They stared at each other.
A brief silence hung between them—broken only by Kael's heavy breathing and the low hum of the white expanse.
Then—
GROOOOSH!
All four of Noxis's arms shot forward at once.
And—
BRAAAK!
They smashed into the massive cube Kael had been standing on.
The cube shattered instantly, fragments exploding outward like gray glass. But Kael was already gone. His body had shifted—reappearing atop another floating cube higher above, Astra gleaming in his grip.
From below, Noxis's red lenses flashed. "Heh…"
But the hands did not stop.
Suddenly—
The air tore open with small crimson flares, one after another. Not large portals, but narrow slits—opening and closing in the blink of an eye.
From within, Noxis's two Serpent Blades lashed out, their tips burning as they bombarded Kael with a relentless storm of thrusts and slashes.
For a heartbeat, Kael froze.
Then his body moved before his thoughts could catch up.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Astra deflected strike after strike, forcing Kael back half a step. But one Serpent Blade slipped in too close—its edge slicing across his shoulder, leaving a thin, searing cut.
Red blood dripped, catching the cold gleam of Astra's steel.
"Tch—" Kael hissed.
His gaze hardened. Not panic. Not fear.
"So it's not just reach…" he muttered under a short breath. "…you can strike from anywhere."
His lips curved faintly.
"Annoying."
The assault did not relent. The thrusts came again like a storm. Kael parried one, then two, then three—his body swaying left and right, yet his footing remained precise.
Meanwhile, on another front—
ZRRRRRRT!
The sound of a saw rang out—but this time it wasn't aimed at him. The circular blade tore through empty air, slicing the white dimension vertically from top to bottom—directly above Kael's head.
As if reality itself were being cut apart.
A glowing red fissure split open, widening—until a massive portal yawned wide.
And from within—
Mauler Maw burst forth, its enormous fist driving straight toward Kael, intent on crushing him in a single, overwhelming blow.
Kael turned, eyes narrowing. With a push from his right foot, he leapt sideways—evading just in time—and landed on a smaller floating cube nearby.
The massive hand slammed into empty space—and the cube behind him exploded under the force.
The battle turned into a chase.
Kael ran, leaping from one cube to another, his body blurring with speed, his blade striking whenever an opening appeared. But Noxis's four arms pursued without pause, emerging from crimson portals in every direction—below, beside, behind.
Whenever a cube stood in their way, they destroyed it.
BRRAK! BRAK! BRAAANG!
The cubes shattered one by one, bursting into fragments that filled the white space with drifting debris. The thunder of impacts and tearing space fused into a brutal symphony.
And Noxis—he did not move.
He stood below, arms crossed, mask tilted slightly upward.
Watching.
As though the destruction were a performance staged for his amusement.
At last, Kael leapt high and landed against the side of a massive floating cube. He hit hard, breath ragged, blood seeping from his shoulder, sweat dripping from his jaw.
Now he stood above—surrounded by dozens of cubes still adrift.
For a moment, everything paused.
The crashes ceased, leaving only the sound of Kael's breathing.
He stood atop the massive surface, body swaying as he fought for air. His shoulders rose and fell, sweat dripping freely—yet his eyes remained sharp and cold, as if sheer will alone kept him standing while his lungs screamed.
I can't keep going like this…
The thought echoed only in his mind.
If I keep defending, sooner or later I'll be cornered. They won't stop.
I need something that can match them—something that can tear through them before I'm torn apart myself.
Not long after—
The cubes around him began to collapse one by one, crushed by Noxis's rampaging hands. Red dust scattered, fragments drifted, and heavy detonations rang out each time a massive cube cracked and burst. The space became a stage of ruin, with Kael at its center.
He clenched his teeth, eyes darting, tracking the rhythm of the incoming threat.
I can't hesitate. Those two weapons… it's time to call them back. If my body still remembers Astra, then it must remember the other form as well.
Kael closed his eyes briefly, then crossed his arms over his chest. A pale gold-silver light bloomed from his wrists, spreading outward—forming glowing line patterns along his arms.
Aetherial energy carved itself directly into his body.
His voice trembled—metallic in its echo—as a short incantation slipped from his lips.
"Return to me. Astron… Fiyn."
At once, the light pulsed—not bursting, but splitting cleanly, precise and ordered, like a system reactivating.
From his grasp, two weapons took shape almost at the same time.
In his right hand, Astron formed with a dense, compact metallic sound—a futuristic pistol with a thick frame, clad in white plating edged with gold. Thin red lines ran along its body like living circuits, pulsing faintly as the energy within stabilized. Its barrel wasn't long, yet it felt solid and heavy, as though never meant for rapid fire—but for a single shot that decided life and death.
In his left hand, Fiyn manifested as a slender blade. From a mechanism along his forearm, white-gold metal extended downward with near-perfect precision, forming a straight edge of razor-sharp angles. Black accents and thin red lines lined its base and joints, like sealed channels locking energy within the weapon's frame.
Its form bore no resemblance to an ordinary dagger—no curves, no ornament. Every edge was firm and cold, as if Fiyn had not been forged by human hands, but assembled by a logic of combat that knew only efficiency and destruction. Its tip gleamed faintly—not from reflected light, but from a sharpness long accustomed to resistance.
Neither weapon felt foreign in his hands.
They fit—perfectly—as if they had always belonged there.
Kael opened his eyes, drew a deep breath, and lowered both weapons.
For a brief moment, the space fell silent—broken only by fading ripples of energy from the shattered cubes—before the rumble returned.
From far below, Noxis's voice thundered upward, thick with mockery, as if he could see and sense everything Kael was doing.
"So you've finally stopped running, little Assassin. Let us see… whether your new toys can withstand my wrath."
The four hands vanished once more—only to erupt again from crimson portals tearing open in the air. The crack of splitting space and a low, ominous hum followed, making it feel as though the space around Kael had become a tightening snare.
They closed in, sealing every angle, leaving not even the smallest gap to escape.
Kael lifted his gaze slightly, eyes locking onto the looming silhouettes around him.
His breathing was heavy—but steady. "Calm down, Kael… don't panic."
He lowered his head a fraction, grip tightening around Astron and Fiyn, the joints of his fingers tensing. His eyelids closed again—but not to escape fear.
This time, it was to build victory.
"Every movement… I have to see it before it happens."
Slowly, he raised Astron, level with his shoulder, angled slightly left—like a spear poised to pierce space itself.
His other arm lifted Fiyn, resting it above his right elbow, forming a layered stance—defense and offense in one.
And when Kael opened his eyes—
His gaze had changed.
It settled into something cold and absolute. A faint red light swirled within his irises, glimmering softly. His jaw tightened, and a low, steady voice slipped from his lips.
"I'm ready."
And in that instant—
The first strike came. One of the Serpent Blades lashed out from the left like lightning, aimed straight for his neck.
By reflex, Kael snapped his head toward it. His body leaned forward, then turned left—and in that motion, Fiyn rose, tracing an arc of light. Metal crashed against metal, the shock rippling outward as sparks burst violently before his eyes.
KRENNGGGKK!
—slow motion.
The sparks froze midair, each fragment suspended as if held by his will. Between those frozen flashes, Kael's eyes sharpened.
He raised Astron.
His finger pulled the trigger.
Three flashes.
DAR! DAR! DAR!
The bullets tore through the Serpent Blades, overtaking sparks still hanging in the air. When time surged forward again, the blades were flung aside, their organic metal shredding like paper.
But it wasn't over.
A second Serpent Blade slashed diagonally, followed by two rapid thrusts, then a swift horizontal sweep—every strike aimed at Kael's neck.
Yet Kael moved as if he had read the pattern before the first swing began.
He tilted his torso, stepped lightly to the right, slid his head left and right like passing wind, then dipped sharply forward. Each lethal strike cut only air—shearing strands of his hair, never once touching his skin.
His gaze remained cold—no fear, only a silence ruled by control.
Before the Serpent Blades could strike again, Kael twisted. His leg snapped upward, slamming hard into the enemy's head.
GRAACKKK!
The crack of organic metal rang out as the creature's head jerked violently. Yet Kael did not slow.
The world did.
Time stretched—dragged, as if sinking into thick mud.
Within that suspended space, Kael raised Astron. One steady breath—
Then three shots rang out in succession.
DAR! DAR! DAR!
The bullets tore through the hollow of the Serpent Blade's head. And when time resumed, everything detonated at once—thunder cracking, sparks bursting, the Serpent Blade hurled away, smashing through floating cubes and reducing them to debris.
For a brief moment, both Serpent Blades vanished from sight.
Then a new threat came from behind.
A heavy rumble thundered as the cube beneath him split apart. From below, Mauler Maw surged upward, its gaping, jaw-like grip opening wide—intent on crushing Kael in a single grasp.
Kael sprinted forward at once, breathing steady, never looking back.
But in the next instant—
A crimson slit tore open directly ahead, horizontal like a wound in the air. From within emerged the danger that had been waiting all along.
Gnashing Saw.
With the wild screech of its spinning wheel, it lunged forward, its rotating blade aimed straight for Kael's neck as he ran toward it.
Yet Kael did not waver.
He knew exactly what to do.
His foot lifted—half his sole pressing against empty air, as if even the void bent into a foothold. His body sprang backward, precise and fluid. Not a panicked escape, but the motion of an acrobat honed by repetition.
Mid-leap, he threw Astron and Fiyn upward.
—slow motion again.
His body floated, turning through the air.
As his rotation brought his gaze downward, his eyes locked briefly onto Mauler Maw surging up from below, its fingers snapping shut just inches from his body.
Then he turned again—facing the sky—and another death awaited.
Gnashing Saw spun wildly before his face, its blade so close it nearly grazed his nose.
Kael's eyes widened, pupils dilating. His breath caught—raw, immediate terror. Only a razor-thin margin kept him alive, suspended between two converging deaths.
And yet, within his grasp, Astra began to form—golden light coiling around it.
With a single twist, he swung.
Fast. Decisive.
Golden light carved through space, slicing cleanly toward both cores.
—time resumed.
SRINNCGGG!
The strike rang out.
Gnashing Saw and Mauler Maw were severed in one motion. Their cores shattered, their forms recoiling—then collapsing, erased by the golden flash.
The massive cube beneath Kael trembled violently, cracks racing across its surface.
For the first time since the battle began, all four of Noxis's hands shuddered—weakening.
Kael landed lightly, knees bending to absorb the impact as Astra faded from his grasp. From above, Astron and Fiyn dropped cleanly back into his hands, as if guided by unseen intent.
The arena fell silent. Only the distant collapse of other cubes echoed through the void.
Amid the ruin, Kael stood tall. His weapons gleamed, his aura cold and resolute—unyielding, like an immovable pillar.
Slowly, he lowered one arm. Astron angled downward—not at the cube beneath him, but into the open space between the drifting structures, aimed at the presence watching from below.
The barrel remained steady, unmoving—as if distance meant nothing.
"Now… it's my turn."
***