In this world, strength is not a gift… it is the price one pays to stay alive.
The Kara is the vital energy that flows through all things. Some shape it to create, others to destroy… but all depend on it to survive.
When the breath of Kara fades, the heart stops beating, and the soul disappears into the eternal shadow.
(The scene opens on a black background. Raizen's voice echoes, broken, panting, as if he is reliving the scene on a loop in a nightmare.)
Her name.
Why? Why was it my name she said?
I see it all. On a loop. The sound of the chains. The smell of blood mixing with the rain. Her body... pinned to the pillar. By her own power. And that bastard... that bastard who was smiling.
I wanted to scream. I wanted to throw myself at him, to bite him, to tear out his eyes. But my body wouldn't respond anymore. Nothing. Just this pain in my shoulder, a fire that reminded me I was still alive. Why me? Why am I still alive when she...
(Raizen's vision becomes the camera's point of view. It's blurry, unstable.)
Shadows appeared. In a light that hurt my eyes. They were there. Finally. But too late. Always too late. I thought I saw Adams. His face was... different. Hard. But there was something else. Anger. The same anger that was burning me from the inside. He approached her. I looked away. I couldn't. I couldn't look anymore.
(The scene shifts. Raizen is now on a bed. The images are jerky, the sounds muffled.)
After that, it's a fog. The light. The smell of herbs. Voices. I didn't understand anything. It was like being underwater. I saw Danky. Unconscious. And Diana... she was there, but she wasn't there anymore. Her eyes were open, but they saw nothing. We were all broken. Broken toys.
Hana was there. She was crying. She tried to hide it, but I saw it. Her eyes were red. She placed her hand on my forehead. It was cold. Or maybe it was me who was on fire.
Then Adams came in. He looked at Hana. And she... she shook her head.
That simple gesture. That silent "no." It was the confirmation. The end. The final period.
The thread holding me together snapped. The world went black.
(The point of view becomes objective)
The healing room of the Zenith sanctuary was in a state of emergency. Usually a place of calm and serenity, it was now buzzing with tense activity. Hana and two other healers were busy around the three beds lined up in the center of the room, their hands glowing with curative Celestial Kara.
Adams stood near the door, his arms crossed, his face a granite enigma. He observed the scene, his silence heavier than any scream.
Adams (in a hard, low voice):
Their condition?
Hana looked up, wiping a bead of sweat from her forehead. Her eyes were ringed with dark circles, her voice trembling with fatigue and grief.
Hana:
Critical. For all three. Danky is in a coma. His body has suffered extreme damage, multiple fractures, internal bleeding... It's a miracle he's still alive. Diana... her life energy is almost depleted. It's as if she burned it all at once to fuel a power she doesn't understand. She's stable, but empty. And Raizen... he just lost consciousness. The shock, on top of his injuries...
Adams clenched his fist, the knuckles of his gloved hand turning white. He cast one last look at the three unconscious bodies, three promises nearly extinguished.
Adams:
Do everything you can. I'm going to report to the pure Zenith Stars.
He left the room with a heavy step, leaving behind the sound of the Kara monitors and the murmur of healing incantations.
(Transition to the Burning Lair)
At the same moment, in a place where the light was that of magma and the air was hot and dry, a shadow portal tore open in the void. Johan emerged from it, staggering, and fell to one knee, short of breath. His mask was cracked, and blood was flowing from a cut on his shoulder, staining the obsidian floor. He looked up, his gaze falling on the figure who dominated the room.
There, in the center of a raised platform, was a simple dark wood rocking chair. Sitting nonchalantly, rocking with a slow and steady motion, Shiro Takahashi was reading a leather-bound book. The soft, rhythmic creak of the chair was the only sound that disturbed the silence of the cavern. He didn't even look up.
Shiro (in a flat voice, his rocking not stopping):
You are injured, Johan. And you took your time. I hope the show was worth it.
Johan gritted his teeth, not from the pain of his wounds, but from his master's dismissive tone. He lowered his head, respectful but confident.
Johan:
The mission is a success, Shiro-sama. The Astroforge is dead. And I found one of their access points.
The rocking chair continued its hypnotic motion. Shiro turned a page.
Shiro:
The details.
Johan gave his report. In a clear and precise voice, he described the location of the access point, the tear in the fabric of space through which the Zenith reinforcements had arrived. Then he detailed the awakenings. Diana's paradoxical ice and healing. Danky's raw telekinetic power. And finally, the intervention of the "thief," Raizen, who had understood the weakness of his mask and had cracked it.
The creaking of the rocking chair stopped.
Shiro slowly closed his book, placing it delicately on a small table beside him. A flash of pure fascination shone in his red eyes. He stood up, his silhouette outlined against the glow of the lava rivers below.
He descended the few steps that separated him from Johan, his steps making no sound.
Shiro:
You failed to kill three apprentices. You allowed yourself to be injured. And you let one of them discover the weakness of your mask.
Shiro's voice was calm, almost gentle, but each word was a blade of ice. Johan did not flinch, but a drop of sweat beaded on his forehead.
Shiro:
And yet... you have brought me information far more valuable than their deaths. Two spontaneous awakenings... and a strategist in the mix. My brother has hidden his hand well.
Shiro came closer, his shadow completely covering Johan. He slowly raised his hand, his fingers subtly elongating, his nails becoming sharp, black claws.
Without a word of warning, he plunged his claws into Johan's neck.
Johan stiffened, a grunt of pure pain escaping his lips. He did not scream, but his entire body contracted, his muscles twisting in agony. Shiro's claws seemed not to injure him, but to inject something into him, a black energy that burned and repaired at the same time.
The blood flowing from his shoulder stopped. The crack on his mask sealed itself as if by magic. His internal injuries were healing in excruciating pain.
After what seemed like an eternity, Shiro withdrew his claws. Johan's neck was marked with four black gashes that slowly closed, leaving dark scars.
Johan panted, his forehead pressed to the ground, trembling from head to toe. He was healed, but the price was a pain he would never forget.
Shiro (in a cold, almost paternal voice):
Well done, Johan. You have earned your reward. Now, get up.
Johan got up with difficulty, his body still shaken by spasms.
Shiro (turning to the empty room):
It is time to prepare yourselves.
His voice was not loud, but it echoed throughout the Burning Lair like an absolute command.
Shiro:
My pure Burned Bloods. Approach!
From ten dark alcoves surrounding the room, nine other silhouettes emerged and came to kneel in a perfect semicircle around SHIRO. Their presences were so heavy, so charged with Black Kara, that the air itself seemed to solidify.
They were the Ten "pure" Burned Bloods. Shiro's personal elite.
Shiro contemplated them, a predator observing his weapons. His gaze passed over each of them, not like a general inspecting his troops, but like an artist scrutinizing his palette of poisons.
His gaze first stopped on Feynord Raki, the leader of his elite. Motionless, upright, his face a blank canvas. Shiro knew that behind this calm hid a one-man army, ready to overwhelm any defense. Brute force, he thought. Useful.
Then, Fullness Anemiya. Even kneeling, he seemed on the verge of exploding. An unstable energy emanated from him, a promise of void and destruction. Shiro smiled inwardly. The hammer. To break the thickest walls.
End of Chapter 168