Lira.
She had destroyed his trust, and shattered his belief in others. Her betrayal wasn’t just a wound—it was a firestorm that consumed his ability to let go. To him, control was safety. Control meant no one could hurt him again. These flames, this sword—they were his way of showing me how he viewed the world.
‘I see it now,’ I mused, my smirk deepening. His fire wasn’t just a weapon—it was his armor. A shield against the chaos that had once burned him.
I shifted my stance, black flames swirling tighter around me, their chaotic movements a stark contrast to Varen’s disciplined inferno.
“Let me show you,” I said, my voice low and steady, carrying easily across the battlefield. “One thing wrong with your fire.”
His eyes narrowed, the dragon flames surging as he lunged toward me, his greatsword carving a fiery crescent through the air. I stepped forward to meet him, my estoc rising to clash with his blade.
CLANG!
The impact sent a shockwave through the arena, but I didn’t flinch. My black flames flared, wild and untamed, surging outward as though they had a will of their own.
“You tame your flames,” I said, my voice rising as the black flames coiled higher around my estoc, their chaotic dance intensifying. “You refine them, shape them, control them.”
My smirk widened, sharpening into something more dangerous as I pushed against Varen’s blade. The black flames around my estoc surged higher, their chaotic tendrils writhing like living shadows, licking hungrily at the edges of his fiery dragon.
“Remember,” I said, my voice rising above the groaning enchantments and the crowd’s stunned silence, “fire may be safe when controlled. But that’s not what fire is for.”
The black flames exploded outward, coiling around us both as a storm unleashed. The temperature plummeted further, a biting chill that carried the unmistakable weight of death. My estoc trembled in my grip, the flames pouring from my [Flame of Equinox] core with reckless abandon.
I could feel it—the rapid depletion of my energy as the core’s reserves dwindled, more than half of my mana burned away in moments. Letting the flames surge like this wasn’t optimal. It wasn’t calculated or efficient.
But so what?
‘Isn’t this what fire is supposed to be?’ I thought, the grin never leaving my face as the chaotic energy around me intensified. ‘Running rampant, consuming everything when the time comes?’
The flames roared louder, drowning out the sound of the crowd, the arena, even Varen’s own fire. They twisted and surged with an untamed ferocity, no longer bound by precision or control. The enchantments flickered dangerously, struggling to contain the sheer force of my unleashed mana.
Varen’s dragon flames surged in response, their silvery-red brilliance pushing back against the black tide. His greatsword flared brighter, the fire coiling around it growing sharper, more focused. He leaned into the clash, his teeth gritted, his eyes blazing with determination.
But I could see it—the faint flicker of hesitation in his movements. The slight waver in his stance.
He was holding back. Still trying to maintain control.
“You see it, don’t you?” I said, my voice echoing with a chilling resonance. I stepped forward, pushing his blade back with the force of my flames. “Your fire… it’s beautiful in its discipline. A masterpiece of control.”
The black flames surged higher, the edges of their chaotic dance brushing against the shimmering dragon above him. “But fire isn’t meant to be caged, Varen.”
I stepped closer, my estoc pressing harder against his greatsword. The weight of my untamed flames bore down on him, their chaotic nature unraveling the rigid patterns of his mana.
“It’s meant to burn. To consume. To run wild when the time comes.”
The dragon flames flickered, their brilliance dimming slightly as my flames coiled tighter around them. The weight of my reckless mana pressed against his disciplined fire, forcing it to react, to adapt—or be overwhelmed.
Varen’s eyes locked onto mine, his jaw tightening as he pushed back with all his strength. The silvery-red flames roared defiantly, but I could feel it now—the cracks forming in his control.
“Let it go, Varen,” I said, my voice low, almost teasing. “Show me what your fire is really made of.”
With a final surge, I poured everything into my flames, letting them spiral outward in a chaotic burst that swallowed the space between us. My core trembled under the strain, the last vestiges of my mana fighting to keep the flames alive.
The arena trembled, the enchantments groaning under the weight of the clash as fire and shadow collided in a deadly dance. And in that moment, as the flames raged, I could see the truth written in Varen’s eyes.
This wasn’t just a fight anymore. This was a conversation. A challenge. A test.
And I was waiting for him to answer.
********
Lucavion closed his eyes.
The crowd’s cheers faded into the background, their voices swallowed by the roar of flames and the pulse of mana that filled the air. Even the biting chill of his own black fire, intertwined with the blistering heat of Varen’s flames, seemed to fade into a distant hum. All that remained was the sensation in his hand—the weight of his estoc, the hum of its blade, the flames that danced along its edge.
The chaotic essence of his flames pulsed around him, unbound and raw. It wasn’t something to be tamed; it was something to be understood. Respected.
‘This… this is what it means to burn,’ he thought, the faintest smile tugging at his lips. In his mind, the path became clear—a technique not born from precision or control, but from release. From accepting the nature of destruction itself.
A name…..
A name surfaced in his thoughts, unbidden yet perfect. A technique that embodied the essence of his [Flame of Equinox]. A blade strike meant not to cut, but to unleash—a surge of chaotic energy that would overwhelm, engulf, and erase.
Lucavion exhaled slowly, his grip tightening on the estoc as his mind settled into the flow of the technique. His senses sharpened, and though his eyes remained closed, he could feel everything: the rise and fall of Varen’s dragon flames, the tension in the air, the faint quiver of his estoc, eager to be unleashed.
He opened his eyes.
The arena was chaos incarnate, the black flames and silvery-red fire clashing in an endless dance. Varen stood before him, his greatsword raised, his dragon flames roaring in defiance. His eyes burned with fury and resolve, but there was something else there too—a flicker of recognition, of understanding.
“You’re not holding back,” Lucavion murmured, his voice low and steady. “Good. Neither am I.”
The black flames around him surged, their chaotic tendrils spiraling inward, condensing around the estoc in his hand. The energy coiled tighter and tighter, the blade trembling under the sheer pressure of mana. The air around him warped, the temperature plummeting as the essence of death and life intertwined in a perfect storm of destruction.
Varen’s dragon flames responded, their fiery form growing sharper, more focused, as though sensing the impending strike. The air crackled with energy, the arena’s enchantments groaning under the weight of the power concentrated between the two warriors.
Lucavion stepped forward.
His movements were slow at first, deliberate, each step carrying the weight of his intent. The black flames spiraled higher, wrapping around his estoc like a serpent coiling for the kill. His gaze locked onto Varen’s, and for a moment, there was only silence between them—an unspoken acknowledgment of what was about to come.
And then, Lucavion moved.
The strike came in an instant, a blur of motion that defied comprehension. His estoc cut through the air like a phantom, the black flames exploding outward in a chaotic surge that consumed everything in its path. The energy unleashed wasn’t a blade—it was a force, a wave of destruction that tore through the arena with unrelenting ferocity.
[Sword of Annihilation. Entropy Incarnate.]
The technique lived up to its name. The black flames surged outward in a spiraling torrent, their chaotic nature obliterating everything they touched. The ground cracked and shattered beneath the weight of the energy, and the silvery-red flames of Varen’s dragon roared in defiance as they clashed with the surge.
Varen raised his greatsword, his fiery aura flaring as he poured everything into his defense. The dragon flames surged forward, meeting the black flames head-on in a collision of raw power and intent. The arena trembled, the enchantments flickering dangerously as the two forces battled for dominance.
But Lucavion himself….
He was someone who was not meant to be tamed.
His power wasn’t about being in the order—it was about chaos.
He was a complete reverse of everything that an Awakened of a normal world was.
The Awakened all followed a simple system, something that everyone did. Their limits were simple and widely known.
Yet, Lucavion didn’t fit into anything.
He was different.
If the Awakened were order.
He was Destruction.
Entropy.
The dragon flames flickered, their disciplined form wavering under the weight of the black flames. The silvery-red fire was powerful, but it was structured, refined—and in the face of raw chaos, structure crumbled.
The surge of black flames overwhelmed Varen’s defenses, engulfing him in a torrent of chaotic energy. His fiery aura flickered and dimmed, the dragon flames dissipating as the sheer weight of Lucavion’s technique bore down on him.
And then, just as suddenly as it had begun, the black flames receded, their energy dissipating into the air. The arena fell silent, the crowd holding their breath as the dust began to settle.
Lucavion stood at the center of the chaos, his estoc lowered, the black flames around him fading into nothingness. His breath was ragged, his body trembling from the strain, but his smirk remained—a testament to the thrill of the fight.
Across from him, Varen stood, his greatsword planted in the ground for support. His chest heaved, his fiery aura flickering faintly, the remnants of his dragon flames dissipating into the air. His armor was scorched, his body battered, but he remained standing—a testament to his unyielding resolve.
For a moment, there was silence between them. And then, Lucavion spoke, his voice low but steady.
“Now,” he said, tilting his head slightly, “do you see what fire is really for?”