In the span of seconds, the battlefield was a storm of fists and shattered space, each strike from Kem Kagu and Cassius von Noctis resonating with devastating force. The two combatants, undisputed masters of the fist, engaged in a relentless exchange that blurred the lines between martial skill and sheer, primal power.
The very air trembled as their Domains amplified their astral energy to its fullest potential. Unlike Ascendant-rankers, who often relied on enhanced aura to preserve their strength, Kem and Cassius fought with pure, unrestrained astral energy. Every blow carried the weight of their mastery, their wills clashing in an invisible storm that tore through the fabric of reality around them.
Kem's fist, infused with the sheer density of space astral energy, twisted and bent the air as it closed in on Cassius. The gravitational pull of his strikes warped the battlefield, collapsing the space between them in a desperate bid to crush his opponent. Rocks splintered, the ground cracked, and the faint hum of distorted energy echoed through the chaos.
But Cassius stood firm, his expression one of cold determination. He acknowledged Kem's strength, the raw, unyielding power in each of his blows. Kem was a rare force among humanity, his mastery honed over decades to an edge sharp enough to challenge any Immortal-ranker.
Yet Cassius was more than just strong. He was the successor to Caladros von Noctis, the heir to the throne of vampires. His training began in the ashes of a ruined empire, forged in the shadow of his father's defeat at the hands of Liam Kagu. For centuries, Cassius had refined his fist, each strike a testament to the legacy he carried and the future he sought to reclaim.
Kem's punches shattered boulders and twisted space itself, but Cassius's fists, clad in the dark crimson of blood and night astral energy, met them head-on with devastating precision. Centuries of relentless practice had made his technique unparalleled among vampires and rivaled by few among humanity. His strikes weren't just powerful—they were calculated, precise, the product of a martial journey that spanned lifetimes.
Kem's face was a mask of concentration, his Ancient-grade artifact flickering to life with each blow. He felt the resistance of Cassius's Domain pressing against him like a tide, unyielding and oppressive. His knuckles thudded against Cassius's fist again, and the force radiated outward in a shockwave that split the ground between them.
For a moment, Kem faltered. The artifact he relied upon to amplify his strikes, ancient and powerful as it was, did little to mitigate the strain on his body. Pain shot through his arm as he realized the truth: Cassius's strikes weren't just meeting his—they were surpassing them.
Cassius's expression didn't change, but there was a flicker of acknowledgment in his crimson eyes. "Strong," he murmured, his voice calm amidst the storm. "But not enough."
Kem gritted his teeth, his mind racing. He had fought Immortal-rankers who brushed the boundary of Radiant-rank, but Cassius wasn't merely strong—he was monstrous. For all his strength and mastery, Kem felt himself being pushed back, the weight of centuries of Cassius's training bearing down on him like an unrelenting tide.
Their fists met once more, and Kem's body shuddered under the force. His artifact pulsed with light, but even its ancient power couldn't entirely shield him from the damage. Blood trickled down his arm, the wound a stark reminder of the difference between them.
Cassius, ever calm, tilted his head as if appraising Kem. "You've honed your fists to their limit, human. But limits don't concern me. I broke mine long ago."
Kem stepped back, his breathing heavy, his gaze locked on the vampire prince. For the first time, doubt flickered in his mind. Not about his resolve—never about his resolve—but about whether sheer grit and skill would be enough against this overwhelming foe.
Kem's mind drifted, unbidden, to a distant memory—a memory he had tried to bury but which now rose to the surface, jagged and raw. He was young again, fists clenched, his body vibrating with untapped potential. Back then, his talent in the Void Fist technique had been undeniable, a blazing beacon that outshone even his sister Selene's Gift of God's Eyes.
The Kagu lineage was defined by three pillars: the Gift of God's Eyes, a rare blessing that saw through the very fabric of reality; a triple affinity for time, space, and gravity; and an innate talent for the fist, the raw foundation upon which their legacy was built.
Kem had two of the three—the affinities and the talent for the fist—but not the Gift of God's Eyes. Selene, in turn, had the Gift but lacked the other two, her fist lacking the fluidity, the devastating intent, that came naturally to him.
For years, that gap had made all the difference. As they grew, Kem surged ahead, his fists carving a path of unyielding strength while Selene, despite her gift, seemed unable to keep up. The fist was the heart of their family's martial legacy, and Kem embodied it in a way Selene never could. It seemed inevitable that he would take the mantle of their family's future.
But everything changed when they turned twenty-one.
The memory burned behind his eyes, a vivid scar of the Kagu family's succession ceremony. Both he and Selene were Ascendant-rankers then. The air that day had been electric, thrumming with the gathered energy of the family, as the two siblings prepared to clash for the right to lead.
Kem had entered the arena with the confidence of inevitability. His fists carried the Void Fist technique, a Grade 6 art that had propelled him far beyond his peers. He had honed it to near-perfection, the resonance of each strike bending space and warping time. In pure fist arts, he surpassed his sister by every measurable standard.
He should have won.
But Selene had chosen a different path.
Instead of clinging to a world where her lack of fist talent shackled her to mediocrity, Selene had taken the Void Fist technique and reshaped it. She had carved away the parts of it that didn't suit her, bending the art to her will and talent. Where her fists faltered, her glaive found precision and grace. Void Fist had become her own art, one that sang to the weapon she had chosen—a weapon she had transformed into an extension of herself.
When their fists and glaive met in the arena, Kem realized too late what she had done. Her glaive didn't just counter his strikes; it crushed them. The resonances of their astral energy collided, and hers rang truer, stronger, more refined.
For the first time in his life, Kem was defeated by his younger sister. The cheers of their family were deafening, but all Kem could hear was the sound of his own shattered pride.
Selene had surpassed him, and she never looked back.
After that day, Kem threw himself into isolation training with the ferocity of a man trying to reclaim something lost. He worked harder than ever, honing his fists, pushing his body and mind to their limits. And yet, no matter how much he improved, the gap between them only grew.
Years later, when both were at peak Immortal-rank, they clashed again. It was not an official duel but a personal one, a battle between siblings to measure how far they had come. Kem had fought with everything he had, his fists burning with the culmination of years of effort.
And still, her glaive triumphed.
Kem could only watch as she continued to ascend, reaching the peak of low Radiant-rank, while he remained at the threshold of Immortal-rank, unable to break through.
Now, standing in the present, Kem's fists trembled. Not from weakness, but from the fire of that memory. Cassius von Noctis stood before him, his presence oppressive, his aura vast.
Kem clenched his fists tighter. He couldn't afford to lose again—not this time. Not to this vampire.
Kem's breaths came in ragged gasps, the relentless rhythm of battle hammering at his resolve. His movements, each a culmination of decades of mastery over the Void Fist, seemed to falter against the unyielding tide of Cassius von Noctis. Every strike was met, every feint countered. It was as if the vampire prince had unraveled the threads of his art, plucking apart its essence and leaving Kem with nothing but broken pieces.
His arm exploded once again, blood and shredded muscle spraying into the void of their clashing Domains. The limb began to regenerate, but slower than before—an ominous sign of his dwindling strength. Kem gritted his teeth, his mind racing for answers he could not find.
His Grade 6 art wasn't enough. His Domain, vast and intricate, could not overwhelm Cassius's blood-fueled subspace. His astral energy, though formidable, felt thin and inadequate against the density of Cassius's.
They tore into each other's bodies with relentless precision, but Kem could feel it: his body was failing faster. The regeneration granted by his mastery over space astral energy couldn't match the vampiric resilience Cassius wielded like a shield. It wasn't just a contest of strength—it was a race against time, and Kem was losing.
He clenched his fists, only to find despair seeping into the cracks of his resolve. How do I win?
Cassius moved with the calculated savagery of a predator. He hadn't relied on any Gifts, just as Kem hadn't, yet the vampire stood above him, his every motion a testament to centuries of ruthless honing. Cassius wasn't just a foe—he was a mirror reflecting all of Kem's inadequacies.
Kem's thoughts spiraled downward as Cassius's fist came crashing into his torso, breaking ribs and throwing him back. His body cracked the subspace, and his Domain trembled under the weight of the onslaught. The Void Vanguard commander's head drooped as blood dripped from his mouth.
He was losing.
Kem's head lifted slightly, his vision blurred as he saw Cassius approach, the vampire's blood and night astral energy coiling around his fists like serpents ready to strike. For a moment, Kem saw the inevitable future: his defeat, the fall of his forces, the collapse of the Kagu family's defense in the north.
The despair was suffocating.
And then, like a blade carving through the fog, a voice shattered the silence of his mind and the subspace around them.
"Silly brother," the voice chimed, light yet sharp, carrying a weight of both rebuke and affection.
Kem's eyes widened as the subspace they had created—domains layered upon domains—shuddered. The very fabric of the space warped, not under Cassius's power, but something greater, something familiar. The edges of the battlefield were carved apart by a glaive wreathed in astral energy so potent that it seemed to cut through the essence of the Domains themselves.
Glaive Unity.
Selene Kagu.
Kem's gaze snapped upward as his sister descended, her form wreathed in icy brilliance, her glaive carving the subspace as though it were no more than a thin veil. She moved with the elegance of a dancer and the precision of a master artisan, her presence commanding and absolute.
Cassius stopped, his crimson eyes narrowing as his blood astral energy flared in response to the new arrival. "A Radiant-ranker…" he muttered, his voice edged with wariness.
Selene landed between them, her violet eyes—blessed with the Gift of God's Eyes—sweeping across the battlefield. Her presence was overwhelming, her glaive humming with latent power.
"Giving up already, Kem?" she teased, her tone light but her gaze sharp as her weapon rested against her shoulder.
Kem coughed, blood splattering onto the broken ground beneath him. "You're late," he managed, forcing himself upright despite the searing pain in his body.
Selene's expression softened for a fraction of a second before hardening again as she turned her attention fully to Cassius. "You should rest, brother. Leave this one to me."
Cassius's lips curled into a smile, his predatory instincts igniting at the prospect of facing a Radiant-ranker. "So, the famed Twilight Ice Sovereign joins the fray," he said, his tone mocking. "Do you think you can succeed where your brother has failed?"
Selene's grip tightened on her glaive, her God's Eyes narrowing as she analyzed every detail of Cassius's stance, his energy, his movement. Her astral energy flared, ice and time coalescing into a deadly symphony.
Kem wanted to protest, to argue that he could still fight, still prove his strength. But as he watched Selene's glaive glow brighter, carving through the remnants of his shattered Domain with effortless precision, he realized something.
Unity wasn't just about power. It was about understanding.
And Selene, with her Glaive Unity and her unyielding resolve, was far beyond him in that regard.
For now, he had to step back. To trust.