The Silverstaff Institute Arc
Episode 10: Training Begins, Part 3
The Hero of Death Arrives
Two hours before Wander Nozu and Astraea crossed blades in the Molten Expanse, another presence was traveling toward the Southern Region.
A red-haired woman tore across the sky.
Clouds split around her.
The pressure from her movement scattered storms and sent lesser flying creatures diving toward the ground for safety.
Her crimson hair streamed behind her like a burning banner. Golden-red eyes scanned the world below while her draconic senses stretched across countries.
Then she felt it.
A familiar presence.
Weak.
Injured.
But alive.
The woman's eyes widened.
Her lips slowly curved into a smile.
"So you're still alive…"
The air around her ignited.
"…my dear son."
Queen Himeko Pendragon accelerated.
The sky thundered behind her.
Several Weeks Earlier
Yin Pendragon's bedroom had become unbearably quiet.
The room still contained his books.
His unfinished notes.
Training clothes tossed over furniture.
A wooden sword he had broken as a child and refused to throw away.
Everything remained exactly where he had left it.
Only Yin was missing.
Himeko sat upon the edge of his bed.
Her tall frame trembled beneath the weight of her sobbing. Long red hair covered part of her face while tears soaked into the blankets.
Her grief could be heard throughout the northern wing of Night Moon Castle.
Several maids stood outside the chamber.
None dared enter.
"I want my son back…"
Himeko's voice cracked.
One maid finally stepped inside and bowed.
"My Queen, the search parties are still looking."
"They've been looking for a month!"
The room shook beneath Himeko's aura.
The maid lowered herself further.
Himeko immediately restrained the pressure.
She did not want to frighten anyone.
That only made her cry harder.
"He left without saying goodbye."
Her fingers tightened around one of Yin's pillows.
"What if he was hurt?"
"What if someone recognized him?"
"What if he thinks I don't want him?"
The maid had no answer that would repair a mother's heart.
Himeko lowered her face into the pillow.
"I want my baby home."
One Day Earlier
The doors to Yin's room burst open.
Leon Pendragon stumbled inside.
The Black Dragon King's usually composed expression had been replaced by pure excitement. His black hair was disordered, and several royal documents remained clutched in one hand.
"Himeko!"
She lifted her tear-stained face.
"We found him!"
Silence lasted less than a second.
Himeko appeared directly in front of him.
Her pupils narrowed into draconic slits.
"Where?"
Leon swallowed.
"The Southern Region."
"Is he safe?"
"He defeated Cyprus."
Himeko blinked.
"The strongest warrior in Oceania?"
Leon nodded.
"Apparently."
Pride entered Himeko's expression.
Then horror followed it.
"Why was he fighting the strongest warrior in Oceania?"
Leon looked at the documents.
"The report mentions kidnapping."
The room exploded.
The window shattered outward as Himeko launched herself into the sky.
Leon remained inside, holding the report.
"I should've started with the part where he survived."
The Present
Himeko traveled faster.
News from Oceania had reached Night Moon through several political channels.
Yin had defeated Cyprus.
He had awakened an unknown part of Himeko's bloodline.
And somehow, in the aftermath of the battle, he had become engaged to Amani Roya.
Himeko's smile twitched.
"My fifteen-year-old son ran away…"
The wind screamed around her.
"…defeated a national champion…"
Her expression became increasingly hollow.
"…and found someone willing to marry him before I could?"
She grabbed both sides of her head.
"I CAN'T EVEN FIND TIME FOR A PROPER DATE WITH MY OWN HUSBAND!"
Far below, several villages heard her scream.
"DAMN YOU, YIN!"
The Molten Expanse
The white-haired girl stood before Wander and Astraea.
Her short stature did nothing to lessen the terror surrounding her.
Red-black skeletal wings extended from her back. Chains floated around her body, scraping softly against dead stone despite never fully touching the ground.
A crimson halo rested behind her head.
The massive black sword across her shoulder looked less like a weapon and more like a fragment of some murdered god.
The volcanic region had gone silent.
Lava no longer flowed.
Firestorms had frozen in place.
Even distant eruptions refused to continue.
The girl stared at the two intruders.
"Why are you fighting near my grave?"
Neither answered immediately.
Astraea held her blue-lit sword with both hands.
Wander's molten fists remained raised.
The girl watched them for several seconds.
Then she sighed.
"This is pointless."
A black shape emerged from her shadow.
It rose higher and higher until it towered above the battlefield.
A Grim Demon.
Its body resembled a corpse stretched into the frame of a beast. Long arms reached toward the ground while curved claws dragged through stone.
A horned skull rested where its face should have been.
Black vapor leaked between its ribs.
The girl looked toward it.
"Thanatos."
The familiar lowered its head.
"Handle them."
Astraea's expression sharpened.
Thousands of microscopic ice shards appeared around Thanatos.
Each shard was smaller than dust and sharpened through compressed plasma.
"Wander."
He glanced toward her.
"I'll handle the familiar."
Astraea pointed her sword toward the white-haired girl.
"You attack her."
Wander did not move.
"Before we work together…"
His gaze remained fixed on Astraea.
"…how do I know you won't stab me in the back?"
Astraea's eyes narrowed.
"I attacked you less than ten minutes ago."
"That does not improve your case."
"You cannot trust me."
Wander raised an eyebrow.
Astraea continued.
"But I won't interfere with the temple while this creature remains here."
She tightened her grip.
"We can settle our fight afterward."
Wander looked toward the white-haired girl.
Her aura alone made the previous battle feel childish.
"Fine."
He struck his fists together.
"But I'm keeping one eye on you."
"Keep both on the thing that can erase us."
Astraea clasped her hands.
Electric voltage erupted around her body.
The micro-shards surrounding Thanatos became charged.
She glared toward the white-haired girl.
"Don't look so superior."
Astraea's lip curled.
"You're also obeying someone's orders."
The girl's crimson eyes shifted toward her.
The voltage vanished.
Astraea froze.
No movement.
No spell.
The electricity had simply died.
The white-haired girl raised the back of her hand.
A black symbol had been engraved into her skin.
Wander's stomach tightened.
The design resembled markings he had seen inside the church.
And on the sealed temple.
"My Death Magic can reject light, electricity, and the energy sustaining both."
The girl lowered her hand.
"Refusal will not save you."
Wander glanced toward the temple.
Then back toward her.
His fists began glowing.
"Sorry."
He pressed them together.
"I die when I choose to die."
The orange markings across his body burned brighter.
"And I'm not planning on doing that today."
The white-haired girl smiled.
Not kindly.
"Poor Forged."
Wander's eyes widened slightly.
"You know what I am too?"
"You have not witnessed true power."
Her mana spread.
Gravity multiplied around them.
Wander and Astraea crashed onto one knee.
The volcanic ground fractured beneath their bodies.
The girl's smile twisted with something ancient and corrupted.
"Kill them, Thanatos."
The Grim Demon roared.
A Temporary Alliance
Astraea forced one arm upward.
An unknown liquid substance leaked from her fingertips and spread through the air like silver smoke.
"Move!"
Wander slammed both palms into the ground.
Metal Knight Art: Volcanic Ascension!
Pillars of molten earth erupted beneath Thanatos and the white-haired girl.
The familiar raised one arm.
Its claws split several pillars apart.
The girl remained completely still.
Every formation approaching her decayed into black dust.
Wander strained against the gravity.
"So you know about my people?"
The girl looked down at him.
"Of course."
Her tone carried no interest.
"But you stand nowhere near my level."
The gravity increased.
Wander's arms shook.
Astraea struggled for breath.
"You're strong…"
She raised her hand another inch.
"…but you made a mistake."
The girl tilted her head.
Astraea smiled through the pressure.
"Perhaps this will teach you not to kill everything you touch."
Astraea's Particle Field
A metaphysical force expanded across three hundred meters.
Ordinary eyes would have seen nothing.
Only beings with perception approaching Hero-class could observe what Astraea had constructed.
The electricity the white-haired girl erased had not simply vanished.
Its particles had been destroyed.
And destruction created residue.
Alpha particles flooded the field.
Highly ionized.
Positively charged.
Light enough to travel through the air in vast numbers.
They could not penetrate ordinary dead skin easily, but if they reached exposed flesh, damaged tissue, lungs, or internal structures, they would begin degrading the body from within.
Muscles.
Organs.
Nerves.
Spiritual pathways.
Even the soul could become contaminated if exposed long enough.
Astraea had predicted that Death Magic would destroy the voltage.
That destruction had been part of the attack.
The remaining positive field created its opposite.
Beta particles.
Negatively charged and impossibly small.
They moved at near-light velocity, passing through matter far more easily than alpha particles.
Quadrillions flooded the battlefield.
Killing them would only produce more energetic residue for Astraea to manipulate.
Avoiding every particle was impossible.
Their natural lifespan should have lasted only seconds.
Astraea extended her contract.
A distant divine source poured power into the field.
The particles continued accelerating.
All of them converged on the Hero of Death.
Astraea's eyes widened beneath the strain.
"Let's see you erase that."
The white-haired girl watched the storm of invisible death approach.
Her expression became interested.
"This reminds me of the red-haired dragon."
Astraea's confidence shifted.
"What dragon?"
"One who moved through a battlefield faster than your particles."
The girl raised one hand.
Her fingers curled.
Astraea's soul twisted.
She gasped.
Pain exploded inside her chest.
Her body had not been struck.
Something had reached directly into the structure supporting her existence.
Death Art: Soul Imitation
The Hero of Death copied the rhythm of Astraea's soul.
Then began destroying the imitation.
Every injury inflicted upon the copy transferred to the original.
Astraea clutched her chest.
Her particle field trembled.
The white-haired girl closed her fingers further.
Astraea's heart slowed.
Her lungs forgot how to expand.
"Ugh!"
She forced herself to remain upright.
"My god…"
Astraea's breathing became ragged.
"…won't allow me to die!"
More energy entered the particle field.
Colors spread through the air.
Not merely alpha and beta particles now.
Gamma radiation.
Charged plasma.
Fragments of antimatter.
Subatomic structures that existed only through Astraea's divine contract.
She poured everything she possessed into the attack.
Fear had replaced pride.
If she stopped first, she would die.
The white-haired girl watched the gathering storm.
Then released Astraea's soul.
The pressure vanished.
The particles remained suspended.
Astraea collapsed onto both hands, gasping.
The girl's smile returned to normal.
"Do you understand the hell approaching this world?"
Astraea looked up.
"What?"
"You are not powerful enough to stop him."
The Hero of Death turned toward the temple.
"Neither is the Forged."
Wander's markings flared.
"Who are you talking about?"
The girl ignored him.
"I will allow both of you to live."
Her black sword shifted against her shoulder.
"Not from mercy."
Her red eyes glowed.
"I want to watch you understand how hopeless survival truly is."
Astraea did not answer.
Only an idiot would challenge the decision.
A black vortex formed behind the Hero of Death.
Demon Gate
Thanatos dissolved into shadow.
The girl stepped toward the portal.
Wander shouted after her.
"What's your name?"
She paused.
Her head turned slightly.
"You will learn it when death becomes important."
Then she entered.
The Demon Gate closed.
The volcanic region began moving again.
Lava resumed flowing.
Distant eruptions continued as if reality had only held its breath.
Wander stared at the empty space.
Then looked toward the temple.
Without saying another word, he ran.
"Wander!" Astraea shouted.
He slammed one foot against the ground.
A stone pillar erupted beneath him and launched him toward the ruins.
"At this point…"
He flew through the air.
"…I just want answers, food, and a bed!"
Astraea stared after him.
"You unbelievable idiot!"
Ren's Training
Ren's Point of View
Several days had passed since Ren began training under Kyle Cooper.
Inside the Mystic Realm, those days had stretched far longer.
Weeks of physical conditioning.
Months of energy practice.
Rest cycles designed as carefully as combat exercises.
Ren had entered expecting to punch, dodge, and learn techniques.
Kyle treated sleep, breathing, diet, and emotional control as weapons of equal importance.
It was strange.
It was also working.
The destructive energy inside Ren no longer felt like a prisoner constantly striking the walls of his body.
It flowed.
Not perfectly.
But enough for Ren to feel that the power finally belonged to him.
Kyle remained unusual.
He was sane.
Probably.
But he sometimes vanished into the forest without explanation, spoke to animals as if they were tax collectors, or interrupted training because the wind "felt argumentative."
Today, he had gathered several books and refused to explain why.
Ren sat inside the dojo.
Kyle placed the stack on a table.
"First, we will perform Image Training."
Ren looked at the books.
"Image Training?"
Kyle sat across from him.
"It is mental simulation."
He tapped one finger against his temple.
"You picture yourself training alone or fighting someone you understand well enough to recreate."
Ren frowned.
"How can the simulation be accurate if my mind only contains information I already possess?"
"A valid concern."
Kyle folded his hands.
"You cannot perfectly recreate the unknown."
"Then how does it create improvement?"
"Your mind understands more than conscious thought can immediately access."
Kyle leaned forward.
"It recognizes patterns. Predicts reactions. Experiments with combinations you have not deliberately attempted."
Ren considered it.
"Still, I cannot learn information that does not exist inside my mind."
"No."
Kyle nodded.
"But you can reorganize what is already there until it becomes something new."
Ren remained skeptical.
"Can you demonstrate?"
Kyle stood.
Water gathered over his left arm.
"You may wish to step aside."
Ren moved behind him.
Kyle closed his eyes.
In his mind, he pictured a Crab Pig charging through the forest.
The image became clear.
Weight.
Speed.
Shell density.
The angle of its claws.
Kyle opened his eyes.
A real Crab Pig burst from the vegetation outside the dojo.
Ren stared.
"You imagined your next meal into arriving?"
"I know its migration patterns."
"That is less impressive."
Kyle extended his left hand.
Water stretched forward like a tentacle and wrapped around the creature.
He pulled.
The Crab Pig flew toward him.
Kyle's right palm drew backward.
Water Art: Drop Ripple Thrust!
His palm struck with perfect precision.
The force entered through a gap in the creature's shell and canceled its momentum without exploding the body.
The Crab Pig fell.
Dead instantly.
Ren studied the technique.
"The timing was exact."
"I refined it through repeated mental simulations."
"So I could design and perfect movements the same way?"
"With enough understanding."
Kyle wiped his hand.
"Image Training will not replace physical experience."
He looked toward Ren.
"But it can prevent physical experience from being wasted."
Ren nodded slowly.
"That makes more sense."
Kyle returned to the table.
"We will combine it with two other methods."
"Which ones?"
"Handicapped Training and Spiritual Meditation."
Ren leaned back.
"Handicapped Training is self-explanatory."
He pointed toward Kyle.
"But isn't all meditation spiritual?"
Kyle smiled.
"Master Jun asked the same question."
"Who?"
"My first master."
Kyle's expression softened.
"She taught many Demi-Humans. Everyone respected her."
"What did she tell you?"
"That Spiritual Meditation unifies the body, mind, heart, and soul."
Kyle crossed his legs.
"It removes internal conflict."
Ren watched.
"When one part of you rejects another, progress becomes limited. The body stiffens. Energy becomes unstable. Healing slows."
Kyle placed his hands together.
"Balance does not mean emptiness."
His thumbs touched.
"It means every part of you moves in the same direction."
He closed his eyes.
The dojo became quiet.
Minutes passed.
The surrounding nature responded.
Wind circled Kyle.
Leaves drifted through the open doors.
A spiritual cheetah appeared beside him, transparent and blue, its eyes calm.
Ren stared.
The creature rested near Kyle without fear.
"So complete spiritual control can release physical limitations?"
Kyle opened one eye.
"Not all limitations."
Ren reached for one of the books.
"Then what remains?"
"Truth."
Kyle's spiritual companion vanished.
"Some limits exist because you have not grown."
He looked directly at Ren.
"Others exist because you are refusing to become what growth requires."
Ren opened the book.
For once, he had no immediate question.
The Southern Region
Yin trained alone within the Roya courtyard.
Sweat covered his body.
His black training trousers had been scorched around the legs, and part of his shirt had burned away beneath repeated energy surges.
His katana rested in his right hand.
A shorter blade of purple Qi burned in his left.
Yin moved.
The katana cut downward.
The Qi blade crossed horizontally.
Flames followed one weapon while faint lightning gathered around the other.
His techniques had begun changing since the fight with Cyprus.
Before, Yin relied upon the Flame Dragon Arts.
Now he could briefly access Qi inherited through Himeko's bloodline.
The power answered will rather than mana.
That made it perfect for him.
It also made it difficult to control.
Yin attempted the final sequence again.
Lightning gathered.
His Qi sword destabilized.
The energy exploded.
Yin slid backward.
"I still can't complete it."
He opened his notebook.
Lightning Dragon Art: Final Stage
The page contained dozens of failed formulas and movement diagrams.
Yin understood what he lacked.
The Pendragon family possessed an ancient sibling ritual.
Genesis Armageddon
Despite its destructive name, the technique was not simply an attack.
Two blood-related dragons synchronized their minds and entered the deepest layer of their souls.
There, each could locate the pure draconic essence buried within the other.
Only siblings could perform it safely.
Yin needed Durandal.
He disliked admitting it.
His sister was everything a Pendragon heir was expected to be.
Powerful.
Brilliant.
Magically gifted.
Composed.
Yin was the family's wandering disaster with no mana and a notebook full of dangerous ideas.
Still, Genesis Armageddon might unlock the power he had touched against Cyprus.
Yin lowered the notebook.
"I need to return home."
Something tore through the atmosphere.
The sound arrived after the presence.
Yin looked up.
A crimson object struck the courtyard.
The impact shook the Southern Hemisphere.
Stone erupted upward.
Windows shattered across nearby towers.
Yin jumped back.
"What the hell?!"
Smoke spread.
A woman stood inside the crater.
Long red hair.
Burning golden eyes.
A smile that contained no happiness whatsoever.
Yin's blood turned cold.
"Yin Alexander Pendragon!"
His soul attempted to leave his body.
"COME HERE THIS INSTANT!"
Yin dropped both swords.
He approached slowly.
Every survival instinct advised fleeing.
The same instincts admitted fleeing was pointless.
"I'm here, Mother."
Himeko stepped from the crater.
Her aura covered the courtyard.
This was not the Queen of Pendragon.
This was a mother who had spent weeks believing her child might be dead.
She gripped Yin's shoulder.
"Do you know how worried your father and I were?"
Yin kept his head lowered.
"You vanished."
Her fingers trembled.
"What if you were kidnapped?"
Yin glanced toward the castle.
"That did happen."
Himeko's eye twitched.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"What if someone killed you?"
"I'm difficult to kill."
"That is not comforting!"
Her draconic pupils widened.
"I would never forgive myself."
Yin's expression hardened.
"I'm old enough to make my own decisions."
Himeko became still.
He continued.
"I've survived abuse and discrimination my entire life."
His voice remained calm, but something bitter moved beneath it.
"You should be glad I left. At least I'm not damaging the family's reputation anymore."
Himeko slapped him.
The sound crossed the courtyard.
Yin's face turned with the impact.
His cheek became red.
He slowly looked back.
Himeko's eyes were filled with tears.
"Never say that again."
Yin froze.
"I gave birth to you because I wanted you."
Her voice shook.
"Not because I needed another heir."
"Not because I expected magic."
"I wanted my son to live."
Yin's shaded eye widened.
Himeko grabbed both sides of his face.
"I know what you've been doing."
His chest tightened.
"I know you've been throwing yourself into dangerous fights because part of you doesn't care whether you return."
Yin tried looking away.
She did not allow it.
"You are not proving anyone wrong by trying to die."
Himeko pulled him into her arms.
"Look at them with confidence."
Her grip tightened.
"Become better than what they called you."
"Do not become a murderer just because cruelty taught you anger."
Yin remained still.
Then slowly returned the hug.
Amani sensed the magical presence from elsewhere in the castle.
It swept across the region like an approaching sun.
"What is that?"
She ran toward the courtyard.
The closer she came, the more overwhelming the aura became.
Within it, she recognized Yin.
His presence felt unusually submissive.
Amani rounded the corner.
Then stopped.
Himeko Pendragon held Yin within a fierce embrace.
Amani recognized the queen immediately.
She also recognized the danger.
That is his mother's aura?
Himeko had always seemed warm during Amani's childhood visits.
The woman before her felt capable of burning the kingdom out of parental concern.
Amani stepped behind a column.
She's probably angry that I stole her son.
Himeko's voice crossed the courtyard.
"You can come out."
Amani froze.
Himeko pointed directly toward the column.
"We need to speak."
She noticed me.
Amani stepped out slowly.
She bowed from a respectable distance.
"Hello, Queen Himeko."
Himeko released Yin and turned toward her.
"Hello, Amani."
Her tone was polite.
Her eyes were not.
"I see you've been well."
"Relatively."
"I want to discuss Cyprus."
Amani's smile became fragile.
"You heard about that?"
"My son was kidnapped and thrown into a coliseum."
The courtyard trembled.
"I heard several things."
Yin quietly took one step away.
Himeko's gaze returned to him.
He stopped.
"Why was Yin taken?"
Amani folded her hands.
"My father wanted to test him."
"Why?"
"He is controlling, unreasonable, and occasionally treats international law as decorative."
Himeko nodded.
"That sounds accurate."
Her eyes sharpened.
"Why wasn't Yin returned home when he left Silverstaff?"
Amani looked toward Yin.
He looked toward the sky.
Amani muttered, "It isn't kidnapping if he wanted to leave."
Himeko's head turned.
"Speak louder."
Amani swallowed.
"Yin wanted to leave Night Moon."
Himeko stared at her son.
"My precious child would never want to run away from his mother."
Yin turned his head in the opposite direction.
Himeko's mouth fell open.
Amani moved quickly.
"It wasn't because he hated you!"
Himeko looked toward her.
"He believed you would never let him experience the outside world."
Amani stepped closer.
"He wanted friends. School. A life where every decision wasn't made around his condition."
Himeko's knees struck the ground.
The stone beneath them cracked.
"My son abandoned me!"
She began wailing.
Yin took another careful step away.
Amani grabbed his sleeve.
"You're leaving after that entire speech?"
"What do you expect me to do?"
"Comfort her!"
"She becomes worse when encouraged!"
Himeko cried louder.
Several castle windows cracked.
Yin closed his eyes.
Then walked back.
He knelt and hugged her.
"I'm sorry, Mom."
Himeko stopped.
Her face immediately buried itself against his chest.
"Promise you won't run away from us again."
Yin hesitated.
"I can't promise I'll always stay."
Himeko raised her head.
"But I promise I'll tell you when I leave."
Her expression remained wounded.
Yin smiled softly.
"And I'll come back."
Himeko tightened her embrace.
"That is barely acceptable."
Amani watched them.
The moment was warm.
Then logic arrived and ruined it.
"Queen Himeko…"
Both looked toward her.
"Are you expecting Yin to remain inside Night Moon for the rest of his teenage life?"
Himeko became quiet.
Then looked at Amani.
"You must promise to protect him."
Yin's face turned red.
"Mother."
"He is stubborn."
"Mother."
"Depressed."
"Please stop."
"Innocent."
"I am not innocent."
"And far too kind for people who will exploit him."
Himeko patted his head.
"He doesn't understand what the world was like when I was young."
Amani placed one hand on Yin's shoulder.
"I promised myself years ago that I would protect him."
Yin looked toward her.
"I cannot know what the future will become," Amani continued. "But I will keep him in the safest situation available."
Yin rested his hand over hers.
A small smile appeared.
Himeko watched.
Her expression softened.
Then became terrifying again.
"If anything happens to him…"
Amani stiffened.
"…I will hold you personally responsible."
Amani's thoughts fled.
"Understood."
She cleared her throat.
"How did you find us?"
Himeko smiled pleasantly.
"I have eyes in the sky."
Amani waited.
"That is ominous."
"I also saw the engagement announcement."
Himeko looked toward Yin.
"My son became engaged without telling me."
Yin felt death returning.
Amani laughed nervously.
"I forgot that would become national news."
Himeko stepped closer.
"I would love to hear the entire story."
Yin covered Amani's mouth.
"No."
She glared at him.
"We've shared enough."
Amani bit his hand.
Yin pulled away.
"Ow!"
"I'm explaining."
"No more explanations!"
Amani turned toward Himeko.
"We attend Silverstaff Institute. The headmaster assigned us individual training before an upcoming tournament."
Himeko's expression changed.
"A tournament?"
Yin noticed.
"What?"
"You cannot participate."
He tilted his head.
"Why?"
Himeko did not answer immediately.
Yin's eyes narrowed.
"Is this because Durandal is competing?"
Himeko remained silent.
Yin's hand tightened around his notebook.
"I've already started training to face her."
"You do not understand the risks."
"I understand fighting."
"No."
Himeko looked directly into his eyes.
"You understand survival."
Her warmth disappeared beneath a seriousness Yin rarely saw.
"This tournament is something else."
Inside the Temple
Wander landed among ancient ruins.
The impact sent dust outward.
He cracked his neck and looked around.
Broken pillars surrounded a central structure built from black volcanic stone. Strange symbols covered every surface.
Some resembled the markings across Wander's body.
Others looked like designs he had seen inside the church.
"Astraea kept up better than I expected."
He walked deeper.
"She might be faster than Yin and Ren."
A platform stood in the center of the first chamber.
A scythe symbol had been engraved into it.
Wander crouched.
"No magic."
He extended one hand toward the marking.
"But the aura is enormous."
It felt balanced.
Close-range and long-range.
A weapon meant to collect rather than merely kill.
Footsteps sounded behind him.
Astraea entered the ruin with her sword resting against one shoulder.
"You ran off immediately?"
Her exhausted eyes sharpened.
"We were almost killed by a child-shaped apocalypse, and you decided the temple was more important?"
Wander looked back.
"Careful."
His voice carried a hint of heat.
"Or I'll throw you into a volcano."
Astraea placed one hand on her hip.
"Large threat from someone who was losing our fight."
"I wasn't losing."
"You were being dissected by plasma."
"I was learning."
"You learned how to fall."
Wander turned back toward the platform.
"I'm here for answers."
Astraea's expression became serious.
"So am I."
She stepped closer.
"But first, we discuss the Hero of Death."
Wander looked over his shoulder.
"The death baby?"
"She almost erased both of us."
"We survived."
"That is not the standard for ignoring something."
Wander thought for a moment.
Then shrugged.
"No."
Astraea stared.
"What matters right now is what this temple knows about me."
He began walking deeper.
"We can panic about Death later."
Astraea's eye twitched.
"That creature knew your species."
"So does everyone trying to kill me lately."
"She mentioned someone we cannot stop."
"That describes too many people."
Wander glanced back.
"Try to keep up, tiny."
Astraea's aura sharpened.
"I will ignore that for your health."
She aimed her sword toward him.
"If you continue into this temple, I will remove you. Those were my orders."
Wander sighed.
He touched the wall.
The black material shifted.
Stone expanded between them, forming a solid barrier.
"We'll talk later."
He waved.
"See you."
The wall sealed.
Astraea stared.
Then placed one hand against it.
She searched for loose particles.
Separate minerals.
Weak structural bonds.
Nothing.
The wall had become a single continuous element.
Perfectly unified.
Astraea lowered her head.
"Damn it."
She struck the barrier.
"Why are the Forged always this stubborn?"
Beyond the wall, Wander continued into the darkness.
The markings on his body began glowing in response to something deeper inside the temple.
A voice moved through the ancient halls.
Not loud.
Not human.
But familiar.
Welcome home.
Wander stopped.
For the first time since entering the Molten Expanse, he forgot about food.
To Be Continued ➡️