Drip. The world slowed. Drip, Drip...a thin film of sensation expanded around me—like the air itself had softened, sharpened, and shifted all at once.
"Drip, Drip, Drip."
The next attack—I should've been too slow to dodge it. But I wasn't. I stepped back. Just in time. Jason's fist barely missed my throat.
For the first time, his smirk twitched. "…The hell?"
Something in me stirred. Something massive.
The exhaustion was still there, but it didn't matter anymore. My arms weren't weak. My body wasn't aching. I could feel energy surging through me…into me—From them. I could feel energy flowing into me. My muscles tightened, strengthened. The world around me felt different, clearer.
I cracked my neck. And I grinned.
"Oh, this feels awesome. Is this what you guys feel all the time? No wonder. "
Jason's stance shifted. He sensed it too. I took a step forward—water pooled at my feet.
Anthony blinked. "Wait—when did—"
I didn't let him finish. I moved. Faster. Stronger. Sharper.
I was in front of him before he could react. One clean, devastating uppercut to his jaw. CRACK.
Anthony's body lifted off the ground. Then I caught him by the arm— and slammed him down so hard the dirt caved.
Jason's eyes narrowed. "Xavier—"
Too late. I was already moving.
Xavier twisted into a defensive stance, but I could see it now. The way his energy flowed, the way his stance shifted before attacking. My body just… knew.
His fist came—I was already dodging before he moved. His kick lashed out—I was already past it.
I grabbed him by the collar. "Hey," I said, grinning. How does it feel fighting someone strong like you?"
BOOM. I threw him straight into Anthony.
Jason exhaled. "Enough." He didn't yell. He didn't panic. But his Aether surged—and suddenly, everything felt heavier.
This was the real fight. But I wasn't backing down. Because whatever was inside me? Wasn't done waking up.
The battlefield was silent. Xavier was on his knees, his breathing ragged, sweat dripping from his brow. Anthony clutched his fractured arm, his eyes flickering between pain and terror.
Jason didn't move immediately. He just watched. Studying. Calculating.
Then, for the briefest moment, his expression faltered. His smirk flickered. His breath hitched.
A single thought slipped through the cracks of his mind: What the hell…? This isn't the same Lucian.
And then, he moved. Jason shot forward, his Aether igniting, body flickering like a red blur as his foot dug into the ground, launching him toward me with breakneck speed.
I barely had time to react before his fist slammed into my jaw. The impact sent me skidding back, feet digging into the dirt.
Jason didn't let up. He followed, weaving through the dust cloud, throwing a relentless barrage of strikes and kicks. Fast. Precise. Calculated.
I dodged one. Blocked another. Countered with a kick—he barely evaded.
I feinted left. He bit. I slammed my knee into his ribs, driving the air from his lungs. His eyes widened—but he reacted instantly, twisting with the momentum to avoid a follow-up blow.
We separated, standing across from each other. Jason exhaled sharply, rolling his shoulders.
"That strength…" His eyes narrowed. "You weren't this strong before."
I ran a thumb across my jaw where he landed his first hit. "And you weren't this desperate before."
Jason's lips curled into something between a smirk and a grimace. "Guess we both had some surprises in us. On top of that, we both are put in positions we were forced into."
I barely had time to respond— Because behind Jason, Anthony, and Xavier weren't done yet.
Anthony slammed his fists into the dirt, and the ground shook violently beneath us. A deep, guttural rumble echoed through the yard as massive jagged stone formations shot up from below. The cracks widened. And then, they climbed out.
Two hulking golems of raw earth, at least twice my size. Their bodies were formed from the compressed, reinforced stone, pulsing with golden veins of Aether. Sentient. Strong. Durable as hell.
Xavier raised both arms, his body crackling with energy as deep purple bolts of lightning surged into the air. "Arise."
The sky above us dimmed, as a swirling thundercloud condensed into a humanoid form—a towering entity of pure electric fury. Arcs of violet lightning pulsed through its skeletal frame, flickering in and out of visibility. Its eyes glowed a searing white.
A Storm Wraith.
"We end this now." Xavier's voice was raw from exhaustion, but his will didn't break. Jason crossed his arms, watching. Testing.
I should've thought this through. I should've made a plan. I should've reconsidered my next move.
I didn't. I grinned and charged straight in.
Jason didn't move immediately. He just watched. Studying. Calculating.
The first Earth Golem swung. Its fist was the size of a damn boulder, crashing down with the weight of a landslide. I barely twisted my body out of the way, the wind pressure alone grazing my skin raw.
But I didn't slow down. I vaulted up its arm, my fingers digging into the cracks of its stone plating. The second golem tried to swat me off, but I launched off the first, flipping midair, and drove my heel straight into its head.
CRACK. A fracture splintered across its skull, but the damn thing didn't fall. Instead, it roared.
The impact sent a shockwave through its body, making it stumble, but before I could capitalize on the opening, A crackling hum filled the air.
I barely had time to react— A bolt of lightning tore through the sky. Straight into my chest.
BOOM!
Agony.
My body locked up. The world turned white. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't move. My muscles seized. Every nerve in my body screamed. My heart stuttered against my ribs, its rhythm thrown into chaos by the sheer voltage flooding my veins.
So this… I realized, somewhere in the haze of pain. This is what real power feels like.
My arms refused to obey. My legs buckled. The ground rushed up to meet me—
No. No, no, NO.
A drop. Somewhere deep inside me, something is spilling out. The sensation spread, slithering through my flesh like an unseen tide. A pulse—a familiar yet alien force—rippled outward from my core.
Then, everything flipped. The pain faded. The shock in my limbs? Gone. My breath returned. My heartbeat steadied.
The moment the wraith tried to surge forward again, the instant my body obeyed, I closed the gap between me and the Storm Wraith.
Instinct took over—not rational thought, not training, just raw, primal reaction. The ground beneath me cracked as I launched forward. The Wraith reared back, its flickering form twisting, preparing to strike again.
Not this time. I drove my fist straight into its chest core.
CRACK!
The impact sent a shockwave through the courtyard. The Wraith screeched, its form distorting from the sheer force of my blow. It's lightning flickered—unraveling.
I didn't stop. I couldn't.
Something was pushing me forward. The feeling inside me—the rush, the high, the hunger.
I twisted, pivoting mid-motion, and slammed my elbow into the Wraith's head, sending it hurtling backward.
I hit the ground hard, my entire body seizing up from the electricity burning through my veins. It hurt. It hurt so much.
I could feel my muscles locking up, my nerves screaming. And yet— I laughed. I fucking laughed.
I gritted my teeth through the pain, rising slowly as smoke curled from my skin. I felt the adrenaline flooding my body. The wounds? The burns? The blood dripping down my lip? I didn't care.
I wanted more.
"Is that all you got?!" My voice was hoarse, but the hunger in it was real.
I cracked my neck, rolling my shoulders as my vision narrowed in. My body felt lighter. My pain was blurring into something else. Something better.
"Again."
Xavier's eyes widened—but Anthony was already moving.
The golems surged forward, tearing through the ground with massive, shuddering steps. I could feel their Aether, the sheer density of their energy pressing down on me.
I wasn't dodging this time. I welcomed it.
The first golem swung—I caught its massive fist with both hands, my muscles screaming in protest—but I didn't let go. The force drove me back, my heels carving deep trenches into the earth.
And then— I shifted. Using its momentum against it, I twisted, forcing the behemoth off-balance, and drove my knee straight into its core.
The impact rippled through its body. Cracks webbed across its torso, the golden Aether flickering violently.
But before I could finish it—
BOOM! The Storm Wraith attacked again. Electricity ripped through me. Again. My body arched from the sheer voltage. I felt my skin breaking apart, my mind shuddering under the pain.
But through it all— Through the agony, the raw sensation, the overwhelming current tearing through me— I was smiling.
Something inside me was laughing. Something deep. Something hungry.
"More."
The water around me surged.
No—wait. I wasn't controlling it. My body felt different. Lighter. More fluid. Stronger.
And then— A voice. No, not a voice. A presence. A tide rolling in, endless, consuming, pressing against the edges of my mind.
"You are not ready."
My veins burned. My vision blurred. The pain should've been unbearable. But instead, I grinned.
The words echoed like a whisper from the deep. Not spoken, not heard—but felt.
The ground trembled. The water surged toward me, answering a call I hadn't made.
"Take." A shiver ran through my spine as power flooded my body. My veins burned, but not with pain—with something deeper, something primal.
"Adapt." I exhaled, steam rising from my skin. The lightning inside me—it wasn't fading. I was absorbing it.
"Evolve." I moved—and the world slowed.
Jason's stance shifted. Fear flashed in his eyes. Anthony's summons staggered. The Wraith's crackling form flickered.
"Power without will is nothing." I grinned.
"Show me what you can do."
A single drop of water hit the ground. A ripple spread.
Then the storm came.
I launched forward, my body snapping through the air like a bullet. The golems turned—but I was already on them. I slammed my fist into the fractured one's core, feeling the energy shift.
"Osmosis."
The word rang in my head like an instinctual command.
I absorbed something. I felt the stone crumble beneath my fingers.
And then—
I turned to the Storm Wraith. Ss light surged toward me. But this time, I didn't dodge.
I raised my hand, and a Veil expanded.
I saw the attack before it was even launched. I saw the way the energy rippled. I reached out, and I caught it.
Xavier's breath hitched. Anthony staggered back.
I could feel the electricity crawling up my arm, sinking into my muscles. And for the first time, I realized I could take it. I could make it mine.
I looked at Jason. I smiled.
And then— I swung.
The lightning I absorbed flared out, coiling around my arm as I rushed forward. The golems shattered under my assault. The Storm Wraith howled as I tore through it.
Anthony and Xavier were already falling back.
I knew I should've stopped. I knew I'd won.
But I didn't want to. I wanted to see how far I could push it. I wanted to see how much more I could take.
Because for the first time in my life, I felt unstoppable. And I never wanted it to end.
The battlefield was silent. The golems lay in ruins. The Storm Wraith had dispersed. The last echoes of crackling lightning faded into the wind.
Xavier was on his knees, his breathing ragged, sweat dripping from his brow. Anthony clutched his fractured arm, his eyes flickering between pain and terror. Jason's fear flashed in his eyes.
And Rion? He was barely conscious.
I exhaled. Slowly. Steadily.
I should've stopped. I didn't.
Something inside me ached—no, it hummed. A deep, thrumming resonance coursed through my veins, a pulse that wasn't entirely mine.
Something was working. But not the way I expected.
The air around me swirled, faint ripples of blue-green light flickering at the edges of my vision. It wasn't just lights flickering… it felt alive.
"Is this Aether?"
I was taking in their energy. Every breath I took filled me. It washed over my muscles, my bones, my core, restoring me. Reinforcing me.
The aches from before? Gone. The wounds? Already closing.
And it felt good. So good.
Anthony shifted, trying to crawl backward. But I was on him in a blink.
I grabbed him by the collar, my fingers digging into his flesh, hoisting him up with one hand like he was made of paper. His breath hitched, his eyes wild with fear.
I wasn't even thinking anymore. I just knew—I had more strength to burn. I had more to take.
"Y-You… you're not human," Anthony gasped.
I felt my smile widen.
"I don't know what I am. But I intend to see the full extent of this power."
Then, I squeezed.
His Aether poured into me. An invisible tide was being ripped from his body, draining him like a sink with the plug pulled out. He screamed.
"You thought you had me figured out? That's your first mistake." "You can't predict what you don't understand." "And right now? Even I don't know what I'll do next."
Xavier lunged at me from behind. But before his fist could even reach me, I twisted.
I felt the attack before it landed. A Veil-like energy pulsed through me. And I moved like water.
His strike missed by mere millimeters. I countered instantly. An elbow into his ribs. Crack. He gasped in agony, stumbling backward, clutching his side.
I turned my gaze to him, tilting my head. "Not fast enough," I murmured.
Jason was sprinting at me now, his form a blur, his Aether roaring to life. A streak of red energy lit his arms, flowing into his legs, a last-ditch effort to end this before it got worse.
But it was already too late.
I felt every step. Every shift in the air. I was already adapting.
The moment he got in range, I sidestepped, gripped his wrist, and used his momentum to flip him over me. He slammed into the ground shoulder-first with a brutal impact. I didn't let go. I twisted his arm backward, forcing it into an unnatural angle.
His teeth clenched in a soundless gasp of pain.
I could break it. Right now. I could end this.
I just had to keep going. Just a little more. A little more—
"That's enough."
The voice cut through the air like a blade. Everything froze.
A presence weighed down on me—heavy, authoritative, absolute.
I turned my head slowly.
A man stood at the edge of the battlefield, his gray trench coat fluttering in the faint breeze. His silver hair was slicked back, his sharp violet eyes unreadable behind his glasses.
Headmaster Jean-Paul.
Beside him, standing rigid with an expression of pure anger, was my uncle.
His jaw was tight. His gaze drilled into me like he was seeing a stranger.
I still had Jason's arm in my grasp. I could still end it.
But I didn't.
I slowly let go. Jason collapsed to the ground, coughing—but he didn't look at me. None of them did.
The medics arrived within seconds, moving past me without a second glance.
I turned my gaze to Jean-Paul. He wasn't angry. He wasn't afraid.
He was just… watching. Studying.
Like he knew something I didn't.
"Lucian," he said evenly. "Come with me."