Clouds drifted high above, heavy with tornt, unleashing their sorrow upon the earth below.
The rain fell in violent sheets, as if vying with the scorching sun for dominance over the sky, its heavy pelts drumming against rooftops.
Lightning slithered across the heavens, lashing out with crackling fury, while thunderclaps rolled in sudden bursts, startling the unprepared and shaking the very air.
A jagged bolt struck one of the tallic railway tracks suspended high above the ground. Yet before it could make impact, it collided with a transparent do, one that only revealed itself upon contact.
For a fleeting mont, shimring runes rippled across its surface, looking like glinting lights in the air, before fading once more into invisibility.
No one could truly comprehend the sheer number of lives and infrastructures that had been saved by the existence of these protective dos, scattered across most of the continent.
With lightning flashing incessantly above, and with the continent bristling with towering mountain peaks and sky-reaching structures, it was as though the entirety of civilization here, had dared to challenge the heavens.
Small wonder, then, that the skies responded with such wrath, hurling bolts as if in irritation.
Perched atop one of the tallest peaks in the continent of Ash, was a colossal citadel—so vast its highest spire pierced the clouds. Lightning danced perpetually across its reflective roof, as though the structure mocked the storm above, daring the heavens to strike again.
"Silas, I would truly appreciate it if you cald down and explained what just happened," a voice called out, calm yet firm.
Silas ignored the call entirely, striding toward the massive double doors, intending to leave the place, the "negotiations" could wait. Behind him, Eudora trailed feeling the sa urgency as well.
Unfortunately, as they reached the giant double doors, two halberds crossed before Silas neck, blades carved with glowing runes, their edges gleaming under the ambient light. The tips hovered dangerously close to his throat, that any careless movents could have them decapitating him.
Silas stopped, staring at the weapons, and then their wielders. For a few monts, an unreadable glint burned in his eyes.
The actions of the Fourth Ascension ascendents stationed as guards, had been unnervingly casual. They hadn’t spared him so much as a glance. The motion had been so perfectly tid, it was as if they had rehearsed it for months just for this mont.
This was the power of an Ancient family that had a deep foundation and has existed for a long ti. Although the Crimson family was powerful, that lacked the sa pool of resources other Ancient families had.
Even now, the guards remained statuesque, their gazes fixed straight ahead as if nothing else existed.
"What is the aning of this?" Silas asked at last, his tone neutral. Behind him, Eudora’s expression had darkened, her lips curled into a cold scowl.
"I an no disrespect," the voice replied again, this ti tinged with frost, "but what happened just now was... terrifying. I need assurance that my people are safe."
"If I were responsible," Silas said, finally turning back, "do you truly believe you’d still be alive?"
He retraced his steps until he stood once more before the speaker... a man who looked entirely human, save for his bronze tallic skin. Draped in luxurious golden robes, he sat on a cushioned stool, a ga board spread out before him.
A ga board with which he had invited Silas to a match, while they carried out the negotiations, under a guise of leisure.
Although they called it negotiations, it was more like an interrogation and accusation for the attack on the Crimson family, as well as the disappearance of Kallen. If not for Lyra’s father, the Valgorians would have never agreed to such.
"I doubt you could use sothing like that repeatedly," the man mused. "There must be a cooldown—or perhaps it’s a one-ti consumable. Still... I might be willing to let this go if you told more about it... for the right price of course."
His eyes twinkled.
He was lean, far more so than most of his kind. The Valgorians were known for their steel-forged bodies—hulking, tallic titans in human form.
"I have nothing on ," Silas replied smoothly, "and I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’ll be leaving now. My family may need ."
The man’s expression darkened.
"I welcod you with open arms. Offered our best tea. Treated you with sincerity. I even kept this as a private discussion between us, rather than involving the full Valgorian Counci... and this is how you repay ?"
He stood, his voice rising.
"You must think I’m weak. That my Avalon family is weak. That the Valgorians are easy to push around. I should have known... from your attitude, it seems you don’t even hold us in regard at all."
Eudora stepped forward now, her gaze like ice.
"It is clear your Valgorian race has a flair for conflict. Unless you’re blind, you should’ve noticed we were also paralyzed under that pressure..."
Her voice trembled slightly, the mory still fresh in her mind.
The weight that had pressed them all down. A force so overwhelming it had made every being present feel like a grain of dust in a passing storm.
"If we were behind that," she continued, teeth clenched, "you wouldn’t be alive to whine about it now. And whatever objective we had... would’ve been fulfilled."
"Fulfilled your objective, huh?" the man snapped. "I see... So that’s it. No wonder you’re in such a hurry to leave. You ca here to steal from us—using underhanded thods. Seems the Crimson family is full of thieves."
Silas, who had reached the doors again, paused.
His eyes narrowed.
In an instant, a swarm of guards poured into the room, weapons trained on him. Spears humd with energy. Guns clicked. Even a sniper’s red dot glowed faintly on his chest.
They didn’t have to announce it. He got the ssage loud and clear.
"Steal from you?" Eudora bellowed as though she had heard the most absurd statent in the world. Then seemingly realizing sothing, her voice beca dangerously low.
"Are you saying you have Kallen?"
The man however did not reply.
’Good:, Silas thought.
With a smile that wasn’t a smile, he turned back to face the man.
"It was my mistake to indulge you, Master Avalon," Silas said, bowing slightly. Then, standing tall, all formality vanished from his voice.
"If it’s war you want..." His gaze turned razor-sharp.
"Then war you’ll get."
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