The walls of the tunnel shook with every second.
Hoverdrones buzzed overhead like angry wasps, their sharp mechanical hum vibrating through the underground passage. Jalen stood at the center of the darkened space, breathing fast, his hands already glowing with the light that had become his curse.
"Keep your head," Reyka ordered, her voice steady despite the chaos outside. "You've been trained for this moment. You've got power, Kane. But power without control is just destruction."
The drones hovered just beyond the tunnel entrance, their glowing red eyes scanning for movement. The air crackled with an electric tension. Jalen clenched his fists, energy buzzing at his fingertips, and for the first time, he could feel the power responding to his command.
This is it, he thought, heart thundering. Time to face the storm.
Without a word, Jalen stepped forward, and Reyka followed him, her hand on her weapon, eyes scanning the shadows. As they neared the mouth of the tunnel, the first drone zipped in, its mechanical whirring piercing the silence.
"On my mark," Reyka whispered, her eyes locked on the drone.
Jalen nodded. His breath slowed. The energy thrumming inside him intensified, a strange heat flooding his chest. It wasn't just power—it was fury.
The drone fired a burst of blinding red light. Without thinking, Jalen raised his hand, and a pulse of golden energy shot out, slamming into the drone midair. It burst into sparks, plummeting to the ground like a burning star. But the fight had only begun.
Suddenly, the tunnel was filled with movement. More drones swarmed in from every direction. Their glowing red eyes fixed on Jalen, who felt the power inside him flare. His heart raced. His mind screamed at him to let it out, to give in to the fire that threatened to consume him. But Reyka's voice cut through the chaos.
"Focus! Control!"
The drones launched another round of fire, but Jalen was ready. He raised both hands, feeling the golden energy build in his chest, shaping it with the focus Reyka had drilled into him. He released it, sending a sweeping arc of light through the swarm. One by one, the drones exploded in a flash of golden fire, the tunnel filling with the smell of burning metal and ozone.
But they weren't done yet.
A deep rumble filled the ground, and Jalen looked up just in time to see them—the Servants of the Eclipse.
They stepped out from the shadows, tall figures clad in dark, ancient armor, their faces hidden behind sleek, black helmets. The air around them seemed to warp, as if the very space they occupied bent with their presence.
The leader, a towering figure whose armor seemed to absorb the very light around them, raised their hand.
"You are the one who calls the storm," the Servant's voice echoed, metallic and distorted. "The Eclipse is upon us, and you—Nova Kane—are the spark. Come with us, and we will end your suffering. Refuse, and we will destroy you."
Jalen's heart hammered in his chest. He could feel the heat of their presence, a cold, suffocating aura that wrapped around him like chains.
"Not a chance," Reyka snapped, drawing her weapon, a sleek, glowing blade. She stood her ground next to Jalen, her face set in a determined snarl.
The Servants moved, their speed unnatural. They were upon them in an instant, like shadows given form, closing in with eerie precision.
Jalen didn't hesitate. The energy inside him flared once more, filling every fiber of his being with explosive power. His hands crackled with golden light, and he thrust them forward.
A burst of raw energy erupted from his palms, slamming into the first Servant, throwing them back. But the others didn't flinch. They moved with cold calculation, one of them lunging toward Jalen with a black-bladed spear. Jalen barely had time to react, but Reyka was there, her glowing blade deflecting the strike just in time. She kicked the Servant away, but it wasn't enough to stop them.
"You can't win this, Kane," the lead Servant growled. "You are a child wielding a weapon you do not understand."
Jalen's eyes burned with anger. They want to control me? To take everything from me?
"No one controls me," Jalen snarled, his voice low and guttural. The power inside him surged again, more intense than before. He could feel it—like a storm about to break loose.
Without thinking, he thrust his hands forward. A wave of golden energy shot out, powerful enough to shatter the very ground beneath him. The lead Servant raised their arm to block, but the force of the blast was too much. They were thrown back, crashing into the wall, their armor dented and scorched.
But Jalen wasn't finished.
His body was alight with power, and in that moment, he felt it—the connection to something greater. The stars in the sky. The cosmic force that had chosen him.
The battle raged on, Jalen's energy pulsing with each movement. Every strike, every explosion of power, felt like a step toward something bigger. But as the dust settled and the last of the Servants fell, Jalen felt a sudden weight settle over him.
Reyka stood beside him, panting, her face streaked with dirt and sweat. She looked at him, her eyes hard but not unkind.
"You did well," she said. "But this fight is just beginning. You don't understand what you're up against."
Jalen's chest heaved with each breath, his body trembling from the aftereffects of the battle. He looked down at his hands, still glowing faintly with the golden energy.
"I don't get it," he admitted. "Why me? Why now?"
Reyka didn't answer immediately. Instead, she looked toward the distant sky, her face drawn in thought.
"Because the Eclipse is coming," she finally said, her voice steady but heavy with the weight of her words. "And when it does, you'll have to choose: to rise… or to burn"