LOGINSix SymbolsDarius did not wake.The battlefield had become strangely quiet.The enormous weapon that had once rested in his hands lay broken beside him.His armor was cracked.His breathing was shallow.But he was alive.Jae stood several meters away.Elyndra trembled in his hand.Five fragments.Five symbols.Five different energies fighting for space inside the blade.Jae could feel every one of them.And he could feel the cost.His knees nearly gave out.Hazel caught him."Jae.""I'm okay.""Stop saying that."He looked at her.She shook her head."You can barely stand."Jae looked at Elyndra."I know."Kaelen walked toward Darius.He knelt beside him."Darius."Darius slowly opened his eyes."You look terrible."Kaelen laughed quietly."So do you."Darius smiled."Fair."Kaelen looked at the empty space where the fragment had been."How does it feel?"Darius took a slow breath."Quiet."Kaelen looked surprised."Quiet?""Yeah."Darius closed his eyes."For the first time..."He s
Six Against TwoFour symbols glowed along Elyndra.Four fragments.Four Vessels separated from the system.But Jae could barely stand.His breathing was ragged.His entire body trembled beneath the pressure of the fragments.Hazel stood beside him.Across the battlefield—Darius raised his weapon.Nyra drew both blades.The two remaining Vessels stood between Jae and the Six Gates.Darius looked at the others."Four against two."Nyra corrected him."Six."Darius looked around.Kaelen stood beside Jae.Veyra moved forward.Orien raised his staff.Soren appeared from the shadows.Hazel tightened her fists.Darius smiled."So that's how it is."Kaelen stepped forward."Yes."Darius raised his weapon."Then let's finish this."The battlefield exploded.Darius charged first.His enormous weapon crashed toward Jae.Kaelen intercepted.CLANG!The impact sent a shockwave through the battlefield.Darius grinned."Kaelen."The First Vessel pushed against him."Darius."Their weapons locked.Th
Soren, the Vanishing BladeThe battlefield was silent.Too silent.Three fragments now rested inside Elyndra.Jae stood alone.Hazel was nearby.Kaelen, Darius, Veyra, and Orien remained behind them.Only one Vessel had not moved.Soren.Jae looked around.Nothing.He activated his perception.Nothing.Hazel frowned."Where is he?"Jae slowly turned."I don't know."That answer frightened her.Jae had been able to see every other Vessel.Soren was different.He couldn't find the energy.He couldn't find the fragment.He couldn't even feel him.Then—a whisper."You're looking in the wrong place."Jae turned.Nothing.Hazel raised her hands."Soren!"A blade appeared beside her.Jae moved.CLANG!Elyndra blocked it.Soren disappeared.Jae looked around.Nothing.Then another strike.From above.Jae blocked.Soren vanished.From behind.Jae turned.Too late.The blade cut across his back.Jae stumbled.Hazel released an energy blast.Soren disappeared before it reached him.Jae touched
Orien, the ArchitectThe second fragment had barely settled inside Elyndra when the battlefield changed.The ground beneath Jae's feet lit up.A circle of symbols appeared.Hazel looked down."Jae.""I see it."The circle expanded.Then another appeared.And another.Orien stood at the far end of the battlefield.His staff was raised.The remaining Gates responded."You have learned to fight the Vessels."His voice carried across the battlefield."Now learn to fight the battlefield itself."Jae raised Elyndra.Orien moved his staff.The world changed.Walls of energy erupted from the ground.Jae jumped.Another wall appeared above him.He twisted.A third appeared behind him.Hazel grabbed his arm."Left!"They moved together.A barrier closed where they had been standing.The battlefield had become a maze.Orien wasn't attacking directly.He was constructing.Every movement of his staff changed the terrain.Platforms rose.Walls appeared.Energy bridges formed.Then vanished.Hazel r
Veyra, the Spear of the SixThe first fragment still glowed inside Elyndra.Jae could feel it.A steady pulse beneath the sword's surface.One fragment.Five remaining.Across the battlefield, Veyra stood alone.Her spear rested against her shoulder.The weapon was long, elegant, and deceptively simple.Jae had already fought her before.But this time was different.The connection between her and the Gate had changed.Without Kaelen's fragment, the entire formation had become unstable.Veyra looked at Jae."You took his."Jae nodded."And you intend to take mine.""If I can."Veyra lowered her spear."Then come."Hazel stepped beside Jae.Veyra shook her head."Not her."Her eyes remained on Jae."This is between us."Jae looked at Hazel.Hazel understood."Be careful."Jae stepped forward.Veyra disappeared.The first thrust came straight toward his chest.Jae moved his body aside.The spear passed within an inch.Veyra twisted the weapon.The shaft struck Jae's ribs.THUD!Jae stagg
The First FragmentNight had fallen over the battlefield.The Six Gates continued to glow.Their light stretched across the ruined landscape.Jae sat against a broken pillar.His breathing had finally stabilized.Hazel sat beside him.She had wrapped a piece of cloth around the cut on her arm.Jae looked at it."You're hurt."Hazel looked at him."So are you.""I'm fine."She raised an eyebrow."You always say that."Jae smiled."Because it usually works.""It doesn't."Jae laughed quietly.Across the battlefield, the Vessels had regrouped.Kaelen stood at the front.Darius stood behind him.Veyra and Orien remained near the Gates.Soren watched from the shadows.Nyra had returned from the ruins.Everyone was watching Jae.Because they knew what he had discovered.The fragments could be separated.Jae stood.Elyndra hummed in his hand.Kaelen approached."You want to try."Jae nodded."On you."Kaelen's expression remained calm."You understand the risk?""No."Kaelen almost smiled."







