As the two primordial siblings rose into the sky, their presence alone warping the atmosphere, Reito sprinted through the shattered remains of the west sector. Cracked hallways, collapsed ceilings, and frozen scorch marks blurred past him as his boots pounded against fractured stone.

  Reito: Damn it… I should’ve known this would happen. I should’ve questioned Skyzen more that day. I should’ve tried harder—tried anything—to pull Franklin back from the edge.

  His breath came ragged as guilt clawed at his chest.

  Reito: I failed him… I failed all of them. I should have been better.

  The corridor opened into devastation.

  The west sector was gone.

  A massive crater swallowed the heart of the academy grounds, the earth fractured outward like shattered glass. Residual energy lingered in the air—cold, decay, shadow, heat—all colliding in violent aftershocks.

  Reito stopped dead.

  Reito: …No. This can’t be real.

  His knees buckled, and he dropped to the ground, staring at the destruction with hollow eyes.

  Reito: How could I let it get this bad…

  Across the crater, movement.

  Kai staggered forward, carrying Emma in his arms while Caitlyn leaned heavily against his shoulder, blood staining her uniform.

  Kai: Is that—Reito sir! Over here!

  Reito snapped out of it, scrambling to his feet as they approached. Relief washed over his face the moment he saw them breathing.

  Reito: Thank the One… you kids are alive.

  He steadied Caitlyn, eyes scanning their injuries.

  Reito: Tell me everything. Now.

  Caitlyn swallowed, forcing herself upright despite the pain.

  Caitlyn: Mrs. Zinc came to Aaron and me with a plan. During intermission, she and Aaron were supposed to stop the Sagewells from leaving. My job was to capture and restrain Skadi.

  Her voice trembled.

  Caitlyn: But she was a vessel. Once she gave control to Nulthira… I couldn’t compete. I was completely outmatched.

  Emma clenched her fists.

  Emma: She nearly killed Caitlyn. She would’ve if we hadn’t arrived.

  Kai nodded grimly.

  Kai: Me, Hiruzen, Emma, and Randall came to save her. Jonathan, Owen, and Willow went to help you.

  He looked away.

  Kai: We fought Nulthira together, but it didn’t matter. She decayed everything. Even when we landed hits… she adapted. Then—

  Caitlyn’s eyes lowered.

  Caitlyn: Randall sacrificed himself. He tried to kill her. Tried to save us.

  Silence fell like a weight.

  Emma took a shaky breath, turning to Reito.

  Emma: When Hiruzen saw that… something inside him broke. I’ve suspected it ever since the bombing in the south sector, but I need to hear it from you.

  Her voice cracked.

  Emma: Is Hiruzen… a vessel?

  Reito hesitated. Just for a second.

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Then he nodded.

  Reito: Yes. Hiruzen is the vessel of the primordial Iskarth.

  Their reactions froze in place.

  Reito: From what I’ve learned, Iskarth is… neutral. He hasn’t acted against humanity. But that doesn’t make this any less dangerous.

  They all looked skyward.

  Kai: So, all we can do now… is hope he wins.

  High above, the two siblings faced one another, smiling with anticipation.

  Iskarth: How long has it been since our last duel? A hundred… no—thousands of years?

  Nulthira: One thousand two hundred fifty-eight days, five weeks, and three days.

  Iskarth chuckled.

  Iskarth: My, my. How time flies. Let’s see if you can still stand against the greatest of our siblings.

  Nulthira: Don’t flatter yourself. We both know Berial is far superior.

  Iskarth: Please. That idiot is just a flaming meathead.

  The two stare at each other both waiting for the other to make a move

  Iskarth: Guess I’ll go first since you're so nervous

  With a wave of Iskarth’s hand, the battlefield flooded with snow, obscuring vision completely. In an instant, he closed the distance, grabbing Nulthira and slamming her headfirst into the ground.

  He followed, forming a sword of ice and driving it downward—but Nulthira surged upward, her arm elongating into a blade of ruin. Wherever it passed, time decayed and matter unraveled.

  Iskarth blocked, forming a shield of absolute zero at the point of impact. The clash produced no sound, no heat—only a suffocating silence as entropy struggled to advance.

  Iskarth blasted her through multiple walls with a pulse of glacial energy.

  Nulthira emerged from the rubble.

  Nulthira: Hmph. Is that all? Your vessel must be weak.

  Iskarth stepped through the smoke.

  Iskarth: On the contrary. This boy’s potential is impressive. But his body on the other hand it’s… unusual. I haven’t figured it out yet but it’s definitely not normal for a human.

  Nulthira dusts herself off before rushing forward turning her fingers into claws; she swiped and clawed at Iskarth relentlessly, but he dodged every swing. They both jump back and Nulthira creates a swirling ball of entropy and hurls it at Iskarth. He jumps in the air to dodge but she kicks the ball right into him, erasing his left arm as he barely manages to dodge.

  Iskarth: Hmph, I said I wouldn’t heal any injuries this body suffered but she’s starting to ramp up so i got no choice. This brat better be grateful

  He regenerated his left arm as Nulthira spread her arms and the area started to age. Entire structures collapsed into powder as entropy fields rippled outward, devouring order itself.

  Iskarth roared with excitement as he threw his hands up and the sky shattered into a cyclone of razor snow and blue lightning. Gravity thickened. Cold became conceptual, freezing not just matter, but motion. Snowflakes hung suspended like stars.

  Iskarth disappeared and reappeared above Nulthira,driving a knee of ice straight down.

  The impact cratered the academy.

  Miles of ground froze instantly, then shattered outward in concentric rings. Nulthira slammed into the earth, her form flickering as layers of energy peeled away and Iskarth realized–her control is wavering as Skadi is waking up

  Iskarth: Well dear sister it seems like you won’t be in control of that body much longer. I wonder how long before the girl wakes up.

  Nulthira: Shut up! This human is under my complete control if you think she is going to stop me from–

  Before she could finish her sentence, her arm started twitching as she dropped to one knee.

  Nulthira: Damn! Not now.

  She began gripping her arm as she tried laying Skadi’s consciousness back to rest.

  Iskarth: Interesting. I wonder how much time that bought you

  Nulthira(standing back up): Enough to finish this

  Both siblings hovered above the ground and a moment later they charged.

  A sphere formed at the collision point—half perfect ice, half collapsing void. Inside it, matter was caught between preservation and annihilation, screaming silently as both laws fought for dominance.

  Nulthira pushed forward reaching her hand out in an attempt to eradicate him with one touch, but Iskarth responded by freezing the rate of decay itself, locking entropy into a moment that could not progress.

  The sphere shattered—

  —releasing a shockwave that tore the clouds apart.

  When the winds settled, both siblings remained remained.

  Cracked. Diminished. Still standing.

  Iskarth’s body was riddled with fractures, glowing faintly.

  Nulthira’s form flickered, unstable, pieces of it drifting away into nothingness.

  They stared at one another across the ruined west sector

  Nulthira fell as her form receded back into Skadi. Iskarth walked over to her and grabbed Skadi’s unconscious body by the collar

  Iskarth: Guess i win

  He leaps into the air and lands where Reito and the others are and drops Skadi off in front of them

  Reito(nervous): Iskarth is she…

  Iskarth: Dead? No, she’s still alive

  Reito: That's good but now I'll have to ask to give Hiruzen his body back. Now

  Iskarth: Watch your mouth boy I was going to do that anyway. The two of us made a deal

  Reito: A deal?

  Iskarth: He threatened to take his life if I didn’t deal with her. The deal is now complete, so this is goodbye for now but before I go there is one more thing I need to tell you

  Reito: What is it?

  Iskarth grabs Reito’s head as he pulls him in close and whispers in his ear.

  Iskarth: While I was fighting, I noticed something about this boy’s body. I didn't know what it was at first but now I’ve got it. This boy's body is unrestricted. Probably due to a contemporary vow made by one of his parents I don’t why or how but it’s been this way since his birth so you might want to question his father about it.

  With that said Iskarth jumps back as steam rises from his body and Hiruzen’s skin and hair return to normal as he collapses to the ground as Reito is left with a look of disbelief on his face

  Reito walks over to Hiruzen and picks him up as the students follow behind as they head back over to Mrs.Zinc and the others

  Reito: Well kid seems like you're a lot more special than I thought

  End Chapter