Meanwhile, on the other side of the base, Tamsin faced off against Lucius.
The man's expression was strange—like he was seeing something impossible.
"You're... just a boy?" Lucius said slowly, disbelief cutting through his voice.
Tamsin blinked, reaching up to touch his face.
That's when he felt it—the cool air against his skin. His fingers brushed the torn edge of his mask.
The headbutt.
Lucius's hit had shattered his mask completely, exposing his face to the open.
But what really threw Tamsin off wasn't the damage—it was the look in Lucius's eyes.
Confusion. Shock. Almost... fear?
"Are you shocked that a boy whooped your ass a moment ago?" Tamsin said, his voice still rough, the world slightly spinning around him.
Lucius blinked, snapping out of whatever trance he'd been in. His expression hardened, the shock fading into cold authority.
"Who are you? What faction are you from? Are you working for the Divine Beings?" Lucius demanded. His tone carried weight — suspicion mixed with calculation.
Tamsin knew exactly why he asked. A teenager shouldn't have been able to match a Stage Seven, even for a second.
To Lucius, it only meant one thing — someone powerful had to be backing him. Someone with deep pockets and rare resources.
"I'm from the Dragon Roar Faction," Tamsin replied flatly.
For a split second, Lucius' face eased.
'Hah... sure, he hasn't even heard of us. He's just relieved I'm not tied to any of the Divine Beings,' Tamsin thought, his lip twitching in irony.
Most people in his shoes would've claimed allegiance to a Divine Being just to buy time — maybe even save their skin. But Tamsin wasn't built that way. His family's war with the Nine Divine Beings was personal. There was no hiding under their banner — not now, not ever.
Lucius exhaled slowly, then lifted his hand. The ring on his finger pulsed faintly, glowing with golden light. In an instant, a new set of clothes materialized over his scarred body, replacing the shredded remains from the earlier clash.
He turned toward Tamsin again, eyes colder than before.
"Your faction… I haven't heard of it. That means there won't be much backlash if I kill you here," Lucius said, voice steady, eyes sharp like blades.
He tilted his head slightly. "It's a pity, though. You're talented… strong, even."
Tamsin didn't answer. His eyes darted around the rocky ground, scanning every shadow, every flicker of movement. He was looking for the others—hoping they'd show up any second.
But then, something caught his attention.
Far off, near the elevator climbing the cliff, someone was moving.
He squinted, focusing through the dust and distance.
'Alex?' the name flashed in his head like lightning.
Lucius followed his gaze. His eyes locked onto the same spot—someone standing there, dressed just like Tamsin.
For a split second, the air went still.
Tamsin moved. Fast.
He lunged, going for Lucius's blind side. Every muscle screamed as he threw his weight behind the attack.
But Lucius was already turning. His arm whipped out— smack!
The slap hit like a hammer.
Tamsin's vision spun. The world tilted sideways, colors blending into dark blur. His body hit the dirt hard, rolling once before stopping.
Lucius stood over him for a second, eyes cold.
'That should keep him asleep till I'm back,' he thought, flexing his hand.
He turned toward the cliff.
'If the others are as strong as this one, Varkov won't last long. I need to move now.'
With a low hum of energy, Lucius vanished, sprinting toward the base.
The battlefield fell silent except for the faint whine of the wind.
A few minutes later, Gwen arrived. She'd been tracking the shockwaves from their fight. Her boots crunched over gravel as she slowed, scanning the area—then froze.
"Tamsin!" she shouted, sprinting toward him.
He was lying face-down, motionless, blood streaked down his cheek. Gwen dropped to her knees, hands trembling as she turned him over.
His face was swollen, red, and bruised. But he was breathing.
His eyelids fluttered weakly.
"Save… Alex," Tamsin forced out, voice barely a whisper.
Gwen's throat tightened. She gritted her teeth, pushing to her feet.
It didn't take long before Merrick showed up.
"What happened?" he asked, breath fogging in the cold air.
"What do you think happened?" Gwen snapped, not looking up as she eased Tamsin down onto the cold ground.
The hit had knocked him out; he lay limp, chest rising slow. He needed a minute to recover on his own.
Gwen's voice hardened. "Quick—Lucius is after Alex. Find a position and slow him with your sniper. I'm going after him."
She didn't wait for Merrick to answer. Gwen planted both feet, gathered the buster energy into her legs, and launched herself upward.
Her figure streaked into the sky like a missile, a faint trail of displaced snow following her as she headed for the cliff.
Merrick moved fast but precise. He climbed a broken pole, found a stable perch, and set up his sniper. The scope hissed as he adjusted for distance and wind.
Through the crosshairs he found Alex—riding the elevator up, moving steadily toward the cliff.
Then, elsewhere across the base, Merrick caught another blur. Someone darted from rooftop to rooftop, a shadowed figure cutting the distance in a way only a paragon could. Lucius. Too fast for a clean lock, but not impossible to slow.
Merrick traced the likely path with his eyes. He calculated angles, timing, and where Lucius would have to pass for the cliff elevator to be relevant.
He steadied his breathing, felt the familiar hum of the rifle syncing with his qi, and took the shot.
BOOM!
As Lucius sprinted forward, the ground ahead of him suddenly erupted.
A blast tore through the air, shaking dust and stone in every direction.
Lucius froze mid-stride, eyes narrowing. He turned—just in time to spot Merrick perched on a high beam, sniper steady, barrel smoking.
Bang!
Another qi round screamed through the air. Lucius raised his arm in reflex. The glowing projectile slammed into his palm—
Boom!
A burst of blue light rippled through him, scattering sparks and ash.
When the smoke cleared, Lucius was still standing. His sleeve was shredded, hand steaming slightly—but otherwise, untouched. His expression darkened.
He turned sharply, boots cracking the metal beneath him as he dashed toward Alex's position, leaving a faint afterimage behind.
Meanwhile, from the elevator lift halfway up the cliff, Alex could see everything. The flickering lights below. The explosions. And now, Lucius—closing in fast.
'Did he find me?' Alex thought, heart hammering. His grip on the axe tightened until his knuckles turned white.
'He's a stage seven...' His breath caught. 'If it comes to that, I'll have to use my bloodline power.'
He steadied himself as the lift rattled upward, eyes never leaving Lucius's figure below.
Lucius reached the base of the cliff in seconds. He crouched low, muscles flexing as he gathered qi into his legs for a massive leap.
But before he could launch—
Crack!
An electric whip lashed across his back, lightning bursting through the air. The impact threw him forward.
Gwen landed hard behind him, the ground fracturing under her boots.
Without hesitation, she snapped her wrist again. The whip coiled around Lucius's torso, glowing veins of electricity dancing across its length.
Sparks exploded around them, the air trembling from the sheer voltage.
Lucius gritted his teeth as the current tore through his body—but Gwen didn't stop. Her expression was ice-cold.
"You're not going anywhere," she said, pulling the whip tighter.
Lucius gritted his teeth and pulled the whip hard.
The coil bit into Gwen's waist. She went airborne.
He swung her like a rag, spinning her through the air, then slammed her into the mountain wall.
Stone and snow exploded outward. A chunk of the cliff sheared off and tumbled down, burying Gwen under a spray of rock and powder.
Lucius ripped the whip free. He shook the cord out as if throwing away an annoying insect, then glanced up. The elevator was almost at the top.
'Varkov is a troublesome lad,' he thought, eyes cold. 'But his service is useful for now. He stays alive—at least a little longer.'
He bent, coiled his legs, and gathered qi into his hips. The earth beneath him cracked and spidered with stress as he launched upward in a single, brutal bound.
Below, Merrick never stopped firing. Bullets hammered the cliff-face where Lucius had been. Sparks and flecks of ice shivered off the rock with every impact.
Alex tightened his grip on the axe. The elevator rattled; the climb felt suddenly too slow. He could see Lucius drawing near the rim.
[Bloodline activated]
The system blinked across Alex's vision. His chest stung with the first rush of power. He centered himself and let the bloodline hum under his skin.
What Alex didn't know yet: his activation set off a ripple.
Merrick, still braced on his perch, felt something shift inside him. A warmth, then a pressure, like distant thunder gathering in his bones.
It was an energy he hadn't touched in a long time — something old and familiar, waking up.
'What the—' Merrick muttered, hand steady on the sniper. The scope trembled slightly, not from recoil but from the pulse moving through him.
The energy crawled through Merrick's sniper, pooling into a single red bullet that pulsed like it was alive.
He took a shaky breath. Then—
Bang!
The shot cracked the air like thunder.
Not far from the pole, Tamsin's eyes snapped open. That same strange red glow shimmered in them, bright and unnatural.
From under a pile of snow and rocks, Gwen exploded out, gasping for air. Her eyes burned with the same light.
Then Merrick's body went slack. He slipped from the pole, hitting the frozen ground hard. The rifle fell beside him with a dull thud.
The bullet screamed across the air, chasing Lucius just as he reached the elevator's ledge.
Lucius turned—his gaze met Alex's. Just a heartbeat. Just long enough.
Then the world tore open.
BOOM!
The bullet went off like a grenade, bursting into a blinding red flash that swallowed everything.
Lucius was thrown off the base, his body flung into the storm like a broken doll.
Silence followed. The kind that made your ears ring.
Tamsin pushed himself up, eyes on Merrick. The red glow still flickered behind Merrick's dazed stare.
"What did you do, Merrick?" Tamsin asked quietly.