Damien hovered over a battlefield of fire and destruction, the earth soaked in the blood of hundreds of thousands and littered with the bodies of less. At first, the thing that caught his eye when he appeared was the smoke. Pillars of twisting smoke rose into the sky, slowly turning the clouds dark. Thunder rumbled in the distance, evidence of the sky soon about to clean the dirt off of itself.
On the battlefield were smoked craters filled with the debris of shattered SkyShips and the bodies of those unlucky to have been in the way of any stray Spirit lord techniques.
He caught the sight of the survivors, still fighting savagely as they drenched themselves in the blood of their enemies. The gloomy atmosphere was lit up in a myriad of colors as thousands of essence wielders exchanged deadly techniques as Camlen and Gandor battled Solaria.
Damien took all these in an instant, so he was already turning his head to a shattered hill in the distance where he could see two Spirit lords standing over the injured form of one.
Their frightened eyes met his before he'd even finish turning, and the next thing he felt was space destabilizing as they both tried to flee, all thoughts of their victory forgotten.
"Nuh-uh," Damien said, and space parted as he took a single step, appearing over the three.
His will erupted out in a wave, immediately locking down space in a hundred-mile radius.
Hovering over the three, Damien took in the situation, and for what it was worth, he suspected that things could have gone worse. Helera was certainly injured, but it wasn't anything she couldn't come back from in a week or two. He could tell how beaten and broken she was. Her essence pathways had taken serious damage, evidence of the serious fight that must have taken place. It was a testament to her strength that she was still alive even after going toe-to-toe against two Spirit lords, one of them being an Empire hidden pillar. Those guys were very tricky and pointy.
"Hello there," he greeted; it was only polite that he did so. "I'm Damien."
The two Empire lords took a step backward as he spoke, their auras quivering in fear. He admired them, though, as despite the certainty of death, he could also sense their resolve. They wouldn't make their death any easier for him.
[Are you sure you aren't the villain?" Gray said.
Not expecting that kind of question, Damien was shocked. "What!? Why would you think that?"
[Look at them; they're practically pissing their pants right now. No hero of the people should elicit that kind of feeling from anyone.]
Finally understanding, Damien sighed. "I never said I was a hero, Gray."
Why did everyone think him a hero? From the start, he had never wanted to be one and didn't even have the mindset. He could accept helping a stranger whenever he came across one in need, but he wouldn't go out of his way just to do it. He had already accepted that fact years ago. Even Keilan, joyful as he was, Damien knew that Keilan was like the element he controlled: unpredictable. He could be calm most of the time, laughing and joking with everyone in a childish manner. But in a single instant, he could turn into a wrathful being, all death and fury. Keilan anger usually led to a scorched earth situation, nobody would be spared. Both of them were never ones to live by the code of morality, but that didn't mean they hadn't set uncrossable lines for themselves. Even the greatest villains had codes that kept them grounded.
[Huh, that's surprisingly relieving.]
"What!? One moment, you're criticizing me for being a villain; the next, you're relieved. Pick a side."
[No, I wasn't criticizing, I just wanted to poke you. And besides, for the future you've got coming for you, morality is a shackle that would get you instantly killed.] Seeing that Damien was about to say something, Gray halted him, already reading his mind. [I don't mean you should turn into a monster, that'd just get you killed faster. But if you had to pit your life against the deaths of trillions, know that you're worth far more than them.]
"Now, you're giving me an odd feeling. Morally unshackled as I am, I don't think I can do that."
He pointed his spear at the two spirit lords, making sure that they knew he was still watching them.
Gray sighed. [Trust me, Damien. Just.. trust me.]
A little anger bled into Damien's reply. "How can I trust you when you refuse to tell me anything, anything at all about my family?"
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[I will tell you this. Karma is a tricky thing; it could hide you from even the greatest of beings or leave you dead for the weakest to find, all through a single instant.]
"What are you saying?"
[I'm saying that your karmic line to your father is the only thing keeping you from instant death. Your father cannot hide his connection to you, because his karmic line was already formed the instant you were born.
[You, on the other hand, are still hidden because you don't know who he is.]
Realization dawning, Damien said. "So as soon as I'm made aware of him..."
[You will die as his enemies descend upon you like wolves,] Gray completed.
Something still nagged him, though. "Wait, isn't his karmic line already leading to me? Why haven't I been attacked, If what you're saying is true?"
Gray took a deep breath even though he didn't need to. Damien frowned at the new development. [His line isn't complete because you aren't aware of him. They could trace his line, but it wouldn't lead them anywhere. Though as soon as you're made aware, even If it was a brief thought that proved correct or the knowledge is discovered by someone else, both your karmic lines would connect, and you will die.]
"But you know who he is, why am I not dead then?"
[I don't know who he is because such knowledge was never infused into me. I do know where to find it, though.]
Damien gave a bitter laugh, startling the scared spirit lords who had been standing there for minutes, watching as Damien mentally argued with a being living in his head.
Gray whispered, [I've never lied to you, Damien, and I've never thought to do so. Lying to you is a sure way to sow distrust, and trust me... For what's coming, you're going to have to trust me in order to survive.]
Damien was about to say something when he stopped and his head instantly snapped to one side, eyes narrowing.
[Don't fight it,] Gray warned, stopping Damien from what he was about to do. [You're going to need all the strength you can get for this. And the sure way of at least coming out alive is to go all out.]
Damien was reluctant, but he knew Gray spoke the truth, so he relaxed his will on space, and an instant later a will that would have broken through his spatial blockade bled through. Space cracked and a man appeared.
Crimson hair dotted with tiny motes of golden lights drifted over the frowning face of a handsome middle-aged man. His golden robes limned in silver brimmed with infused power, the soft silky material drifting gently as it was caressed by the wind. The man's intimidatingly crimson-gold eyes took in everything with disregard as he appeared, a little distaste peeking through his cold expression. And just like Damien, his eyes calmly turned to their position when he was done.
Solaris.
***
Aelar stood on the foot of his throne as he held council.
"Our forces have seen heavy casualties as our enemies begin to push back. On the valleys of Kiston alone, in the past week, we have over fifty thousand dead and seventeen thousand injured, fifteen thousand of which will require at least weeks to recover from," Thalor finished.
Aelar nodded, turning to his son. "How goes the advances?"
"Our fierce push for the kingdom of Torinia has made good progress," Vaelion said. "In the last week alone, we have taken two of their cities in a hail of fire. Despite that, I am sad to report that most of the survivors, probably predicting their imminent lose, had already fled before we took their cities."
"Acceptable. We can't always have everything," Aelar comforted. "What of our ships?"
Thalor once again began to give a report, but the Emperor's attention wasn't there anymore, his head snapping sideways to the east, eyes narrowing and expression tightening.
Seeing his lack of attention, the other Spirit lords in the room stopped, a questioning look in their eyes.
Aelar turned to them, voice tight as he laid answer to their unasked question. "Solaris has appeared. Vaelion, prepare yourself, you ride with me."
***
Yuseria sat on the command chair on her personal Command ship, watching as a large-scale battle took place.
The herons of Tyria – powerful spirit ladies – engaged in a furious battle with their Torinian-Solaria counterparts. The earth quaked as a constant flurry of powerful Spirit lord techniques flew erratically, some finding their targets while the others missed. Some missed so widely that they had no chance of landing on any of the fighting soldiers on the ground, while the ones that didn't... Yuseria sighed as she twitched a finger, a Monarch who stood close by getting the unworded command, and soon enough, light flashed from the command ship, and another technique was unraveled, falling on the common soldiers in a shower of sparks.
Suddenly, her attention snapped to the distance, an curious and worried expression on her face.
"Nesra, take over. I have a meeting to get to."
***
Ragar laughed widely as his hammer smashed into the chitin armored arm of the Red Hive Spirit lord, crushing in it. His attention was already on another opponent as he left the previous one to crash into a mountain far in the distance.
From the ground, earthen spikes rose in a flurry, catching the second ant in its abdomen. Green liquid began leaking as the Spirit lord subsequently escaped its death by a narrow margin.
"More! More!! I WANT MORE!!!" Ragar roared, laughing maniacally. "IS THIS ALL YOU'VE GOT? I FIND YOU ALL WANTING IF THIS IS ALL YOU CAN OFFER!"
"Brother, when are you going to listen to my advice and put on some protection?" Halar said, his obsidian spear piercing through into his opponent's head. "At least if you won't take armor, some energy shield, perhaps?"
Ragar waved his hands dismissively. "Bahh!! Armors are for weaklings! True battle comes from risking it all."
Halar was about to say something but stopped, his attention going elsewhere alongside Ragar's.
Ragar began another bout of laughter, this time so hard it scared the group of Spirit lords surrounding him. He turned to his brother, his excitement burning like the sun.
Halar sighed. "Go, I'll wrap up this place. Ragar, ple—"
He couldn't finish, because Ragar had already left.