DAY 3 - THE MIRACLE WITHIN THE STORM

In the ruined lands, still surrounded by towering diamond tidal wave structures, Nox and his massive diamond golem continue their fierce battle against the Bio Dragon and Storm Dragon. Torrential rain pours down as the skies rumble overhead.

The Storm Dragon roars, combining its elemental wind and lightning magic to unleash a barrage of electrified blasts. Simultaneously, the Bio Dragon summons a storm of dirt and water, launching devastating elemental attacks from all directions.

Nox, standing atop his golem, calmly summons his magical shovel, unable to suppress his grin.

"Finally," he says, eyes gleaming, "a battle that isn't a simulation! I'm sorry, Susan… but I can't contain this excitement building up in me!"

His arm flexes, muscles tight and veins bulging with power. As the combined magic blasts draw closer, Nox raises his shovel and swings it with incredible force.

The strike cleaves through the oncoming magic blasts, disrupting it all into pixelated dust. The sheer shockwave from the swing breaks through the storm clouds, parting them to reveal the bright sun shining down upon the battlefield.

The ruined land falls into stunned silence.

All eyes turn to Nox as his triumphant laughter echoes across the terrain.

His golem roars in response, gathering energy in its massive hands. The surrounding diamond structures begin to dissolve, shards flying into the air. With a command, the golem launches hundreds of diamond spikes, piercing both dragons and pinning them to the ground.

As the remaining diamonds converge, the golem forges a gigantic diamond hammer, towering over the battlefield. It raises the weapon high, then brings it crashing down upon the two dragons.

A colossal diamond-dust explosion engulfs the ruined lands in a shimmering storm of light.

But this magic does more than destroy—it heals.

The sparkling diamond particles wrap around the wounded Stars, sealing their injuries. Vel gasps as the gash across her stomach vanishes. She slowly rises, surrounded by floating diamond dust.

Kayle stands with Tomi, still catching her breath, eyes wide in disbelief.

"Even as a Chosen… is it even possible to get this strong in just three days?!"

Tomi, arms crossed, looks out at the battlefield.

"This reminds me of Theo," he says. "In the last Star Games, he too reached new heights in a short amount of time. This… this is what they call the next level of Ultra."

Kayle turns to him, still processing.

"No way… someone from Planet Isha reached that level of Ultra?"

Tomi nods slowly.

"The proof is standing right there. The next level of Ultra is called Ultra Syndicate. By activating constant Ultra Thinking, he's able to divide his thought process into multiple sections, each dedicated to a specific aspect of battle or basically anything."

He looks at Nox with a deep respect.

"He must have used those many thought process entirely on mental training for his Chosen Power alone. That's how he's able to advanced so far, in just three days of Stage One."

Kayle watches in stunned silence as the diamond dust settles.

She then mutters,

"Even with all that power, I doubt Nox can take down both Disaster Dragons alone. He's going to need my help."

She looks at the diamond dust swirling around her feet and clenches her fists.

"Thanks to this healing magic, I've recovered enough to jump back in."

Tomi nods beside her.

"Nox can hold them off long enough for us to execute an SBC plan."

Kayle grins as she summons her magical bow, energy flaring across its limbs.

"I was planning to do that too."

She draws back her bowstring, charging a powerful arrow, wind magic swirling behind her like a vortex.

On the battlefield, Nox remains perched atop his diamond golem as it lands heavily on the ground, sending tremors across the land.

He eyes the two dragons ahead. But something is off.

The Bio Dragon, wounded and snarling, turns toward its ally. Its body begins to swell and glow, the outer layers peeling away to reveal a massive energy core.

To Nox's shock, the Storm Dragon opens its jaws and devours the Bio Dragon's core whole.

"Oh..." Nox murmurs, watching intently.

"I thought this was going to be easy sailing. But these dragons... they just executed one of the 5% unknown scenarios from my Ultra Head."

He adjusts his stance, a rare flicker of unease on his face.

"Looks like we'll need to adapt."

The Bio dragon then becomes a coat that fuses with the storm dragon. 

Leaves spiral in the air. Lightning arcs. Water churns. Dirt swells around the beast's feet. Wind howls like a living force.

Before him now stands the Bio Storm Dragon—a terrifying hybrid cloaked in an elemental aura of wind, lightning, leaf, dirt, and water.

Nox grins.

"If they're going all out..." he says, stepping backward, "...then so are we."

He sinks into his golem's body, entering through its chest and settling into the cockpit, a glowing chamber of pure diamond. As he focuses his magic, streams of multicolored diamond light surge from his body and connect with the golem's internal structure.

His eyes glow with a swirling rainbow aura.

"Let's show everyone just how strong we are!"

The diamond golem flexes. Segments of its body eject outward, rearranging and expanding with magical precision. New diamond chunks form, bulking its frame and giving it a more powerful, muscular build.

Inside the cockpit, Nox drives his shovel into the diamond floor. The chamber erupts in a blinding rainbow light as the weapon becomes a conduit of his energy.

Outside, massive diamond clusters swirl and converge, taking shape into a colossal shovel, glowing with the same rainbow aura.

The golem reaches out, grabs the massive shovel, spins it several times in its hands like a seasoned warrior, and then drops into a powerful battle stance.

Tomi watches the towering Bio Storm Dragon and exclaims,

"The dragons have combined! This has to be its third phase! We need more power, Kayle!"

Kayle, standing motionless, keeps her eyes closed, focusing as her magical bow glows brighter with energy. Her aura swirls violently as she continues charging her attack.

The Bio Storm Dragon lets out a furious roar. The earth beneath the battlefield begins to shatter, launching jagged terrain toward the diamond golem. In response, the golem raises its free hand and casts a spell, stopping the upheaval in its tracks.

"We control the power of earth too!" Nox calls out from within the cockpit, his voice echoing through the diamond conduits.

The dragon retaliates, unleashing a barrage of wind and water blasts, but the golem deflects them effortlessly with sharp, spinning strikes from its colossal diamond shovel.

Suddenly, the sky darkens once more. Lightning crashes down from newly formed storm clouds, but the golem dodges with surprising agility. More diamond shards shoot from the ground, intercepting the lightning and magical blasts, causing massive explosions across the landscape.

The land begins to tremble violently. Both Nox and the Bio Storm Dragon try to dominate the earth, but their conflicting control causes the terrain to rip apart. Huge chunks of land fall away, creating crater-like lakes across the ruined battlefield.

Then suddenly, giant sunflowers rise from the lakes, their golden petals glowing as they charge and fire powerful light magic blasts. The golem is hit multiple times, staggering under the unexpected barrage.

A massive magical storm swallows the battlefield. Stars across the land begin to flee—many don't make it out in time.

Vel stumbles through the chaos, eventually finding Tomi trying to carry Kayle near the beach. Kayle is still charging her arrow, but her body is surrounded by a radiant aura that makes her nearly too heavy to carry.

"They're planning something," Vel says through gritted teeth. "And this time... I'm going to trust them!"

She rushes over and helps Tomi lift Kayle. Together, they carry her to the shoreline just as a submarine emerges from beneath the waves, metal gleaming under flashes of lightning.

They bring Kayle inside and lay her in a large central chamber still glowing with magical aura as she continues to charge.

Vel blinks in disbelief.

"Where the hell did this submarine even come from?!"

Tomi turns to her calmly.

"I had a backup plan, in case all of this went south, I had this prepared as an escape route."

They head to the control room. A few surviving crew members stand and salute.

"It happened just like you predicted, Tomi!"

Tomi nods and takes the controls.

"Change of plans—we're not running. We're going to slay those dragons."

As he pilots the submarine through the raging waters, Vel eyes him uncertainly.

"I know Kayle's strong… but can she really generate enough power to kill a fused dragon?!"

"All we can do now..." Tomi says, focused, "is have faith in Kayle."

Inside the chamber, Kayle remains in deep concentration, her energy growing more intense. The winds swirl around her like a raging vortex. In her mind, a storm of doubt brews.

"What am I doing?" she thinks. "I know this isn't enough power to kill those dragons… but what choice do I have? I can't stand by and do nothing. Maybe if I'd trained harder after receiving these powers, I'd be as strong—or even stronger—than Lars..."

She winces, struggling to hold her focus.

"But still, so many people and Stars would've died without my help. This… this is who I am. I can only tap into Ultra Thinking for short bursts, and even then… it won't fix everything."

Her thoughts darken.

"Only a miracle can save us now..."

Then, something changes.

She hears distant voices, muffled and mysterious, echoing within her mind. She can't understand the words, but she feels something—energy. It flows into her like a gentle tide.

Her eyes snap open.

"What is this...? This energy… it's coming from the planet itself!"

She smiles in awe.

"Of course! Every planet is a living being. These voices… they're the voice of this world, and it's giving me power to defend it!"

She reaches out, drawing in nature's energy, weaving it into her arrow. The magic swells, her wind magic intensifying as glowing particles from the earth gather around her.

Her bow pulses like a heart. Her arrow glows like a sun. She takes a steady breath and whispers aloud—

"I can do this!" 

Meanwhile, in the heart of the battle, cracks begin forming along the diamond golem's massive body as it weathers relentless barrages from the Bio Storm Dragon's chaotic storm attacks.

The fused dragon suddenly summons an enormous tree, one that grows so rapidly and to such size that it pierces through the clouds—its branches reaching high above the storm itself. At the top of the tree, a lush garden of magical flowers bursts into bloom, thriving in the rays of sunlight that pierce the sky.

Each flower begins to pulse with energy. Millions of blossoms shimmer with glowing light as they collectively charge up a colossal energy blast.

The entire tree hums with overwhelming magic. Slowly, the towering trunk bends downward under the pressure of the massive power building at its top—aimed directly at Nox.

Within the storm, the golem continues to twist, leap, and spin—dodging and parrying blasts of wind, lightning, and elemental fury. Then, its thrusters ignite, launching it straight into the sky, higher and higher—above the storm.

From inside the cockpit, Nox grins, his body glowing with surging streams of rainbow energy.

"This dragon's crazy strong," he says, eyes locked on the massive energy. "But I've seen worse. This is nothing!"

Atop the immense tree, the magic reaches its peak. Then, with a flash, the tree unleashes the energy blast—a beam so wide it stretches across the entire ruined land.

Inside the submarine, Tomi and Vel watch the screen in horror as the monstrous blast lights up the entire region.

"What the?!" Vel yells. "We're so dead!"

Tomi narrows his eyes.

"If Nox is anything like Theo… then maybe—just maybe—he can do this!"

Inside the cockpit, Nox roars, veins glowing with power. The golem charges up a powerful attack, twirling rapidly—spinning hundreds of times before it finally hurls its giant diamond shovel toward the blast.

The shovel spins like a meteor, colliding with the incoming energy.

For a moment, the sky goes white.

Then—CRACK!

The shovel slices through the blast, cutting it clean in half. It continues upward, striking the massive tree dead-on.

A gigantic explosion erupts in the sky, the shockwave so powerful it shakes the entire planet.

In the digital world, Taeo, Gaia, and Gilga all stare at a glowing screen. The skyline trembles, and in the far distance, a pillar of smoke and light blossoms beyond the horizon.

In the snow lands, Lars and Atheen leap to their feet on the cliff. The ground rumbles beneath them as they look up at the glowing sky, their expressions filled with awe.

On the eastern side of the planet, in the seaside village, Prekayda and her warriors continue watching the battle between the Blaze Dragon, Crank, and the chimera. The warriors stop, heads turning toward the distant explosion that lights up the sky.

Jen's eyes widen, her voice a whisper of disbelief.

"There are battles out there… even worse than this one."

In the sky above the ruined lands, the explosion from the massive impact expands with such force that even the diamond golem is caught in its destructive radius. The raging storm clouds are blown away, pushed back by the shockwave.

The dragon turns its head, recoiling—the blinding flash nearly sears its eyes.

As the dust settles and the light dims, the dragon turns back toward the once-massive tree, now crumbling into dust, its energy spent.

Suddenly, with a deafening crash, the golem falls from the sky, smashing into the ground below. It slowly rises, its form fractured and barely holding together.

Inside the cockpit, Nox coughs up blood, his face drenched in sweat. He mutters:

"With that... we're both nearly drained of power." He narrows his glowing eyes. "Now it only depends on who has the stronger will to live."

The Bio Storm Dragon lets out a furious roar as it charges. The shattered golem lumbers forward to meet it.

With one final effort, the golem throws a heavy punch—but the dragon headbutts through the golem's fist, shattering it. It then slashes forward with razor claws, tearing the golem's already broken body into glowing chunks of crystal and steel.

But Nox bursts from the wreckage, still holding his shovel, his aura flickering like the last ember of a dying fire. With a roar, he impales the dragon in the chest, using every last drop of strength to lift the creature into the sky as they fly high into the sky.

The dragon thrashes, stunned and bleeding.

Nox pushes upward, veins bulging, eyes blazing.

Then—his body gives out. His arms tremble. His fingers slip.

He lets go of the shovel.

Nox begins to fall.

As he plummets, he looks toward the ocean—and sees something rise from it.

A submarine erupts from the water, cutting through the waves. The hatch opens, and a platform elevates Kayle into the sky. Her hair whips in the wind, her bow glowing with radiant power. Her entire body pulses with wind and nature energy.

Kayle releases her arrow.

The shot spirals like a green tornado, slicing through the air with unstoppable force. It heads straight for the airborne dragon, now speared on Nox's embedded shovel.

As Nox watches the arrow draw near, a bloodied smirk forms on his lips.

"Just as I predicted..." he mutters. "You were going to be useful to me after all, Kayle Ross."