Vargos (in a voice like grinding metal):
"Do you think the city of Crystaliss can be robbed by the likes of you? You have insulted the walls of this warehouse with your footsteps."
Ortinus (drawing his sword, the Feather beginning to tremble in his pocket):
"We are not stealing for gold. We need energy to save lives. Step aside, and don't make us do what we don't want to do."
Vargos (laughing mockingly):
"The dead don't need energy, boy!"
Vargos suddenly lunged forward. His movement was not slow as his size suggested — he leapt like lightning. He slammed his hammer into the ground, and a wave of blue electricity exploded beneath the companions' feet.
Nirar (shouting):
"Scatter! A direct hit will shatter your bones!"
The group rushed into a desperate clash. Nikos threw a metal chain to bind Vargos's arm, but Vargos pulled the chain with one hand and dragged Nikos toward him like a small child.
Darius (charging with his sword):
"Leave my father alone, you monster!"
Vargos struck Darius with a punch that sent him flying several meters into metal crates. Ortinus and Nirar attacked together — sword and crystalline arrows colliding with the black armor — but Vargos stood like an unbreakable fortress.
Picos (trembling while holding an energy cylinder):
"Romilius! He's going to kill them! Do something with your philosophy!"
Romilius (with eerie calm, watching Vargos's movements):
"Not yet, Picos… brute strength has a release point. Ortinus! Strike the left shoulder joint — where his hammer's charge gathers!"
Ortinus gathered all his strength, and the Feather responded; time accelerated in his eyes. He dodged the hammer strike that shattered the ground centimeters behind him and drove his glowing sword into a gap in Vargos's armor. The giant screamed, a roar that shook the warehouse, and the hammer's energy exploded back into its owner's face, knocking him unconscious in a cloud of smoke.
Nirar (catching his breath):
"Quickly! Grab the energy cylinders and run before reinforcements arrive!"
They exited through the warehouse's rear emergency door, only to find themselves face-to-face with another group of fighters wearing gray robes, standing in complete silence under the crystal rain.
Picos:
"Oh no… are they Vargos's friends?"
The masked leader:
"No — his enemies… and yours. Hand over what you carry."
Ortinus:
"To the vehicles! Don't fight them — run!"
An intense chase began through the narrow alleys of Crystaliss. The companions ran across suspended glass bridges while their pursuers leapt behind them with acrobatic skill. Arrows rained down from every direction.
Darius (jumping over a barrier):
"They're too fast! Nirar, don't you have another smoke bomb?"
Nirar:
"This is my last one! Get ready!"
Smoke burst into the air. In the chaos of the chase and the thick fog, Romilius stumbled because of his leg, injured during the battle with Vargos. Before Ortinus could return to him, the gray fighters surrounded Romilius and pinned him with their spears.
Romilius (shouting to Ortinus):
"Don't come back! Continue on! Protect the energy!"
Ortinus (in anguish):
"Romiliuuuus!"
Nirar pulled him away forcefully:
"If you go back now, we'll all die! We'll hide in the abandoned sector and make a plan to rescue him. Romilius knows what he's doing!"
Romilius was taken to a secret cellar beneath the city, bound with energy-suppressing crystal. At the end of the room sat a man with long silver hair and eyes as cold as ice, named Myron. He played with a small sharp knife, flipping it skillfully between his fingers.
Myron (in a calm, frightening voice):
"Romilius… what a beautiful and distinctive name."
Romilius (with remarkable composure):
"I see ambition in your eyes that reaches beyond the walls of this city. You do not serve the Crystal Council — you serve your own goals."
Myron (standing and approaching Romilius):
"Personal goals are what make us special. You have your own goals as well, wise man."
Romilius:
"Personal goals do not work for those possessed by greed. They choose those who carry the weight of responsibility — and you carry nothing but the weight of your hatred."
Myron laughed, but there was no joy in it. He suddenly stepped closer and placed the cold blade of the knife against Romilius's neck until a small drop of blood appeared.
Myron:
"Your philosophy is beautiful, but it does not stop knives from cutting veins. Listen carefully, old man…"
Myron looked at the hourglass on the table, then spoke decisively:
Myron:
"Your companions are hiding somewhere in this sector. They think they are planning to rescue you. I'll give them only half an hour. If they don't appear here and hand over the thermal energy within thirty minutes… I'll drive this blade into your throat and end your story before it begins."
Romilius (smiling calmly):
"Half an hour is a very long time… long enough for you to realize you've made the greatest mistake of your life."
Myron (pressing the knife harder):
"We'll see. Time starts… now."
Meanwhile, in a distant abandoned storage building, Ortinus was punching the wall with his fist.
Ortinus:
"We won't wait… we'll burn this place down over their heads."