally."
Sera fastened her daggers. "This is going to be bad."
The Warden stepped in front of Lucian.
"Listen to me.
When the shard reacts, the beast becomes stronger.
And your presence will trigger its rage.
If you lose control—"
Lucian cut him off quietly.
"I won't."
The Warden studied him… and nodded once.
"Then let's move."
Kaelis stepped to Lucian's side.
"Stay close to me in the opening round."
Lucian nodded.
"I will."
The group gathered their weapons and gear, stepping out of the pit into the torchlit corridors.
Behind them, the air trembled with distant roars.
Ahead of them, the Beast Colosseum waited.
Lucian knew two things with absolute clarity:
**The shard was calling him.**
And something inside him was calling back.
The path to the Beast Colosseum cut through the lower war tunnels—long stone corridors carved centuries ago, reinforced with rusted iron beams and chains thicker than a man's torso. The deeper they walked, the louder the world felt.
Not with footsteps.
Not with voices.
But with the rhythmic tremor of something enormous moving beneath the arena floors.
The Ash-Howler.
Lucian's Core thrummed in uneasy harmony.
Each step he took, the pulse grew sharper.
**SHARD RESONANCE: 32%… 37%… 41%**
**WARNING: RESONANCE MAY TRIGGER CORE OVERHEAT**
**EMOTIONAL STATE INFLUENCE: HIGH**
He clenched his hands.
His fingers tingled with green flame that refused to stay still, dancing under the skin like wildfire in a storm.
Kaelis walked beside him, matching his pace without glancing directly at him.
She didn't have to.
She could feel his instability.
"Lucian," she murmured, low enough for only him to hear, "control your breathing."
He tried.
Inhale.
Exhale.
But the shard's pull only grew stronger.
Sera jogged up from behind, eyes flicking between them.
"How bad is it?"
Lucian opened his mouth—
then winced as a spike of heat surged up his spine.
Kaelis answered for him.
"Manageable. For now."
Draven snorted. "He's burning from the inside. That's not manageable."
"Draven," Sera warned.
"What? I'm being honest."
Kaelis shot him a glare that could bend metal.
Draven wisely shut up.
The Warden led the group, stopping occasionally to listen to the distant tremors.
"Hurry," he said. "If the beast breaks containment before we arrive, the Colosseum handlers will panic. And panic means unnecessary death."
Lucian swallowed, the heat in his chest rising again.
"I can feel it…" he whispered.
Kaelis turned to him. "What does it feel like?"
Lucian closed his eyes.
"…like something calling me.
Like I'm supposed to answer."
Kaelis's jaw tightened.
"That's the Sovereign resonance. Ignore it."
"I'm trying."
"You must," she said sharply. "Because the moment you answer? You won't be Lucian anymore."
He looked at her—
and in her eyes, he saw fear she didn't bother hiding.
Not fear **for** him.
Fear **of losing him**.
The tunnel opened into a massive antechamber, lit by hundreds of torches and dominated by a colossal gate carved from iron-black stone.
Screeches echoed beyond it—
long, drawn-out wails
that did not belong to any natural creature.
Sera flinched. "That's not its roar. That's… something else."
"It's the handling teams," Kaelis said quietly. "They're dying."
The Warden approached the gate and placed a hand over the central seal—an emblem shaped like a beast's eye.
It pulsed faintly, reacting to his authority.
The gate slowly unlocked with a series of metallic groans.
Behind the door, the arena floor shook violently.
**SHARD RESONANCE: 66%… 70%… 73%**
Lucian doubled over as heat surged in his veins.
"Lucian?" Kaelis grabbed his shoulder. "Stay here—don't push forward."
But Lucian felt something else—
a pull so strong it felt like gravity bending toward the Colosseum's center.
"I… can't… it's dragging me—"
"Lucian!" Kaelis whispered harshly. "Look at me!"
He tried.
But the shard's call ripped through him like a hook buried in his ribs.
The Warden's eyes widened.
"Kaelis," he said urgently, "you must restrain him."
"I know," she snapped.
Kaelis stepped in front of Lucian, placing both hands on his face, forcing his gaze to meet hers.
"Lucian. Listen. The shard knows you're close. But you're stronger than its pull."
Lucian clenched his jaw.
"I'm not sure I am."
Kaelis's expression softened for the briefest moment—
a break in the armor she kept so carefully welded shut.
"You are," she whispered.
Lucian's Core stuttered—
**RESISTANCE BOOST: +12%**
**ANCHOR RECOGNIZED — KAELIS DORNE**
—but only for an instant.
Because the next roar that shook the Colosseum tore through him like lightning.
The Ash-Howler had fully awakened.
The main gate shuddered violently as something on the other side slammed into it.
Again.
And again.
Dust fell from the stone ceiling.
Chains rattled overhead like warning bells.
Sera drew both daggers.
Draven cracked his neck with anticipation.
The Warden extended a defensive barrier sigil.
Kaelis drew her sword.
Lucian tried to steady himself—
but the Core reacted first.
**SHARD PROXIMITY: CRITICAL**
**DANGER CLASS: UNSTABLE BEAST EVOLUTION**
**USER INSTINCT: ENGAGE**
His vision blurred.
He stumbled forward.
Kaelis grabbed him—
but this time he pulled free.
"Lucian!" she shouted.
"I… I have to—"
He didn't finish.
Because the gate—
**EXPLODED.**
A tsunami of dust, iron shards, and shattered stone blasted outward, forcing everyone to brace as debris tore across the antechamber.
Lucian shielded his face.
Draven ducked.
Sera rolled behind a pillar.
The Warden held his shield sigil as it flickered under the force.
Kaelis stood in front of Lucian, sword raised.
And through the settling dust—
the beast stepped out.
The Ash-Howler was massive.
Three stories tall.
A body built of muscle and charred fur.
Bones glowed through its skin like molten cracks in volcanic rock.
Its claws were long enough to shred steel.
And lodged in its throat—
A Sovereign Shard.
Glowing.
Pulsing.
Calling.
Its eyes burned green, the same color as Lucian's Ignition flame.
It inhaled slowly, chest swelling—
and ash drifted from its fur in soft waves.
Sera whispered, "Gods…"
Even Draven stared in awe.
Kaelis didn't blink.
Her grip tightened on her blade.
Her expression sharp as a drawn bowstring.
The beast turned its head—
and its glowing eyes locked onto Lucian.
The shard pulsed.
Lucian's Core convulsed.
**DIRECT RESONANCE MATCH: 91%**
**BEAST TARGET: LUCIFER'S ECHO**
**ENGAGEMENT INEVITABLE**
Lucian froze.
The beast stepped forward.
One step.
Two.
Three.
Kaelis shouted, "Lucian—get BACK—!"
But Lucian couldn't move.
The pull was too strong.
The Ash-Howler opened its jaws—
its breath a cloud of burning ash—
and unleashed its first attack.
A howl.
Not a sound—
a force.
A wall of raw Sovereign pressure that tore through the chamber like a storm of blades.
Stone cracked.
Metal bent.
Air rippled.
Draven was thrown backward like a ragdoll.
Sera slammed into a pillar, coughing blood.
The Warden's barrier shattered instantly.
Kaelis shielded Lucian with her entire body, boots digging trenches into the floor.
Lucian screamed as the howling force hit him—
because the Core inside him answered.
Not with fear.
Not with rejection.
But with recognition.
**SOVEREIGN ECHO RESPONSE: ACTIVE**
**IGNITION FLAME STABILIZATION: FORCED**
**EVOLUTION PRESSURE: EXTREME**
Lucian fell to his knees, clutching his chest.
Kaelis grabbed him desperately.
"Lucian—FOCUS ON MY VOICE—DON'T LET IT IN—!"
But the beast's howl drilled into his skull, tearing through his thoughts, dragging buried instincts to the surface—
Fire.
Hunger.
Dominion.
Evolution.
The shard in the beast's throat blazed bright.
Lucian's Core blazed in answer.
And something inside him whispered:
**"Take it."**
Lucian's eyes widened.
Kaelis shook him hard.
"Lucian—LOOK AT ME—DON'T LISTEN TO IT—DON'T YOU DARE—!"
The Ash-Howler inhaled again.
Preparing its second howl.
Lucian's flames erupted around him—
wild, unstable, burning the ground beneath his knees.
Draven screamed, "GET HIM OUT OF THERE—!"
Sera yelled, "KAELIS—MOVE—NOW—!"
Kaelis didn't move.
She held Lucian's face, shouting over the roar of ash and flame:
"YOU ARE NOT THE SOVEREIGN—YOU ARE LUCIAN RAINE—AND YOU WILL **NOT** TAKE THAT SHARD!"
Lucian looked at her—
and the beast unleashed its second howl.
The world turned white.
The second howl hit like a living shockwave.
Not sound.
Not force.
A **command**.
An ancient instinct encoded in the Sovereign Shard itself:
**Submit.
Ascend.
Return.**
Lucian felt his Core buckle.
The pressure crushed his ribs from the inside, igniting every nerve with molten fire. His vision blurred into streaks of green and white. His spine felt splintered. His breath refused to move.
**CORE OVERLOAD: 92%**
**DANGER: EVOLUTION BREACH APPROACHING**
**CONTAINMENT: FAILING**
Lucian choked on a scream.
Kaelis didn't let go.
She held him, anchoring him with sheer force of will, her fingers digging into his shoulders hard enough to leave bruises.
"Lucian—LOOK AT ME!"
He couldn't.
His consciousness flickered.
A voice—not his—echoed through him.
**"You were not born to kneel.
Take the shard.
Become again."**
His flames erupted in a spiraling inferno, swirling violently around his body.
Sera shielded her face. "He's going to blow—!"
Draven staggered to his feet, coughing blood. "Then we stop him!"
"You can't!" Sera shouted. "Not when the shard is calling!"
The Warden slammed a stabilization sigil into the ground, but it overloaded instantly—shattering in a burst of sparks.
The beast's howl intensified.
Lucian's eyes began to glow—
Not green.
Not human.
Something else entirely.
Kaelis's breath caught.
"No. No. NO—!"
She grabbed his jaw, forcing him to meet her gaze.
"Lucian Raine—LISTEN TO ME.
You are not the Sovereign.
You are not the monster you were.
You are YOU."
His vision sharpened—
And he finally saw her.
Kaelis.
Standing against a beast's roar.
Against the Sovereign's echo.
Against fate itself.
The Core stuttered.
**ANCHOR DETECTED**
**STABILIZATION: +18%**
**IGNITION FLAME—TEMPORARILY CONTAINED**
But the shard's pull didn't stop.
It intensified.
Lucian screamed as the world fractured into blinding white.
Kaelis ripped her blade from its sheath.
"Cover your ears!" she shouted.
Sera dove behind a pillar.
Draven rolled across the floor.
The Warden dropped to one knee, reinforcing his shield spell.
Kaelis faced the beast.
The Ash-Howler inhaled for a **third** howl—
A lethal one.
A Core-shattering one.
A Sovereign-summoning one.
Kaelis didn't hesitate.
She whispered the forbidden words:
**"Marshal Art—
SILENCING HALO."**
Light erupted from her blade.
A ring of silver energy blasted outward—
a perfect circle expanding in every direction.
The Ash-Howler's roar was severed mid-howl.
Pain ripped through its throat.
Ash burst from its jaws like volcanic smoke.
The ground split beneath its claws.
Lucian collapsed forward, sucking in breath he didn't know he'd lost.
The beast stumbled—
its resonance briefly disrupted.
Kaelis screamed as blood erupted from her nose and ears.
Using that art cost her dearly.
Lucian caught her as she fell toward him.
"Kaelis—!"
She wiped the blood quickly. "Still… alive…"
The Ash-Howler reeled back, shaking its head violently.
The Shard in its throat pulsed in chaotic rhythm.
Sera stared in disbelief.
"Kaelis—that technique—it's banned—"
Kaelis wiped more blood from her chin. "Good thing I don't follow rules."
Draven whooped. "I like you."
She ignored him completely.
The Ash-Howler steadied itself.
Its glowing eyes fixated on Lucian—
locking onto the unstable Ash-Ignited Core.
The beast lowered its stance.
Muscles tensed.
Claws dug into stone.
Its chest expanded.
Lucian knew what was coming.
"Everyone MOVE!" he shouted.
The beast launched forward.
The entire Colosseum shook under the force.
It moved faster than anything its size should—
a blur of ash and muscle and Sovereign resonance.
Lucian grabbed Kaelis and rolled just as the beast's claws obliterated the floor where they'd stood.
Draven leapt with a roar, smashing a chain-fist into the beast's flank—
But the Ash-Howler barely flinched.
It backhanded him across the arena like a toy.
Draven slammed into a wall hard enough to crack the stone.
"Still… good…" he wheezed.
Sera blinked behind the beast—daggers flashing—
but the creature twisted, slashing its tail in a sweeping arc.
Sera flew into a pillar with a grunt.
The Warden summoned three defensive barriers—
The beast shattered all three in one charge.
Lucian forced himself to his feet, flames erupting around his arms.
He faced the beast.
It faced him.
The shard pulsed.
His Core pulsed back.
He felt the Sovereign echo rising inside him—
the hunger,
the instinct,
the right to command evolution itself.
Kaelis grabbed his wrist.
"Lucian—STOP."
Her voice was raw.
Frantic.
Terrified.
"If you use Ignite at full output right now… you won't come back."
Lucian swallowed.
The Ash-Howler howled again—
a low, building rumble.
Lucian steadied himself.
"I don't have a choice."
"Yes, you do!" Kaelis shouted. "Fight as Lucian. NOT as the Sovereign."
Lucian's flames flared—
wild, unstable, roaring with pressure.
The beast crouched again.
Preparing to kill.
Lucian raised his hand.
Kaelis grabbed his arm with both hands.
"Lucian—LOOK AT ME."
Lucian turned his head.
And Kaelis whispered the words that stopped him cold:
"I won't lose you twice."
His heart lurched.
The beast roared.
Lucian faced it again.
And made his choice.
Lucian stepped forward.
One step.
Another.
Another.
The beast charged.
His Core surged.
His flames raged.
But he didn't ignite fully—not the Sovereign way.
Not with ascension.
Not with evolution's hunger.
He drew the fire inward instead—
containing it in a tight, trembling sphere at his core.
Kaelis's eyes widened.
"Lucian… what are you doing?"
Lucian whispered:
"Choosing who I become."
The Ash-Howler leapt—
a mountain of claws and ash descending upon him.
Lucian thrust his hand forward.
Not to dominate.
Not to ascend.
To **redirect.**
Green fire erupted—
not in a spear,
not in a blast,
but in a controlled arc that struck the ground beneath the beast—
shifting its movement,
twisting its angle,
forcing it to crash sideways instead of crushing him.
The impact shook the arena.
Dust erupted.
Kaelis stared at him.
The Warden stared.
Even Draven blinked.
Lucian collapsed to one knee, clutching his chest.
**CORE OVERHEAT: 87%**
**IGNITION OUTPUT: CRITICAL**
**USER—CONSCIOUSNESS AT RISK**
But he was still Lucian.
And the Sovereign echo stayed contained.
Kaelis knelt beside him.
"You did it," she whispered.
Lucian breathed hard.
"No. I bought us a moment."
Because the beast was already rising again.
Its eyes blazing brighter.
Its hunger sharpening.
And Lucian's Core whispered:
**"One more step, and you won't stop the next evolution."**
He exhaled shakily.
"Then I'll stop it another way."
Kaelis looked at him sharply.
"Lucian—what are you planning?"
He stood.
Barely.
Pain radiated through every bone, every muscle, every part of him that dared to fight the shard's call.
He stared at the beast.
And whispered:
"I'm going to take that shard."
Kaelis grabbed his arm, eyes wide.
"Lucian—NO—
You take it, you risk awakening—
You risk becoming—"
Lucian looked at her.
Firm.
Steady.
Not Sovereign.
"Kaelis…
I'm not becoming him."
The beast roared.
Lucian steadied himself.
The next move would define everything that followed.
The Beast Colosseum would never be the same.
His Core would never be the same.
And neither would the world.