CHAPTER 9 – The Ambush

The war found them first.

Kael barely had time to process the warning before the alarms screamed through Hollow Bastion.

"Ascended warships inbound!" The comms crackled with urgency. "Multiple signatures—dreadnought-class, closing fast!"

Kael's fingers clenched. So they weren't waiting this time.

Elyndra's voice cut through the noise. "Everyone to battle stations! This is not a drill!"

Kael was already moving.

The first explosion tore through the outer hull.

The impact shook the entire station, sending Kael staggering as metal groaned under the force of the blast.

He caught himself against the wall, gritting his teeth. The Ascended weren't wasting time—they were here to end this.

A voice roared over the intercom.

"We have breach teams! Ascended forces boarding!"

Kael exhaled sharply.

So. They wanted to come inside.

Fine.

Then he'd greet them personally.

The corridor erupted in gunfire.

Kael ducked beneath a burst of plasma rounds, rolling behind cover. The Bloodsworn had already engaged, the rebels barricading the main passageways against the advancing enforcers.

Dain ripped the first Ascended soldier apart with his bare hands, metal plating crunching as he slammed the machine into the wall.

Reyna held the line, her shield absorbing heavy blasts as she returned fire.

Typhon unleashed a pulse of unstable Rift energy, warping the very air around him, crushing three enforcers into a singularity.

Kael grinned.

"Hold the corridor!" he barked. "We don't let them push further!"

Then he moved.

Kael vaulted over cover, the Celestial Cleaver shifting into a curved scythe.

He met the first enforcer head-on.

One clean arc of his blade, and the machine fell in two.

The second lunged. Kael twisted, grabbing the enforcer's wrist mid-motion—then wrenched it sideways, breaking the limb with a brutal snap.

He drove his knee into the enforcer's chest, caving in the armor plating.

Then he was already moving to the next.

The corridor became a slaughterhouse.

Kael fought like a ghost of the past, a whirlwind of destruction, carving through Ascended forces with relentless brutality.

But he knew this wasn't their real attack.

This was the distraction.

Then he felt it.

A shift in the air.

A presence.

And then, from the smoke—

She arrived.

Seraphis stepped through the wreckage, her twin plasma blades igniting with a cold, violet glow.

The battle seemed to fade around them.

Kael exhaled slowly.

"Of course it's you."

Her golden eyes flickered. "You knew this was coming."

Kael smiled. "I was counting on it."

Then they moved.

The first clash shook the corridor.

Kael dodged the first strike, barely catching the second with the flat of his blade. Sparks rained as they locked weapons, the sheer force of impact sending tremors through the floor.

Seraphis was fast, precise, relentless.

Kael was brutal, adaptive, unyielding.

They moved like warriors who had fought this battle before.

Because they had.

Kael twisted, using the weight of his blade to force her back. "Still taking orders from machines, Seraphis?"

Her expression didn't change. "Still running from what you are?"

Kael's smirk faded.

Seraphis lunged—her blade aimed for his ribs.

Kael blocked at the last second, but the force of her attack sent him sliding backward.

She wasn't holding back this time.

This was real.

And only one of them would walk away.

The transport cut through the void, escaping the wreckage of Hollow Bastion.

Inside, the cabin was silent.

Not from relief. Not from victory.

But from tension.

Seraphis sat against the far wall, her hands still wrapped around the hilts of her twin plasma blades—not ignited, but ready. Her golden eyes flickered across the room, reading every movement, every breath.

Across from her, the Bloodsworn stared back.

They weren't just watching her.

They were waiting for an excuse.

Dain cracked his knuckles, the sound like grinding stone. "So. We're just letting the murderer sit with us now?"

Aisha snorted. "Would've been easier to kill her back there."

Reyna's grip tightened on her shield. Lirien's sniper rifle remained trained on Seraphis—subtle, but not hidden.

Kael exhaled. He knew this wouldn't be easy.

"She made her choice," he said finally.

Dain grunted. "And? You think that makes her one of us?"

Seraphis spoke for the first time.

"I didn't come here to be one of you."

Aisha's smirk was cold. "Yeah? Then why are you here?"

Seraphis didn't answer.

Because she didn't know yet.

Kael leaned back. "Because she knows what's coming."

The room stilled.

Typhon's Rift-marked eyes burned. "And what's coming, Reaper?"

Kael looked out the viewport, watching the stars stretch before them.

Then he spoke.

"The Ascended aren't going to stop."

"They never do."

🔥

The Ascended warships hung in the void, unmoving.

Inside the dreadnought's command chamber, Prime Ascendant Zeruel watched the battle's aftermath unfold.

Hollow Bastion was burning. The rebels had escaped.

And Seraphis had betrayed them.

Executor Veyran knelt before him.

"She has turned against us."

Zeruel was silent.

Then, his voice rippled through the chamber.

"Let her run."

Veyran's head lifted. "My lord?"

Zeruel's golden eyes burned.

"She will lead us to the Reaper."

The tension inside the ship was suffocating.

Seraphis sat in silence, her golden eyes flicking between Kael, Elyndra, and the Bloodsworn. No one spoke. No one trusted her.

And why should they?

Moments ago, she was their executioner.

Now? She was a traitor to the Ascended. A liability. A danger.

Dain cracked his knuckles, his glare unforgiving. "I still say we should've put her down back there."

Aisha leaned against the bulkhead, arms crossed, her lips curling into something between amusement and calculation. "You just don't like the idea of sharing space with someone prettier than you."

Dain snorted. "I don't share space with murderers."

Kael exhaled sharply. He had expected this reaction.

What he hadn't expected?

The way Seraphis held herself—like she was waiting for someone to strike first.

Like she expected it.

Elyndra leaned forward, her voice sharp, measured. "Why did you betray them, Seraphis?"

The question hung in the air.

Seraphis didn't look at Elyndra.

She looked at Kael.

"Because he made me hesitate."

Silence.

Kael's jaw tightened.

Elyndra's eyes flicked between them—seeing more than she was being told.

She sat back slowly, her expression unreadable.

"That hesitation better not get us killed."

Kael ran a hand through his hair. "We need to focus. The Ascended won't just let this go."

Seraphis nodded. "No. They'll come for me. And they'll come for you."

Aisha smirked. "Good. Let them."

Kael glanced at her.

She was watching him, eyes dark, burning.

A silent challenge.

A silent invitation.

Something shifted between them.

And Kael wasn't sure he wanted to ignore it.

The ship's war-room was dimly lit, the only illumination coming from the faint blue glow of tactical holoscreens.

Kael leaned against the console, deep in thought.

The Ascended would come. They always did.

The question was when.

Footsteps.

Kael knew who it was before he turned.

Aisha.

She stopped just inside the doorway, arms crossed, her dark hair loose around her shoulders.

"You're thinking too much, Reaper."

Kael smirked. "That supposed to be an insult?"

Aisha stepped closer. "It's supposed to be a warning."

Kael lifted an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Aisha moved until she was close enough that he could smell the faint scent of metal, fire, and something wilder beneath.

"You're getting reckless, Kael." Her voice was low, teasing, dangerous. "Relying on ghosts. Taking in traitors. Thinking with your past instead of your instincts."

Kael exhaled slowly.

"You got something to say, say it."

Aisha tilted her head.

Then, without warning, she shoved him—hard—back against the war table.

Kael stiffened. "That supposed to prove something?"

Aisha's grin was sharp, knowing.

"Yeah. That you let me get too close."

Kael's pulse spiked.

Because she was right.

And worse?

He didn't stop her.

Her hands pressed against his chest, fingers curling slightly, nails dragging just enough to be felt.

"You keep acting like you have control, Kael. Like you're the one deciding how this war plays out."

Her lips were inches from his.

"But what happens when someone takes control from you?"

Kael's grip tightened at his sides.

Aisha was testing him. Pushing him.

And he wasn't sure if he wanted to push back or pull her closer.

Then Aisha leaned in, her breath warm against his skin.

"Careful, Reaper. You're not the only one with sharp teeth."

Then she stepped back.

Kael let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding.

Aisha smirked. "Try to get some sleep. If you can."

Then she was gone.

And Kael was left standing in the dim light, pulse still hammering.