Smoke rose from a dozen fires across Novaria's skyline as the Infernian attack continued. The once-pristine streets now looked like a warzone – windows shattered, cars overturned, deep cracks spider-webbing through the concrete where supernatural powers had struck.

Local Aurons, both police and civilian, clashed with the Infernian terrorists in brutal exchanges that lit up the darkening sky. Near the market district, three Novarian Aurons found themselves backed into a corner, their bodies covered in cuts and bruises as they faced down a group of Infernian attackers.

The lead terrorist's face twisted with hate as he raised his glowing hands. "Die!" he screamed, energy crackling around his fingers like bottled lightning. The cornered defenders braced themselves, knowing they had nowhere left to retreat. But before the attack could land, a flash of brilliant blue light cut through the air.

The Infernians crumpled to the ground, their bodies marked by precise slashes that had appeared in the blink of an eye.

Axel landed in a graceful crouch, twin blades extending from his gloves like claws. His evolved aura pulsed around him with barely contained power, his skin and hair emitted a soft blue glow.

A small device resembling a metallic sticker clung to the skin behind his ear, its surface catching the light of his power. "Area clear, over," he reported calmly, though his eyes never stopped scanning for new threats. The rescued Aurons stared at him with undisguised awe before scrambling to safety.

Across the city, Sleeser faced his own group of advancing terrorists. "Roger," he acknowledged through the comm device, his stance shifting as he assessed the incoming threats. "Give me a moment." Energies gathered around his clenched fists, manifesting as intertwined streams of fire, electricity and energy that made the air itself vibrate.

The Infernians launched a barrage of attacks, but Sleeser's power swallowed their efforts like a tsunami consuming raindrops. The explosion that followed lit up the street like a miniature sun. When the light faded, only scorched pavement remained where his opponents had stood.

"Clear, over," he reported, but movement caught his eye – another terrorist leaping from above, their attack aimed at his exposed back.

Before they could connect, emerald green light materialized in mid-air. Suddenly the attacker slammed into the ground face-first as if gravity itself came alive around them, the impact stunning them long enough for Force to strike.

The calm warrior's punch carried such concentrated power that it cratered the ground beneath the Infernian's body.

Force straightened up, brushing dust from his clothes as he studied his handiwork with his usual serene smile. "Now it's clear," he added, as if commenting on the weather.

Their comm devices crackled with static before a new voice cut through: "Sigma, do you copy?"

"Copy, over," all three responded instantly, their bodies tensing at the urgency in the caller's tone.

"Leave Novaria and head to Lumecent ASAP. Major threat detected, over."

Sleeser's jaw tightened as he processed the implications. "Roger, moving out, over." He ended the call with a weary sigh, cataloging the various injuries they were hospitalized for. "Alright Axel, regroup. Lumecent is far... our injuries aren't fully healed yet, but it can't be helped."

"Gotta use that, huh?" Axel's usual cocky grin flickered with concern as he made his way over, favoring his left leg slightly.

Sleeser turned to Force, who stood as steady as always despite the cuts marking his arms. "Get ready. We're heading to Lumecent."

The three warriors shared a moment of grim understanding. Whatever awaited them in the capital had to be dire indeed if it took priority over Novaria's defense.

Without another word, they gathered their remaining strength and prepared for what promised to be an even greater challenge ahead.

----------------------------------------

[Meanwhile, back in Ashford]

The noon sun beat down on the grassy outskirts of Ashford as Angelo stood rigid with concentration, his evolved aura pulsing around him. Forged energy began taking solid shape.

Behind them, Bob's house stood as a reminder of how close they still were to civilization - and how far they were from where they needed to be.

"Let me get this straight," Blue stood beside him, concern evident in his scholarly features. "You intend to master flight. Right now."

"We don't have a choice," Angelo's voice carried the weight of recent news. "Novaria's under attack. If we can't find a faster way to travel..." His jaw tightened as he focused on shaping his power.

"I understand the urgency," Blue's tone softened slightly. "But flight isn't something you can force through sheer determination. What's your actual plan here? Manifesting wings and-"

He cut off as Angelo's forged energy solidified into exactly that - massive, physical wings extending from his shoulders.

"Of course. Making wings. Because that's apparently what we're doing now."

Angelo tested the weight of his constructs with grim focus. "Other Aurons can fly. We need to figure this out."

Without further discussion, he launched himself upward. The wings caught air, slowing his descent but failing to achieve actual flight.

"Angelo." Blue's voice carried exhaustion. "This defies basic physics. Have you ever heard of Leonard Don Vinch?"

"Spare me the history lessons," Angelo landed hard, immediately preparing another attempt. Dust kicked up around his feet. "This is urgent."

Neiva straightened from where she'd been watching. "Wait, I know that name. Wasn't he some famous philosopher?"

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"Indeed." Blue seized the opening, raising his voice to ensure Angelo heard: "A brilliant mathematician who proved human flight requires more than just attaching wings. The body mass to wing size ratio makes it physically impossible!"

Angelo landed again, his expression hardening with determination rather than frustration. "So we need bigger wings. Why didn't you say so." The constructs expanded dramatically, solid energy stretching wider with each pulse of his aura.

Everyone scrambled back as the massive wings swept through the air. Neiva ducked while Bob pressed himself against his house's outer wall, watching with undisguised fascination.

After several more failed attempts that left the yard looking like a tornado's playground, Angelo finally let his constructs dissolve. He slumped forward, hands on his knees. "Okay, fine. This isn't working."

"You don't say." Blue's dry tone could have dehydrated an ocean. "There's a reason even veteran Aurons struggle with flight. If it were this simple, don't you think I would have solved it by now?"

Neiva stood up and straightened. "What exactly makes it so hard? There has to be some basic principle we're missing."

"Two principles, actually." Blue straightened, clearly warming to the teaching opportunity. "First, there's thrust - raw power to push yourself up. That part we can handle. But the real challenge is balance. How do you control that thrust to actually fly instead of just launching yourself into the nearest mountain?"

Red, who'd been unusually quiet, suddenly jumped up like he'd been shocked. "Hold up - we've got thrust covered, right? And those wings did slow him down some. So why not..."

His face split into a predatory grin. "Why not put holes in the wings? Shoot energy beams through them for thrust!"

Everyone stared at him. A bird chirped awkwardly in the distance.

"Red," Angelo said slowly, "you might actually be a genius."

"Absolutely not!" Blue's scholarly composure shattered. "That's completely ridiculous! Something that simple could never-"

He froze mid-sentence as Angelo's energy flared again, materializing into new wings. Each one ended in four perfect circles.

"Only one way to find out," Angelo called over his shoulder, already positioning himself like an arrow about to launch.

"Angelo, wait-" Blue started, but too late.

Eight tiny beams shot from the wings, launching Angelo skyward with all the grace of a startled cat. His yell echoed across the forest: "WAHHHH"

Neiva shrieked and covered her mouth. Bob would have been more amused if things weren't so dire..

Red cupped his hands around his mouth: "FLAP YOUR WINGS, DUMBASS! PRETEND YOU'RE A BIRD!"

High above the trees, Angelo's stomach did backflips as he watched the ground shrink away.

He'd been this high before, but never in this manner. A cliff face loomed ahead, getting closer by the second.

"I'm a bird," he muttered, squeezing his eyes shut. "I'm a bird, I'm a bird, I'm a bird, I'm a bird..."

His wings fluttered randomly, and somehow it worked - he felt his trajectory shift. He was actually flying! Sort of. Maybe. At least until his face made intimate acquaintance with the cliff.

The impact echoed through the forest like a dinner bell.

"Well," Red's voice carried far too much satisfaction, "That's gonna leave a mark."

----------------------------------------

[Meanwhile in Lumecent]

Three pairs of boots hit broken pavement as Sigma squad landed blocks away from Lumecent's festival square. The central stage that should have hosted celebrations now stood as a stark reminder of their failure to prevent this attack.

Axel's hands clenched into fists, his voice dropping to a dangerous growl. "Those bastards planned this. Hit us right when our guard was down."

"Save it," Sleeser commanded, though the tension in his jaw betrayed his own fury. "We need clear heads." He glanced at Force, whose usual gentle smile had vanished completely. The quiet warrior simply stared back, waiting.

Sleeser pressed two fingers to his comm sticker. "Prime, do you copy?"

The response crackled through their neural link: "Prime copy, over."

"Sigma inbound, awaiting further instructions, over." Military precision colored every word.

Static suddenly burst through their comms like lightning through their skulls. All three winced as a new voice cut through: "Sigma, target is earth Auron, codename Beetle. High Arch Rank with flight capability. Proceed with extreme caution. Location - festival podium, Lumecent town square. Over."

Axel's fingers found his own comm. "Copy. Evolved status? Over."

"Negative on evolution. Ability unknown. Over."

"Roger that. Moving to intercept, over." Sleeser ended transmission, his expression hardening. "An Arch without showing evolution. That's just perfect."

"Look, if things get ugly-" Axel started.

"Not with these injuries," Sleeser cut him off. "We play this smart. No last resorts unless absolutely necessary."

"Smart?" Axel barked a harsh laugh. "Against someone ten times our level? Come on, Captain."

"High Veteran," Sleeser corrected sharply. "That's what we are. Together, we've taken down bigger threats."

Force's eyes bounced between them like watching a particularly intense match, silent but alert.

"Yeah, yeah." Axel rolled his shoulders, blades at the ready on his gloves. "Your call, boss. Just don't blame me when this goes sideways."

They moved in formation through ravaged streets, Force's powerful leaps keeping pace with their sprint. A figure hovered above the square ahead, attacks raining down like deadly hail.

"Evolved states," Sleeser whispered as they took cover. His aura transformed first - violent flames dancing across his glowing skin as his pendant seemed to melt away, replaced by a pulsing, multicolored tattoo.

As Axel and Force's auras ignited in blue and emerald, Axel muttered, "Going Mach 2 for this."

"Higher." Force's quiet suggestion made them both turn. He nodded toward their target's blur of movement. "At least Mach 3."

"That'll cut my strength-"

"But double your speed," Sleeser finished. "Force is right. We need you faster than fast for this."

A moment passed before Axel nodded. "Mach 4 then. But you're buying drinks after, Captain." Blue light rippled across his skin in four distinct waves, settling into a steady blue glow. "Ready when you are."

"You go ahead of us," Sleeser's tone left no room for argument. "Get in, assess, distract. We'll follow your lead."

"Just like old times?" The ghost of Axel's usual grin flickered across his face.

"Just like old times," Sleeser confirmed. "Now move."

The playful spark vanished from Axel's eyes, replaced by laser focus as they prepared to face an enemy that outclassed them by orders of magnitude. Some missions left no room for error - this was definitely one of them.

One heartbeat Axel stood ready, blades glinting with lethal promise. The next heartbeat – empty space. Even the disturbed dust hung frozen, struggling to realize which direction it should scatter.

The world blurred into streaks of color as Axel ran, each step carrying him faster and faster. His enhanced speed transformed buildings into abstract paintings, windows and walls melting together in his vision. He hit the side of a skyscraper at full sprint, gravity becoming just another suggestion as his momentum carried him straight up the vertical surface.

"Almost there," he thought, gathering his legs under him for the final strike. His blades sang with anticipated victory as he launched himself toward the hovering figure.

Perfect approach. Perfect angle. Perfect –

His attack died mid-swing as earthen fingers closed around his blades like steel traps.

The woman floating before him moved with the casual grace of someone swatting a fly, her weathered face carrying decades of combat experience.

A crown of sculpted stone sat upon her gray hair while gauntlets and boots of living earth covered her limbs, marking her as someone who had mastered her element completely.

"Nice try." Her voice flowed smooth as polished marble, carrying none of the strain their deadlock should have caused.

Her brown aura flashed once – the only warning before her earthen fist crashed into Axel's chest with devastating force.

The impact drove him down like a meteor, cratering the street beneath him.

Concrete cracked in spiderwebs around his body as he pushed himself up, already calculating angles for his next attack. But something in the woman's posture made him freeze.

She wasn't looking at him anymore.

Her eyes, sharp with predatory intelligence, had shifted to the exact corner where Sleeser and Force lay hidden.

The ghost of a smile touched her lips as she hovered above them all, radiating the absolute confidence of someone who knew they held every advantage.

The real fight was about to begin.