Time slowed.
The attack had already been released.
There was no stopping it.
No redirecting it.
No outmaneuvering it.
It was perfect.
And it was aimed—
at the one man who couldn't defend himself.
"…VAEL'THORIN—!" the chief cried out.
Sora moved.
No thought.
No hesitation.
Just instinct.
His body stepped forward—
placing himself between them.
"…Don't you dare—!"
Flames erupted—
not wild—
not explosive—
but condensed—
forced into his body—
into his blade—
into his stance.
"…hurt him!"
The attack hit.
BOOM—
Aether collided with fire—
and for a split second—
the world shattered.
The ground beneath Sora broke apart—
his body bent under the force—
his flames trying—
failing—
to fully hold it back.
"…GHH—!"
Pain.
Raw.
Violent.
Unforgiving.
The attack tore through him—
not clean—
not precise—
but overwhelming.
Then—
It exploded.
Sora was thrown—
his body launched across the village—
crashing through debris—
rolling—
until he finally stopped—
motionless.
"…SORA—!" the chief screamed.
Silence followed.
For half a second.
Then—
Vael'thorin froze.
His arm still extended.
His body trembling.
"…I…"
The word barely escaped.
His blackened eyes flickered—
just for a moment—
something human.
"…what… did I…"
Crack.
A line of light split across his arm.
Then another.
Then another.
His entire body began to fracture—
not physically—
but with aether.
Leaking.
Overflowing.
Breaking.
"…No…"
His voice distorted—
layered—
two voices again.
"…MAKE IT STOP—!"
The aether surged violently.
Not controlled.
Not directed.
Collapsing inward—
compressing—
building—
too much—
far too much.
Johan's eyes widened.
"…He's going to—"
Everything around Vael'thorin bent.
The air warped.
The ground lifted—
then cracked apart.
"…explode…"
There was no time.
No second plan.
No backup.
Johan stepped forward.
"…Then I'll stop it."
His hand rose.
Aether responded.
Not wide.
Not vast.
Focused.
Precise.
A barrier formed—
a sphere—
surrounding Vael'thorin completely.
Just in time.
BOOM—
The explosion hit.
Inside.
Contained.
But not stable.
Crack—
The barrier shattered instantly.
"…Tch—!"
Johan's eyes sharpened—
He rebuilt it.
Immediately.
Crack—
Shattered again.
Again.
Again.
Again.
"…Hold—!"
His hands trembled.
Aether poured from him—
faster—
harder—
beyond control.
Blood dripped from his nose.
Then—
his eyes.
Vision blurring—
body shaking—
but he didn't stop.
He couldn't.
Inside the barrier—
pure destruction.
A sphere of violent energy—
trying to escape—
pressing—
tearing—
breaking everything it touched.
"…NOT—YET—!"
Johan forced it again—
layer after layer—
stacking barriers—
reforming them faster than they could break.
Milliseconds.
No—
Less than that.
His mind screamed.
His body failed.
But his control—
held.
Barely.
"…Stay… contained…"
The light inside intensified—
blinding—
burning—
collapsing in on itself.
Then—
It stopped.
Silence.
The pressure vanished.
The light faded.
The barrier shattered—
this time—
for good.
Johan dropped to his knees.
Then—
collapsed.
"…Hah… …hah…"
His breathing uneven—
his body unresponsive—
vision fading.
At the center—
Vael'thorin stood.
Barely.
His body burned—
aether drained—
cracks gone—
but so was the power.
His eyes—
no longer black.
Just empty.
Unconscious.
He fell.
Face-first into the ground.
Silence returned.
Heavy.
Broken.
The chief ran.
Past everything—
past the destruction—
past the fear—
straight to Sora.
"…Sora…!"
He dropped beside him—
hands shaking—
checking—
breathing.
"…You idiot…"
His voice broke.
"…Why would you…"
Sora didn't answer.
Didn't move.
But—
he was breathing.
Faint.
Weak.
Alive.
Not far—
Johan lay still.
Conscious—
but barely.
"…We… held it…"
His voice almost gone.
"…Yeah…"
A whisper.
From no one.
From nowhere.
From somewhere else.
Far beyond.
Watching.
A presence stirred.
Amused.
Disappointed.
"…Tch…"
A pause.
"…So the vessel broke."
Silence.
Then—
"…No matter."
A faint glow.
Eyes in the dark.
Cold.
Calculating.
"…There are always… more."
And just like that—
It was gone.
Leaving nothing behind—
except the damage.
And the survivors.
Breathing.
Broken.
Changed.
The village stood in ruins.
But it still stood.
Because they held the line.
Even when it almost broke them.