Chapter 2:
The air in the shattered Moonlight Guild hall still crackled with the echoes of battle. Moonlight streamed through the fractured dome, highlighting broken marble, scorch marks, and the fading traces of shadowy tendrils. Lyria stood rigid, her glowing blades dissolving into silver mist as her breathing slowed. Her body was unhurt, but her heart pounded with the weight of what had just happened.
The Obsidian Order. Here. In her guild.
And then there was him.
Kairo Stormwind leaned casually against a cracked pillar, lightning still crackling lazily around his fists. He seemed completely unfazed by the destruction around them, as though battling shadow-spawn in a rival guild's tower was just another Tuesday. His grin lingered, infuriatingly confident.
"You're welcome," he said again, flashing her a wink.
Lyria's violet eyes narrowed dangerously. "I didn't ask for your help." Her voice was steady, sharp, but beneath it was the faintest tremor of annoyance.
"You didn't need to," Kairo replied, brushing a streak of soot off his sleeve. "You looked like you were about to get swallowed whole. Figured I'd step in before you became part of the décor."
Her blades reformed instantly in her hands, glowing bright enough to cut through the shadows still clinging to the edges of the hall. "Say that again," she said, her voice quiet but dangerous.
Nyxara padded between them, her luminous eyes flicking from one to the other. "Enough," the fox said softly, though her tone carried authority that even Kairo paused at. "The shadows may have retreated, but their master's intent was clear. This was not a random attack—it was a test."
"A test?" Lyria asked, forcing her blades to dissolve once more.
Nyxara's tail swayed, leaving faint trails of light in the air. "Yes. The Obsidian Order is searching. They have long whispered of a prophecy—of a star-born soul with power strong enough to unite the Seven Stones. They seek that soul to bend the fate of Aetheris."
Kairo tilted his head, intrigued. "Star-born, huh? Sounds poetic. Don't tell me they're after you, Moonlight Bosslady?"
Lyria stiffened, her violet eyes flickering dangerously as she turned her gaze toward him. "My name is Lyria Moonfall," she corrected.
"Moonfall, Moonlight, Bosslady," he shrugged. "All sound dramatic enough. You don't exactly blend in."
She almost struck him then and there—but Nyxara's presence was enough to steady her temper.
"Why are you here, Tempest boy?" she asked instead.
Kairo straightened, his grin fading slightly. For the first time, he seemed serious. "Because my guild sent me. Strange storms have been tearing apart the outer isles. Tempest Guild believes it's not natural—it's connected to the Obsidian Order. I tracked the storm patterns, and they led me here. Straight to your guild's doorstep."
Lyria's heart clenched. If the Obsidian Order was causing storms across Aetheris, then their reach was already wider than she feared. Her mind replayed the crimson glow in the intruder's eyes, the way the shadows had consumed even the moonlight. That power wasn't simple dark magic—it was something older, deeper.
Kairo must have noticed her silence, because he leaned in slightly. "And, judging by the mess here, I'd say I was right."
"Don't overestimate yourself," she shot back, folding her arms. "You didn't defeat them. They retreated."
Kairo grinned again. "And yet you'd be dead if I hadn't walked in. Call it a draw?"
Her glare could have cut stone, but Nyxara interrupted before the exchange could flare into another argument. "Both of you are right," the fox said gently. "And both of you are wrong. Tonight's battle is not the end—it is the beginning."
The hall fell into silence again, the weight of Nyxara's words hanging heavy.
Lyria finally turned toward the broken window, gazing at the rolling sea of clouds below. "If the prophecy is true… then the Obsidian Order won't stop. They'll keep coming."
Nyxara stepped closer, her fur shimmering faintly as the moonlight touched it. "The stars do not lie, Lyria. You carry within you a fragment of something older than Aetheris itself. Whether it saves or destroys… depends not on fate, but on choice."
Kairo whistled low. "Well, that sounds dramatic enough for an opening act." He shoved his hands into his pockets, sparks still flickering lazily between his fingers. "If they're after you, Moonfall, then I guess we're in this together. Lucky for you, I make a great partner."
"I don't need a partner," she replied immediately, her tone cold.
"Good thing I wasn't asking," Kairo said with a smirk.
For a long moment, Lyria considered drawing her blades again. But she stopped herself. As infuriating as he was, she couldn't deny the truth—his lightning had resonated with her moonlight. For a brief moment, their powers had combined in a way she had never experienced before. It was dangerous, unsettling… but also powerful.
Finally, she turned back to Nyxara. "If what you say is true, then we need answers. The ruins beneath the Sky Temple might hold records of the prophecy. We leave at dawn."
Kairo stretched, yawning exaggeratedly. "Dawn, huh? Guess I should find a bed then. Or do you Moonlight folks sleep standing up, glaring at each other all night?"
Her eyes narrowed again. "You'll sleep outside."
He raised an eyebrow. "Harsh. But fine. Don't come crying to me when a storm beast wanders in and eats your garden."
Nyxara's soft laugh chimed in the background, the sound echoing faintly against the fractured walls. "Perhaps, Lady Lyria, it is not so terrible to have someone who disrupts your balance. Even the moon needs the storm to break the stillness of the night sky."
Lyria sighed, running a hand through her silver hair. "I don't trust him."
"You don't have to," Nyxara replied gently. "The stars will decide whether trust is earned."
As the moon dipped lower, casting long shadows through the ruins of the hall, Lyria felt the chill of something greater looming over her. The Obsidian Order's eyes were on her now. And with them came the weight of a destiny she had never wanted.
She looked once more at Kairo—standing tall, reckless, sparks of lightning still dancing around him like a storm contained in human form.
Perhaps Nyxara was right.
Perhaps this was only the beginning....