The forest maintains silence while existing in disharmony. The silence sends shivers down my spine because the world seems to be holding its breath in anticipation of an inevitable event.
Aoki tenses. "Do you feel that?"
I do.
I can feel a pulse, like a rumble beneath the roots. The air grows dense with tension while light bends gently around an unseen presence. The entwined roots before us—which once constricted Kiran's body as if they were a cluster of thorns—begin to move.
Then it parts.
And he steps out.
Raffkare.
His size is moderate, yet his presence causes spatial distortion that pushes away both light and life. His body wears ancient organic armor which resembles insect chitin but moves with the grace of silk. His gauntlets and throat show pulsating veins of crimson energy. He wears a half-mask of obsidian bone which conceals most of his face and reveals only a single eye. That eye looks different, not blind, but just strange. His eye maintains awareness in the same way a predator monitors prey that requires no chase.
He walks with confidence, and I guess it comes from how much power he possesses, knowing that we are not a threat to him.
Aoki gasps and Abdul stumbles back. Zach looks at him with hatred and fear.
When Raffkare's eyes settle on me he immediately halts.
"You," he says.
His voice is calm. His voice holds a deep-rooted quality that suggests he has assessed me and found me… interesting.
"You're Wells's little brother."
My heart skips. My breath catches. My fingers tighten around Ink-Edge.
"How did you learn about my brother?" I don't recognize my own voice. It's too sharp. Too brittle.
Raffkare doesn't answer. Not directly. Raffkare moves pass Jennifer who lies unconscious before he lifts his hand above her. Red glyphs emerge into view while performing an incantation with cruel geometric patterns.
"She was weak," he says. "But I gave her purpose. Enhanced her, shaped her, pushed her. And you still crushed her."
He tilts his head. "Unexpected. Unwelcome. But not without merit."
A green spark appears under the roots where Kiran's body rests. Raffkare heads toward it while showing no concern about our presence.
"She died for this," he says as he thrusts his hand into the root-nest and emerges holding a glowing fragment.
No, not glowing, but pulsing.
The shard appears jagged and silver-blue with a crystalline quality resembling a frozen scream. Aether wraps around it. The very forest recoils.
"What is that?" Aoki whispers.
Raffkare looks at us again.
"Its existence came way before the foundations of your educational institutions or whatever else you have seen in this world, and now it's mine."
As I move forward a step Zach begins to walk at the same time. As he stumbles his breath stops while he keeps his eyes focused on the shard.
His voice trembles. "That's what he used. The same energy signature. I experienced exactly the same thing during that night.
His jaw muscles tighten with such force that they make his face shake. His fists tighten, knuckles pale. His anger isn't contained because he's breaking inside under the pressure of his fury.
"The thing appeared at the scene during the time my family lost their lives."
Raffkare examines Zach with his head tilted as if he's observing a strange bug.
"Ah," he says. "You're still breathing. That's… inconvenient."
I position myself between Zach and his potential reckless actions. As my arm reaches out I seize his throat before he can draw his sword.
"Not yet," I murmur.
His shoulders tremble, but he nods.
Rage stirs in my chest. But it's not just about Kiran. Not just about Jennifer. Not just about whatever artifact he's stealing, or even Zach's parents.
It's about all of it.
Zach stands behind me as he struggles to hold himself together.
This isn't just a battle anymore.
It's personal.
"You knew my brother," I say. "Where is he?"
Raffkare smiles. But it's not friendly.
His voice is soft as he says, "You ask questions like a child would."
Raffkare lifts his arm that isn't attached to a sword and makes a fist.
The trees around us scream. Roots break through the earth as living spears while twisting around air to transform the landscape into an unrecognizable form.
Aoki begins to move and her spatial power transforms into translucent membranes that warp the surrounding air. While raising his arms Abdul chants more quickly as light creates a protective dome. Zach uses all his runes to help boost Abdul.
But I don't move.
The Ink-Edge quivers with controlled strength in my grasp. The Arc-Ink Core starts spinning rapidly as though it anticipates impending events.
The constructs awaken deep within my vision. The Assassin. The Elf. The others manifest as echoes of my will while remaining tied to memory and ink. They're ready.
Raffkare steps forward. The light fades while his mask continues to reflect its brightness.
He flicks his wrist.
Above our heads a black sigil tears through the sky ripping open space itself. The swirling void opens downward and resembles an open mouth.
He's not stalling.
He's summoning something.
But we're not waiting either.
Aoki distorts space and releases a compression wave toward him. Zach moves forward abruptly as his hammer strikes through space creating a blinding flash of light and fury. Abdul bellows while magical sigils burst into flame creating three concentric circles around Raffkare's feet.
As my body moves forward I thrust myself into the fight with my Ink-Edge blade shining white-hot.
As my blade cuts through the air it emits a pulse of unstable energy that strikes him directly while shattering the earth behind him into a cascading blast.
The Elf materializes next to me holding a radiant bow which shoots motion-tracking arrows. The Assassin moves quicker as he emerges from behind with twin daggers aimed at his opponent's spine.
But Raffkare doesn't move like a person.
He tilts.
That's all.
Like gravity simply changes direction for him. The Elf's arrows curve off-course. Zach's attack hits but Raffkare is no longer present to receive it. The Assassin's blades plunge into nothing.
One foot firmly on the mage's barrier he stands behind Abdul.
With one decisive strike of his sword after shouting "Bright," he hits his target.
It cracks.
Then it explodes.
Abdul crashes into the dirt, coughing blood.
Zach then switches to a sword and unleashes another swing as his veins burn with furious intensity. Zach's sword connects with Raffkare's blade but only produces faint sparks. Raffkare doesn't even bend under the impact.
"You've gotten stronger," Raffkare says, almost fondly. "It won't matter."
I'm already moving, flanking him. The air splits as Ink-Edge swings to create two explosive shockwaves.
The forest erupts.
Once the smoke dissipates, Raffkare exits completely unharmed.
He asks, "Do you understand what separates borrowed power from earned power?"
He flicks two fingers at me.
I can't use Ink-Edge in time. The explosive force launches me through the air until I collide with a root wall with enough violence to shake my skeleton. The Elf shatters like dust. The Assassin lets his cloak fall to the ground without any movement.
I spit blood and force myself up.
No one's dead. Yet.
But he's not fighting.
He's toying with us.
A cat playing with mice.
I sense the power he summons hidden within the swirling sigil. Something ancient.
My blood runs with a fiery rage that outpowers my fear.
He hasn't won.
Not yet.
Aoki steps forward, brushing ash and sparks off her jacket. Her eyes don't waver.
"I'll hold him."
"Aoki—" I start, but she's already flaring with spatial energy.
"No. If I don't try, we're all dead anyway."
She vanishes. Reappears above Raffkare. Five folds of distorted space spiral out from her fingertips—like razors of bent dimension.
They slash downward.
Raffkare doesn't blink.
He raises his sword, slowly, and flicks it once.
The space folds shatter.
But Aoki isn't done. She twists mid-air, kicking off a floating panel of compressed reality, and drives a spear of pressure straight for his chest. It hits—and the ground quakes from the release.
My heart skips.
But when the dust clears, he's holding her attack in one hand.
Like it's a branch.
He turns his head slightly. "Not bad for a G+."
Then he slams her into the dirt like a ragdoll.
I hear the crack of bone. She doesn't rise.
"AOKI!" Zach yells.
Raffkare tilts his head, amused. "She'll live. Barely."
Abdul is already casting—his lips a blur, energy flaring in three rings of blinding gold.
"I won't let you—!"
The air collapses around Abdul.
I barely register it.
One moment he's glowing. Alive.
The next, his heart is on Raffkare's blade.
Time stops.
Zach screams. I do too, but nothing comes out.
Raffkare pulls his sword back gently, letting Abdul's body drop like it weighs nothing.
His eyes land on me.
"Your turn."
My legs move without me telling them to. Ink-Edge hums so hard it hurts.
But I know.
I know.
He's just toying with me like he did the others. Playing god. Drawing it out.
Then—
A rip in space.
Two figures burst through.
Chris lands in a crouch, already drawing his gauntlets with fire dancing on his arms.
The other lands upright.
Julian.
The air shifts.
Even Raffkare pauses.
Julian doesn't look at me. Or Zach. Or even the corpse behind him.
His eyes go straight to Raffkare.
"Chris," he says, voice calm. "Back off."
Chris blinks. "What? No. We can take him to—"
Julian turns his head slightly, just enough to show the sharpness behind his voice.
"You can't. He'll kill you."
Raffkare chuckles. "Ah. What a drag."
Julian's fists clench, but his expression doesn't change.
Zach steps beside me. His knuckles are white around the grip of his sword. He hasn't said a word since Abdul died. Not a whisper. Just that stare—burning, fixed, hateful.
It's like all the rage in the world condensed into one boy's heartbeat.
But even he knows.
This... this isn't our fight anymore.
Not right now.
Julian steps forward, and the ground cracks beneath his feet.
[Yo, I know it's been a long time, but I am back.]
[Julian has Codex 098: Manifestation and Codex 999: Flames.]
That catches me off guard, my codex is finally back, and wait—two Codices?
[Many people do, you idiot.]
Right. That text bubble again.
Still—if that's true, why didn't my Codex say anything the first time I met Julian? It should've reacted. Scanned him. Something.
But it was dead silent.
Like even it knew to shut up in the presence of someone like him.
I glance up. Julian walks toward us like he's not worried in the slightest. He doesn't even draw a weapon. Doesn't flare his Aether.
And yet…
The air itself starts to warp around him. Folds. Flees.
Raffkare chuckles, low and dry. "So the leader finally steps out of the shadows."
Julian doesn't stop.
He barely even looks at Raffkare.
"You killed Abdul," Julian says. "You touched my little brother."
His eyes glow faintly gold, like a forge waiting to roar.
"I should've ended you years ago."
Raffkare smiles with too many teeth. "And you didn't. Because deep down, you wanted this moment."
Julian tilts his head. "No. I just didn't want to dirty my Codex with your name."
At that, the pages ripple into existence behind him—one a glowing white-gold sheet of Aether, marked 098, the other jet-black and scorched at the edges, etched with the number 999
My own Codex jitters like it's reacting to pressure. Is it Fear?
Zach stares, eyes wide with something close to awe and rage fused into one.
"I've seen Julian fight only once," he whispers. "It wasn't even a fight. It was a massacre."
His fists clench. "Raffkare should be dead."
Aoki, still unconscious. Abdul, gone.
Jennifer still breathing faintly on the ground.
I tighten my grip on Ink-Edge, but part of me knows—this isn't my fight anymore.
This is something beyond us.
Raffkare doesn't flinch. "Show me then, Vanguard."
He spreads his arms, as if welcoming Julian into an embrace of death.
"I want to see if your legend matches the stories."
Julian stops walking.
"Fine," he mutters.
And then—
The world ignites.
As soon as Julian shifts his position the forest disappears from existence.
Not literally. At that precise moment when the temperature oscillate wildly and the air lost its natural properties while the sky split open as though it has its own message to deliver—I understand that this is not a duel.
This is a collision between disasters.
Without chanting or creating a flare Julian disappears and reappears next to Raffkare with a heated fist at the ready. He doesn't even punch.
He presses his hand forward.
The explosion detonates sound before anything else. The combined forces of pressure and light with raw power pile on top of each other transform trees into dust while turning the earth below into liquid glass. I went flying backwards even though a barrier surrounded me. My ears ring. Zach barely succeeds in catching me while he fights to maintain his balance.
Raffkare's body shatters into black mist.
But I know that is not it. I just know.
The black mist twists through the air resembling smoke before solidifying back into Raffkare who now displays sharp extensions along his spine. His face still wears that smile. Mocking. Almost amused.
"Flames and manifestation," he announces while brushing ash from his shoulders. "How inefficient. You burn through energy like it's nothing."
Julian doesn't answer. Reality buckles when one of the pages tucked behind him flips open.
The air fills with a burning halo of molten script. I fail to read the symbols that sear themselves into the sky, resembling furious star patterns. Julian's left hand becomes the catalyst for the existence of a burning spear, which materializes on its own and is created through an unstable fusion of fire and ink rather than being thrown.
Raffkare lunges forward.
They confront each other at the center once more, with a black wave opposing a living manifestation of fire.
Their clash distorts space. As Raffkare moves forward, his claws sweep the space behind him and leave streaks of void in their wake. With a quick flick of his arm, Julian melts Raffkare's claws before they can reach him. The spear undergoes an elongation during its spin, allowing it to double its length before hitting Raffkare in the ribs, causing the world to bend under its power.
Raffkare releases a howl of delight instead of expressing pain. "YES! Now you're awake!"
The attacker releases a swarm of twitching appendages that unpredictably sprout additional arms and eyes, along with other monstrous forms that violate human appearance. Each lash cracks the air. The impact of each lash would shred anyone else in an instant.
Julian doesn't dodge. He lets them come.
Suddenly, his body shatters into another version of himself.
A burning afterimage.
Two versions of Julian move through the chaos together—one real while the other is an echo—they attack from opposite directions while showing coordinated, effortless destruction. They aren't even separate. Will alone creates multiple aspects of one presence because of time looping.
Raffkare's body starts to falter.
Pieces of his form detach as they burn and disintegrate. But his laugh doesn't stop. Through the battlefield ruins, the sound reverberates as it ridicules the physics principles we still trust.
His blood streams from his mouth like ink as he spits out the words, "You're strong."
Julian raises a hand. "None of your current observations show my true potential."
Then he opens both Codex pages.
Codex 098 and 999 flare at once.
The sky turns black. The ground freezes. Memory releases the fire that Julian has encountered on previous battlefields and created with his weapons while surviving violent moments. They pour into this place like ghosts.
"Codex Chain: Twin Ruin."
The world breaks.
I have no idea how to explain this situation. One second, we are watching a fight. Inside the Codex, we find ourselves trapped within Julian's altered spatial dimensions. The forest is gone. We find ourselves in a non-combat area that appears as a complex enclosure of hovering pages vibrating with his unique signature. The Codex bends reality itself. Time stutters. My breath catches in my throat.
Julian delivers a single blow, yet in that singular moment the strike occurs thousands of times throughout multiple dimensions.
Each hit is real. Every strike destroys a fragment of Raffkare.
It isn't just flame now. It is flame that manifests possibility. Julian transforms each hypothetical scenario into a weapon.
What if he cuts Raffkare's legs off? It happens.
What if he sears through his thoughts? That too.
He annihilates the portion of Raffkare which believes in his own victory.
That is the final blow.
Raffkare falls into the center of the battlefield, his body partially regenerated while his chest emits smoke from his internal fire. For the first time, he looks shaken.
Julian looms above him while the Codex pages behind him begin to fade. He doesn't gloat. He doesn't speak.
He just waits.
Raffkare chuckles through blood. "I see it now. You're not fighting me. You're sending a message."
Julian nods once. "Exactly."
"To who?"
"Every person who believes they can harm my family without consequences."
Then Julian turns around. The Codex pages vanish. The world gradually regains its normalcy as trees reform into unusual patterns and wind resumes its steady beat while time reestablishes equilibrium.
But Raffkare… isn't dead.
With a glimpse, he disappears, taking the shard with him while his laughter spreads like smoke behind him.
Julian lets him go.
I didn't understand at first. But then I look at him.
Julian is shaking.
He is bleeding.
Not on the outside—but inside. I can see it. The essence of his being has experienced a slight tear. That fight isn't easy. Not even for him.
Zach advances with care, and his fists remain tightly clenched while his jaw stays firm. He doesn't say anything.
His eyes pierce through the void where Raffkare has disappeared.
"I'll kill him one day," Julian whispers.
I look at Julian.
And I believe he will.