The skies above the Citadel cracked with golden light.
For seven days, Kael prepared—fortifying the rising fortress with riftstone walls, binding creatures of the Abyss into loyal sentries, and rallying the survivors under one banner.
But on the seventh dawn, a beam of divine energy split the heavens.
He had arrived.
---
The Paladin.
Clad in radiant armor, a cloak of living fire flowing behind him, the man known only as High Inquisitor Valeon descended with the fury of the heavens.
His voice boomed across the plains:
> "Kael of the Abyss.
Former Heir of the Broken Kingdom.
Condemned by the High Order.
Your soul is forfeit."
Kael stood upon the newly raised Citadel walls, his voice calm.
> "I forfeited nothing. I was cast down. And I rose back stronger."
---
Valeon's blade shimmered.
> "You command shadows. You consort with monsters.
The world above burns because of you."
Kael narrowed his eyes.
> "The world above burned long before I fell."
---
Without another word, Valeon struck.
A pillar of light engulfed the Citadel's gates. Rift-creatures screamed and disintegrated. Stone melted.
Kael raised his gauntlet, summoning a massive obsidian barrier.
> [Abyssal Wall: MAX]
The holy light slammed into the wall, but it held—cracked, scorched, but unbroken.
> "You won't break my world a second time."
---
Lyria and Taren joined him on the field. The newly formed Riftbound warriors stood ready—some armored in salvaged gear, others bound with Abyss symbiotes that pulsed with power.
Kael gave one command:
> "Do not seek to destroy him. Only hold him."
He leapt from the wall—straight into Valeon's path.
Steel met shadow.
---
The battle raged across the ruined outer city.
Valeon moved like a meteor—his sword igniting the sky, his every strike backed by centuries of holy war.
Kael answered with abyssal grace—parrying with his living blade, summoning tendrils of void to trap and redirect.
But Valeon's power was rising.
> [Divine Stance: Heavenfall Initiated]
All damage amplified x2. All shadow resistance bypassed.
A final strike came down—too fast, too bright.
But Kael smiled.
> "You're not the only one with allies."
A Rift-creature teleported into the blast zone—absorbing the blow and vanishing in a flash of black mist.
Then—a silver spear pierced Valeon's side.
Taren stood across the field, breath heavy, his spear glowing.
> "No one fights gods alone anymore."
---
Valeon knelt, panting, bleeding light.
But he didn't fall.
> "This… is not over. I was only the first."
> [Warning: Celestial Council Alerted]
Further Enforcers Incoming. Estimated Time: 11 Days.
---
Kael stood over the wounded Paladin.
He could kill him.
He should kill him.
But instead… he offered his hand.
> "Fight with me. You saw the real threat. The world doesn't need gods. It needs balance."
Valeon looked at him, disgust and doubt battling behind his golden eyes.
But in the end… he took the hand.
---