In the aftermath of the chaotic betrayal, Neith stood in the dimly lit command center, her mind racing.
The revelation of Noelle V. Silverstone as the spy, or rather, the leader of the Dark Saints had left the ANTs in disarray. As she replayed the events 8in her mind, a troubling realization struck her: she knew almost nothing about Noelle. He had always been a shadowy figure, his true nature hidden behind a façade of loyalty and competence.
Neith's eyes narrowed as she recalled the moments leading up to the betrayal. Noelle had always been there, offering strategic insights and seemingly invaluable advice. But now, she saw the gaps in her knowledge, the questions she had never thought to ask. Who was Noelle Silverstone, really? What drove
him to betray them? And what is he fighting for?
Determined to uncover the truth, Neith delved into the records, searching for any information about Noelle. What she found was sparse and vague, a carefully constructed illusion. Noelle was a master of water and fire magic, his skills in combat and strategy were unmatched. But beyond that, there was nothing –no history, no personal details nor connections.
As she pieced together the fragments of information, Neith's frustration grew. Noelle had been a ghost, a phantom who had infiltrated their ranks with ease. His magic made him a formidable ally, but now she
saw it for what it was, a tool of deception.
Meanwhile, Kael stood with Mikaela cradled gently in his arms. His eyes glowed with an ethereal light, the mark of his Saint State, a powerful transformation that amplifies his magic beyond mortal limits. As he held Mikaela close, her wounds began to knit themselves together, the mere presence of his aura weaving her flesh back to health. Across the battlefield, Noelle watched with a mixture of awe and determination. His crimson eyes narrowed, calculating the potential of such power under his command.
The air crackled with tension as Kael's healing magic enveloped her, Mikaela's eyes fluttered open, the haze of pain and darkness lifting. She blinked, disoriented at first, but the warmth of Kael's embrace and the gentle hum of his magic brought her back to reality.
"Kael…" she whispered, her voice weak but filled with gratitude even though he was the one that knocked her unconscious in the first place. The sight of her wounds closing and her strength returning was nothing short of miraculous. Noelle's eyes widened,
his determination hardening into resolve. Mikaela's recovery fuelled his desire to capture Kael's power.
"Nice! Keep showing me your true power, Kael. It is only a matter of time 'til I wield it myself!" said Noelle with pure excitement accompanying his words.
A sinister smile covered his entire face as he tapped into his mana to enter the Emperor State. His form of half water and half fire evoked. "I will take both of you on. Show me your little dance of contradicting magic… Fire and Ice against Fire and Water."
Noelle raised his arms, and the elements responded, fire and water coiling and merging in a display of raw power. "You think you can stand against me?" he taunted, his voice echoing through the arena. Kael stepped forward, his eyes burning with determination. "We don't just against you, Noelle. We fight for
each other," he declared. Mikaela nodded, her icy gaze unwavering. "We will take you down, together."
"That is funny. Kael, last time you teamed up with an ice mage, didn't she die? Now the same face is teaming up with you..." Noelle's voice got louder, "…are you ever going to learn? History always repeats itself. But at least this time you will die together. Or maybe I might just kill her so that you could mourn to
the afterlife if there is one."
Kael flinched. Noelle was successfully entering his head. Before one fights, they must be strong enough to win a war that doesn't require hands or magic, this is psychological warfare and Noelle was a master of it.
He intended to break Kael's spirit and lose the battle before it even started.
Mikaela noticed this and held Kael's hand, "Don't worry, we have got this. It's only a matter of time until he gets here."
Noelle, with his dual mastery of fire and water, stood like a colossus, his elemental powers swirling around him in a mesmerizing dance. On the opposite side, Kael and Mikaela prepared themselves. Mikaela entered the Empress State.
With a sudden, explosive movement, Noelle launched his attack. A torrent of fire surged from his right hand, while a wave of water crashed from his left. Kael responded instantly, conjuring a wall of flame to meet the incoming fire, while Mikaela summoned a barrier of ice to counter the water. The elements collided with a deafening roar, steam hissing and swirling around them.
Kael and Mikaela moved in the perfect synchrony, their magic weaving together in a seamless blend of fire and ice. Mikaela's ice shards flew through the air, glinting like diamonds, while Kael's fireballs blazed
with intense heat. Noelle, however, was a master of his craft. He deflected their attacks with ease, his control over the elements absolute.
With a swift, fluid motion, Noelle directed the steam of water at Mikaela, freezing it mid-air into deadly icicles. Mikaela countered with a blast of her own ice magic, shattering the icicles into harmless shards.
But Noelle was relentless. He followed up with a sweeping arc of fire, catching Mikaela off guard. The flames engulfed her, and with a cry of pain, she was thrown back, her body hitting the ground with a sickening thud. "One down," he said.
"Mikaela!" Kael's voice was a roar of anguish as he saw her fall. His heart pounded in his chest, a mix of fear and fury surging through him.
He looked at Noelle with a deadly gaze and shouted, "I will kill you! And then I will bring you to life and kill you again!"
Noelle laughed, "Actions are better than words."
Noelle summoned a body of water around Kael but with his anger fuelling his magic, no amount of water could put out his flames. This made Noelle, for a moment, doubt his own powers.
With his eyes focusing on Noelle, Kael chanted the words, "Heath my command eternal flames and engulf my enemies, exsisto Sol!"
By summoning his mana and almost tapping his mana pool dry, Kael was able to bring forth a huge amount of flames and compressed it small enough to cause devastating damage, with this move he was able to create a spherical flame with high temperature, it was like he... He summoned the sun.