The sky bled orange and red as the sun dipped below the horizon, casting a burning glow over the ruins of the city. Shadows lengthened across the ground like claws reaching from the past, and Lucian stood in the center of the fading light, unmoving. His cloak whipped around his legs in the dusty wind, the sharp edges of his silhouette glowing faintly with the residue of the power still lingering inside him.
Kia was beside him, breathing heavily. His steps were uneven, and sweat glistened on his brow, but his grip on the hilt of his blade was firm. He looked up at Lucian, whose face was unreadable, carved from something more ancient than pain.
"You felt it, didn't you?" Kia asked, voice barely above a whisper. "That surge…"
Lucian didn't respond immediately. His eyes were locked on the distant horizon on the mountain range that's barely visible through the haze. The place where it all began. The place where it could end.
"I did," Lucian finally said. "And so did they."
A tremor rolled through the earth not physical, but palpable, like something awakening far beneath the surface. Power stirred in the atmosphere. The Shochers would come for it. For him. For what remained of the shard hidden in his chest.
"We have to keep moving," Lucian said, turning away from the fading sun.
But Kia hesitated. "You're hurt. You're exhausted."
"So are you."
"Still. You almost collapsed back there." Kia stepped closer, eyes worried. "You can't keep burning yourself out like this. One day, you won't come back."
Lucian looked at him, eyes glowing faintly gold. "Then I'll make sure it counts."
They found shelter in an abandoned rail station as night fell. Most of the walls had caved in, and vines clawed their way across the concrete like nature trying to reclaim what humanity had lost. Kia used broken planks to block the opening while Lucian sat near the rear wall, cross-legged, his breathing shallow but steady.
Kia lit a small fire using dry scraps and a match, the glow dancing over Lucian's features. In the silence, memories threatened to claw their way back. memories of fire, of screams, of a girl with crimson hair who used to smile before she was turned into a weapon.
"Do you ever regret it?" Kia asked suddenly. Lucian opened his eyes. "What?"
"Choosing to awaken the shard. Choosing this path."
Lucian didn't answer at first. He leaned back against the wall, gazing up at the fractured ceiling. "I didn't choose it. It chose me. But if I had to go back, if I had to make the choice now…" He paused. "I'd do it again."
"Even if it kills you?"
"Especially if it means saving you. Saving everyone." He didn't completely trust anyone but Kia is still his best friend and he wouldn't want to lose him. Kia's throat tightened. He looked away, fingers gripping the hem of his jacket. "Then we need to find the other half before Marinette does." Lucian's gaze hardened. "She won't stop. She's hunting me like I'm prey. But she doesn't realize the storm she's chasing is already inside her."
Far away, under the fractured dome of the Shochers' hidden command base, Marinette stood over the glowing display table, eyes locked on the flickering pulse marking Lucian's last known location. The golden signature he'd left behind when he'd used his power had registered across half the continent.
"He's stronger than we thought," one of the tacticians muttered. Marinette didn't reply. Her jaw was tight, lips pursed. The energy Lucian had unleashed wasn't just powerful. it was unstable, erratic. Beautiful, even. But she couldn't allow herself to be moved by it.
She turned as Jace entered the room. His uniform bore dust from the outerlands, and there was a fresh bruise on his cheek.
"You found the boy," he said, closing the door behind him nonchalantly. "I found the storm," she replied. "You should've killed him."
"I tried." Her fingers clenched. "He vanished again. Used the shard. He's slipping out of my grip." Jace approached slowly, studying her face. "Then maybe it's time we stop pretending this is just a mission."
Marinette's eyes narrowed. "What are you implying?"
"That this isn't about duty anymore. It's personal." Jace folded his arms. "You talk about eliminating him like he's a plague, but every time you get close, something in you hesitates. What is it guilt? Nostalgia?"
"I hesitate because I want it done right," she snapped. "He's not just a threat. He's a symptom. If he dies without the shard being stabilized, we all die."
Jace was silent for a moment. "Then let me help."
"No," she said firmly. "I finish this."
In the rail station, Lucian awoke from a dream of fire. His hands were glowing again. The power had returned while he slept, swirling through him like a tidal wave threatening to break its dam.
Kia was already up, sharpening his blade with a piece of scrap metal. Lucian stood, stretching. "We move again." Kia nodded. "North?"
"North."
They left before dawn, slipping through back alleys and crumbled highways. Every mile brought them closer to the mountains and closer to the truth. The second half of the shard lay hidden in the Temple of Ash, buried beneath the bones of an ancient city that had fallen during the first fracture.
As they reached the foothills, Lucian slowed.
"There's something wrong," he muttered. Kia drew his blade. "What is it?"
"They're here." The air shifted. The wind stopped. Time itself seemed to hold its breath. Then she appeared.
Marinette stepped from the shadows, her silhouette perfect against the mountain mist. Blades sheathed, eyes locked on Lucian.
"Found you," she said, voice cold and clear.
Lucian stepped forward. "I wasn't hiding."
Behind her, two more Shochers emerged Jace, and a third figure cloaked in armor. Kia moved beside Lucian, ready.
"You don't have to do this," Lucian called out. "Yes, I do," Marinette replied.
"What happened to you?" Lucian asked. "We were on the same side once."
"Well, I lied I was never on your side I just wanted to see how dangerous you are" she shrugged
"Then let me show you again." He raised his hand but didn't attack.
Marinette hesitated. That was all Kia needed. With a cry, he leapt forward, blade meeting Jace's in a clash of sparks. Lucian and Marinette charged, colliding with an explosion of energy that sent rock and dirt flying.
Steel rang against fire. The shard inside Lucian pulsed, reacting to Marinette's own power. For a moment, the world narrowed to just the two of them, fighting not just each other, but the ghosts between them.
"You still feel it," Lucian said as they locked blades. "That connection."
She snarled. "I feel betrayal."
"No. You feel doubt."
Their powers exploded in a wave of light, knocking them both backward. Marinette stumbled, breathless. Lucian was on one knee, sweat pouring down his face.
Then the third Shocher moved straight for Kia.
Lucian turned too late. A blade sank deep into Kia's side. "No!" Lucian roared, racing toward him. Kia collapsed, eyes wide in shock. Blood soaked his shirt. Lucian caught him, shaking. "Stay with me. Please, stay with me!"
Marinette froze. Jace lowered his sword. Lucian looked up, and for the first time, they saw it , pure rage in his eyes. Power surged, brighter and more violent than ever before.
"You want to see what I've become?" he whispered. The shard inside him shattered its limits. Golden fire exploded outward. The mountains shook.
The Shochers were thrown back like leaves in a hurricane.
When the light faded, Lucian stood alone, holding Kia in his arms.
Marinette lay crumpled at the edge of the hill, eyes wide with awe and fear.
Lucian's voice was a whisper. "If he dies, then you are all going down ."
And then he vanished.