"Not bad, kid."
Jov rolled his shoulders. Flames swirled around his arms, licking the air like serpents.
"But let's see how you handle this."
He clapped his hands together.
A roar of Fire erupted, twisting into a wall of flame, wide and high, crashing forward like a living wave. The ground cracked under the heat. The mist shrank away.
Kael didn't flinch.
His own fire surged, drawn to his arms like it knew where it belonged. Sparks spiraled up his skin, spinning faster—until he flung his arms forward.
A vortex of fire ripped out of him, meeting Jov's wave head-on.
The two flames collided. A thunderclap of heat exploded. Dust burst outward. The ground trembled. For a moment, everything was swallowed in flame and smoke.
Max squinted through the light.
"They're evenly matched… no, wait—"
Jov stepped through the steam, coat burned at the edges, flame dancing off his fingertips like it obeyed his thoughts alone.
"You're strong. But you fight almost like your father. All power, no refinement. Well, that's what I have been told. Still haven't met the guy."
Kael's jaw tightened.
"You talk too much."
Jov grin.
"Oh, I talk because you listen. That twitch in your eye? That's pride. Makes you reckless."
Kael didn't answer. He moved.
A flash—too fast to track.
His fist slammed into Jov's chest. The older fighter flew backward, arms flailing, body skipping across the stone like a ragdoll.
He crashed into a low ridge with a grunt, dust spilling around him.
Max's screen blinked back on. He scrolled fast, reading the display.
"An ascended at Stage 5 with a fire soulcore. Vessel Tier... 3."
He glanced up, then back at the screen.
"That confirms it. He is a Burns. But how was he hidden until now?"
He tapped a command—paused.
The screen blinked again. Something new.
Max's brows drew tight.
"That wasn't there before…"
Jov rose slowly from the rubble. His armor cracked. His breath was unsteady—but his grin still carved across his face like a scar.
He slammed his right arm into the ground.
Stone split. Groaned.
The earth beneath Kael twisted. Jagged black rock burst up, wrapping around his legs like chains. His fire flared—but the stone didn't burn.
Kael struggled, eyes sharp.
"What the—?"
Max's hands moved fast. His device hissed, scanning the terrain.
"Wait, I'm detecting another soulcore. It's Earth."
His voice dropped.
"But that doesn't make sense. I only picked up fire. Where did it come from?"
Jov's voice echoed from the dust, heavy with something darker than laughter.
"You boys still think you're special."
He stepped forward again.
"Apex changed the rules."
Ash stood still beside Max, eyes locked on Jov's frame through the haze.
"That arm,"
His voice was flat.
"I saw it earlier. Didn't feel right."
Max shifted the scanner across the twisted limb. Fingers tapped rapidly. Lines blinked across the screen, then froze.
Laughter broke the silence.
Jov stood tall, fire coiled in his palm, hunger in his grin.
"I bet you didn't see that coming."
He thrust his hand forward.
The fireball screamed through the air, trailing heat like a comet.
Silver cut the sky.
The blast split in two, sliced clean down the middle. Smoke rolled across the rock. Sparks hissed against ash-covered ground.
Ash stood in front of Kael. Sword raised. Smoke curled off the blade's edge, but his stance didn't shift.
Jov's smile thinned.
"Oh?"
Ash didn't blink.
"You talk too much."
He didn't turn.
"You good?"
Kael rolled his shoulder. His voice came steady.
"Yeah. Just caught me off guard."
His lips pulled into a smirk as he stared ahead.
"So you're a hybrid. Should've led with that."
Max didn't lift his eyes from the screen.
"He's not. Not really. But something close to that."
He turned the screen so Ash and Kael could see it.
"Apex did something… unnatural. They gave him a second soulcore. But it's not his. That arm belonged to a Stage 5 Earth soulcore welder. Don't know how Apex did it, but it looks like they implanted it—probably bound to his soul. That's where the power comes from. Men this level of science is crazy."
Kael's flame flickered to life again.
"So he's cheating."
"Not exactly. That arm's static. It can't evolve. It's not connected to his soulspace. If it is, then it's cracking—bleeding energy just to hold together. That will drain him. Hard. But Apex probably tampered with his pool, maybe created a buffer."
Ash spoke again.
"He's bleeding himself dry and doesn't even know how deep."
Max nodded once.
Kael's grin widened. The fire curled tighter.
"Good. I'll burn him down before it runs out. At least with him, I can get my long-awaited fun."
Across the field, Jov laughed again, sharp and wild.
"You kids done with your analysis?"
His fingers snapped.
Red streaks lit the sky. Beams fell like a storm. The apex ships above them fired without stopping.
Ash moved.
The voice from his soul space echoed.
"[Skill: Storm Vein.]"
"[Skill: Static Surge.]"
Lightning danced at his boots. The air cracked with his speed.
He dashed forward—one, two, three swings—each beam sliced midair, broken before it reached them. Sparks exploded on impact, smoke rising where metal met heat. He stood between Kael and the barrage, his blade flashing like a warning.
Max lifted one arm. Light shimmered around him, hex panels locking into place. Beams slammed into the shield—flared, fizzled. The barrier held, its edges glowing brighter with each strike.
Jov's grin didn't fade.
"Let's see how long you can keep that up."
Kael didn't step back. His voice came low and sharp.
"You two go. Find out what Apex is after."
His flames grew darker, heat rippling around his fists.
"I'll handle this bastard. I owe him that much."
Ash's brow twitched.
Still holding his blade steady, cutting through beams.
'Is he trying to play hero now? I know Kael's strong… but can he handle all of them?'
Max stepped forward. His shield expanded, hexes stretching until it wrapped around them like a second skin.
"You sure? The only way you take them all… is if you go full creature."
Kael didn't hesitate.
"Yeah. That's the plan."
Max frowned. The ground cracked beneath them. He glanced down, lips tight.
"Seriously? You know what that drain of soul energy does. This isn't the fight you waste it on. And—"
He looked at the fractured stone under their feet.
"—You might actually break the asteroid apart."
Kael shrugged. A slow, burning grin spread across his face.
"I'm not going full. Just enough to remind them who I am. It won't take long."
Then the air shifted.
Something heavy dropped into the atmosphere. Thick, old. Like the silence in a tomb that just breathed again.
Max ran a hand through his hair, muttering under his breath.
"Knew you'd pull this crap. Let's see if you can even keep your clothes this time."
The flames came alive.
They moved differently—no longer wild, no longer just power. They curled around Kael like they knew him. Like they were part of him.
His body changed.
Muscle surged beneath his skin. The red streak in his hair bled through every strand, glowing like molten lines through steel.
Threads snapped. His shirt tore down the middle as his form grew.
Fur pushed through flesh—deep red, streaked with black. Thick. Coarse.
His legs twisted, bending wrong, reshaping into something built for speed and power. Claws cracked through the floor. Arms stretched. His frame bulked, layered in fire-hardened muscle.
All his clothes were gone, leaving only his underwear, which expanded like Kael had already planned for this from the very beginning.
Then his face broke.
A snap, wet and sharp. His jaw stretched. Bones shifted. A beast's snout formed where a man's face had been.
Teeth lined his mouth—long, jagged, white-hot.
His eyes glowed like embers cracked open. Breathing slowly, heavily. Steam hissed from his lips.
Ash watched it all unfold. His grip tightened on the sword, stance lowering.
'He transformed… Damn it. If he loses control again—'
Across the haze, Jov's grin stretched. His eyes widened, more thrill than fear.
"Now that's more like it. I've heard stories about this form… Thought only Flame could do it."
Kael's head tilted. His voice rumbled deep in his chest, rough and sharp.
"I'm not him."
He took a step forward. The ground cracked.
"But if you think you can ever beat my father… you're even dumber than you look."
The world held still.
Heat poured off Kael in waves, turning the air to glass.
Then he roared.
Fire erupted from his throat—pure, living flame. It surged forward, wild and untamed, the breath of something ancient.
The blaze swept the battlefield.
Apex ships lit up. Metal curled. Frames burst. Explosions boomed across the sky.
Burning wreckage fell like stars, swallowed by black smoke.
Kael stood at the center of it all, jaws still glowing.
Not human.
Not a monster.
Something in between. Something like a werewolf. But with a tiger. A weretiger?
Kael turned, fire pulsing through the veins under his fur.
"Go. I'll hold them."
Claws opened wide. Heat rolled off his skin with every breath.
"Right now… they're nothing."
Max didn't argue. One hand dragged through his hair, eyes already calculating.
"The object's far. Keep them busy—but when you're drained, don't play hero. Run."
He was gone before the last word faded, boots crunching into stone, sprinting into the smoke.
Ash lingered. His eyes locked with Kael's—no words, just breath. A slow exhale.
Then he moved too, vanishing into the dust.
Jov stepped forward. Flames danced in his palms.
"You think I'll just watch you leave?"
He raised his hand.
Fire cracked. He lunged.
Then—
A blur.
A shape moved. Fast. Too fast.
Jov's body twisted mid-air, slammed sideways by something massive. He hit the ground. The stone split beneath his weight.
Dust rose. He coughed, blood in his throat.
When the haze cleared, Kael stood over him. For glowing, eyes molten red. Steam curled from his body. The claws that struck still hung in the air.
"You want them? Go through me."
Jov spat, rage boiling behind his grin.
Behind him, Apex troopers closed in. Shadows dropping from their ship, rifles drawn, boots slamming into the dust.
He didn't look back.
"What are you waiting for?! After them!"
The soldiers froze.
Something had changed.
A cold wind swept through the field. Dry. Thin. Sharp like cut glass. It pressed against their skin.
They felt it.
The weight.
Suddenly they lift weapons. Fingers tightened on it.
Then they charged.
Kael smiled.
"Oh? So you're ready to die?"
His chest expanded. Fire built, surging up his throat.
The glow behind his fangs lit the ground.
Then—
CRACK!
A stone column burst from beneath him. It caught his jaw clean.
His head snapped back. The fire in his mouth died with a hiss. Smoke leaked from his nose.
Kael caught himself, muscles coiled tight.
He rolled his neck, jaw clicking. Claws flexed.
"Earth. Great."
His eyes narrowed.
"This is gonna be a pain."