Chapter 33: The Gathering Tempest

The night sky, once a vast and familiar void, now swirled with the remnants of the shattered Moon, fragments drifting like silent harbingers of the chaos to come. The air crackled with energy, thick with something Kai couldn't quite name—anticipation, perhaps, or the distant whisper of something far older than humanity itself.

As he led the group through the ruins of what had once been a thriving metropolis, he couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched. Not by human eyes, nor even by the creatures that had begun to emerge in the wake of the catastrophe, but by something else entirely. Something unseen.

Juno moved beside him, her steps careful but unhesitating. "You think that thing back there was telling the truth?" she asked, keeping her voice low. "About the Harbinger?"

Kai exhaled slowly, his gaze locked on the road ahead. "I don't think we have the luxury of doubting it."

Reyes, who had been scanning the area with her handheld device, let out a frustrated sigh. "The energy signatures are all over the place. Whatever's happening, it's accelerating. If we don't start securing these fragments now, we're going to lose them to the first power-hungry warlord who stumbles onto them."

Kai nodded. That was the part that worried him the most. In the beginning, the fragments had seemed like a miracle—an unexpected gift in the wake of disaster. But now, he saw them for what they really were: the remnants of something ancient, something powerful, and something that could tip the balance of the world in either direction.

If the wrong people got their hands on them, Earth wouldn't just be broken. It would be lost.

They pressed forward, weaving through the skeletal remains of crumbling skyscrapers and streets choked with the remnants of a civilization that had been reduced to ruin in mere moments. The destruction was total, and yet, life still clung to the edges—plants growing through cracks in the pavement, the distant sound of scavengers picking through the bones of the old world.

But it wasn't just scavengers watching them.

Kai felt it before he saw it—the unmistakable presence of another power nearby. The air grew thick, the kind of heaviness that came before a storm, and then, from the shadows of a collapsed bridge, figures emerged.

Six of them.

They weren't ordinary survivors.

Each of them bore the unmistakable glow of fragment energy, pulsing beneath their skin like veins of molten light.

And their leader, a tall, broad-shouldered man with silver streaks in his hair and eyes that shimmered with unnatural gold, stepped forward with the confidence of someone who knew exactly what they were capable of.

"You've been making quite a name for yourselves," the man said, his voice smooth, almost amused. "Kai Voss. Juno. Reyes. The ones who think they can change the course of fate."

Kai tensed, his fingers curling slightly. "And you are?"

The man smiled. It wasn't a friendly smile. "Call me Lucian."

Juno scoffed. "And what, exactly, do you want, Lucian?"

Lucian spread his hands, as if the answer was obvious. "The same thing you do. The fragments. Only, unlike you, I don't intend to waste them."

Kai's jaw tightened. "You think we're wasting them?"

Lucian's golden gaze burned with something dangerous. "Power exists to be used. To be wielded. The world is broken, Kai. Someone has to rebuild it."

Reyes stepped forward, her eyes narrowing. "And I suppose you think that someone is you?"

Lucian tilted his head slightly. "Would you prefer it be someone else? The factions that are already forming? The ones that see this world as nothing more than a battlefield, a chance to carve out their own little kingdoms? At least I have a vision."

Kai exhaled slowly, studying him. He had met men like this before—people who believed they were destined to lead, that they alone had the right to decide the fate of others. And while Lucian wasn't wrong about the chaos that was spreading across the world, there was something about the certainty in his voice that set Kai's teeth on edge.

"You want the fragments," Kai said. "And you're willing to take them by force if necessary."

Lucian's smile didn't falter. "I prefer cooperation. But I'm not opposed to taking what's necessary."

Kai glanced at Juno and Reyes. They had been through too much to back down now. And as much as he wanted to avoid another fight, he knew it was inevitable.

"Then I guess we're at an impasse," Kai said, shifting his stance slightly. "Because we're not handing them over."

Lucian sighed, almost as if he were disappointed. "A shame. You have potential, Kai. But potential without purpose is nothing."

The moment the words left his lips, the air exploded with movement.

Lucian's people surged forward, their fragment-infused bodies crackling with power. One of them moved faster than humanly possible, vanishing and reappearing in a blink, their fists glowing with raw energy. Another summoned a wall of force, slamming it into Juno with the force of a hurricane.

Kai barely had time to react before Lucian himself was upon him, his hand glowing with golden light as he aimed a devastating strike toward Kai's chest.

But Kai had fought people like this before.

He activated Temporal Shatter in an instant, the world slowing to a crawl around him. He sidestepped Lucian's blow, twisting his body just enough to avoid the strike before accelerating time once more, slamming his own fist into Lucian's ribs.

Lucian staggered back, but his expression didn't change. If anything, he looked amused.

"Interesting," he murmured. "But not enough."

Before Kai could react, Lucian moved. Faster than he should have been able to. He was adapting—reading Kai's movements, countering his ability before Kai could even fully use it.

Kai barely had time to deflect the next attack, and then Lucian's foot slammed into his side, sending him skidding across the cracked pavement.

Juno was locked in a battle of her own, dodging and weaving between attacks, her agility keeping her just out of reach. Reyes had pulled out a modified weapon, sending bursts of energy toward their attackers, but they were too fast, too prepared.

They were losing.

Kai forced himself to his feet, his ribs aching from the impact. Lucian stood over him, still calm, still in control.

"You can't win this," Lucian said. "But you can join me."

Kai wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. "Not a chance."

Lucian sighed, shaking his head. "Then I guess we're doing this the hard way."

He lifted his hand, energy surging around his fingers—

And then the sky above them split open.

A deafening crack echoed through the air as a pulse of energy erupted from the heavens, sending shockwaves through the city. The battle stopped instantly, all eyes turning toward the sky.

Above them, the fragments of the Moon began to glow, pulsing with an unnatural light.

And deep in the distance, something moved.

Something ancient.

Something waking up.

Lucian took a step back, his golden eyes narrowing. "Well, then," he murmured. "It seems our conversation will have to wait."

And then, just as quickly as they had arrived, he and his people vanished into the shadows.

Kai let out a slow breath, staring at the glowing sky above.

Whatever was coming… it had just taken its first step toward Earth.