Chapter 18: The Storm Titan’s Wrath

The jet roared through the sky, cutting a path toward the raging maelstrom forming over the Atlantic Ocean. From the cockpit window, Kai could already see flashes of violent lightning streaking through massive black clouds. It was more than just a storm — it was an unnatural force, swirling with a ferocity that defied the laws of nature.

Jace sat beside him, tightening the straps on his harness. "That storm looks like it could swallow entire cities."

"It will," Elias's voice crackled through the comms. "If we don't stop the Storm Titan, New York will be hit by winds powerful enough to tear skyscrapers apart. Tidal surges, lightning strikes — millions of lives at risk."

Kai swallowed the knot in his throat. The weight on his shoulders grew heavier with each passing moment. Two Titans down, but this… this felt even more impossible.

The jet began to shudder violently as they entered the outer edge of the storm. The turbulence threw them against their seats, and alarms blared in the cockpit.

"We're losing altitude!" the pilot yelled.

Kai grabbed the controls with one hand, steadying the aircraft with a burst of wind manipulation. The plane leveled out, but the turbulence continued to batter them from all sides.

"We can't fly into the eye," Elias warned. "The Titan will be at the center."

Kai nodded grimly. "We'll have to jump."

Jace's eyes widened. "Out of a jet. Into that?"

Kai gave a small, humorless smile. "You've done crazier."

Jace let out a breath. "Point taken."

They grabbed their gear. Parachutes were useless in a storm like this, so they relied on the shards' power. Kai focused, gathering air energy around them as the rear hatch opened.

"On my mark," he said, wind already swirling around his body like a protective cocoon.

The storm howled outside, lightning crackling dangerously close.

"Three… two… one… GO!"

They leaped into the raging storm.

Instantly, the world became chaos.

Gale-force winds whipped around them, rain pelting their faces like needles. Lightning flashed all around, each bolt deafeningly close. But Kai wrapped both himself and Jace in spheres of protective air, slowing their descent and shielding them from the worst of the storm's fury.

Below them, the ocean churned violently. Massive waves rose like mountains, crashing into each other in an endless battle of water and wind.

And at the heart of it all, rising from the depths, was the Storm Titan.

It was unlike the Earth and Ice Titans they had faced before. This creature was formed entirely of swirling cloud, crackling lightning, and roaring wind. Its body shifted constantly, never settling on one shape. Massive arms of vapor and lightning extended from its core, and its "eyes" glowed with a fierce electric blue.

When it roared, the thunder shook the heavens.

Kai and Jace landed hard on what little floating wreckage they could find — the shattered remains of cargo ships tossed aside like toys.

Jace clung to the wreckage. "Please tell me you have a plan."

Kai's mind raced. Earth and Ice Titans had a physical connection to their elements that could be broken. But the Storm Titan… it was storm itself. How do you fight air and electricity?

"I'm working on it," Kai muttered.

The Titan turned its attention to them, sensing their presence. Lightning bolts shot from its core, striking dangerously close, sending giant waves surging over them.

Kai summoned air energy, creating a barrier to deflect the lightning. The ocean around them boiled as bolts struck the water.

Elias' voice came through faintly over the comms, distorted by static. "Kai… storms can be exhausted. Drain its energy… it will collapse."

"Drain it how?" Kai shouted into the comm.

But Elias' response was lost in the roar of thunder.

Kai looked at Jace. "We need to pull its power away. Redirect it."

Jace's eyes lit up. "Like a lightning rod!"

Kai nodded. "Exactly."

Jace pulled a metal spear from his gear — a collapsible staff they had used for grounding electrical surges in the past. He extended it and secured it to a piece of wreckage, anchoring it deep.

Kai focused on the shards, channeling the combined power of water and air. He began pulling the lightning toward the makeshift rod, giving it a target.

The Titan reacted violently. The sky flashed white as an enormous bolt slammed into the rod. The impact was deafening, but the rod held.

"Again!" Jace yelled.

Another bolt struck. And another.

The Titan roared in fury, its form flickering wildly as its energy was siphoned off, redirected harmlessly into the ocean.

Kai felt hope surge in his chest.

But the Titan wasn't done.

It shifted shape again, condensing into a massive tornado that descended toward them with terrifying speed.

"Move!" Kai shouted, grabbing Jace and leaping onto another piece of floating debris just as the tornado shredded their makeshift grounding rod.

The Titan slammed into the ocean, sending shockwaves through the water that nearly capsized them.

Kai struggled to keep them afloat. He summoned water energy, calming the waves around them just enough to regain control.

The Titan reformed, larger than before, crackling with raw power.

"We need something bigger," Jace gasped.

Kai's mind raced. If the Titan was pure energy, then maybe… maybe they could overload it.

He closed his eyes, focusing on the shards.

"Lend me your strength," he whispered.

The shards responded, glowing brightly. Wind swirled around him, rain evaporated from his skin, and for a moment, he felt connected to the storm itself.

He raised both hands.

A massive bolt of energy shot from his palms, lancing straight into the Titan's core.

The creature convulsed, energy crackling wildly across its shifting form.

Kai poured more power into it, feeding the Titan's storm until it became unstable.

The Titan shrieked — an otherworldly sound that echoed across the ocean — and began to implode.

Winds collapsed inward, lightning flickered out, and the massive form of the Storm Titan vanished into nothingness.

The storm above began to break apart, sunlight piercing through the clouds in golden beams.

Kai collapsed onto the debris, exhausted.

Jace panted beside him. "Three down."

Kai nodded, unable to speak.

The jet circled back to pick them up, the pilots managing to land on a stabilized cargo platform.

As they were lifted aboard, Elias' face appeared on the screen.

"You did it," he said, relief clear in his voice.

But Kai could see the tension still in his eyes.

"What's next?" he asked, though he already knew.

Elias hesitated. "The Fire Titan is wreaking havoc in Sicily. And… the Darkness Titan has been spotted near Egypt. Both are moving fast."

Kai wiped the sweat from his brow.

"We'll go to Sicily first," he said. "One Titan at a time."

But before they could even plot a course, alarms blared on the jet.

"Unknown energy surge detected!" the pilot shouted.

On the horizon, a portal opened in the sky — swirling black and purple, radiating dark energy.

And through it stepped a figure.

Not a Titan.

A man.

Tall, clad in ancient black armor, his face hidden beneath a helmet of shadow. His presence sent a chill through Kai's soul.

"Who… is that?" Jace whispered.

Elias' voice was tight with fear. "That… is the Warden of the Titans. The one who created the shards. He's been imprisoned for millennia."

The figure raised a hand, and with a gesture, the shattered remains of the Titans began to stir.

Stone, ice, storm, and earth fragments floated toward him, reforming into twisted, monstrous forms — corrupted echoes of their original might.

Kai's heart sank.

They hadn't just defeated the Titans.

They had freed their master.

The Warden's voice echoed across the sky, cold and ancient.

"Thank you… for waking me."