Keon took a step back, his eyes locked on the towering machine before him. The glowing lines pulsed along its armored frame, and the cylindrical cannon on its right arm whirred ominously, energy gathering at its core. The low hum of charging power filled the chamber, vibrating through the metal floor beneath his feet.
Keon's expression tightened. "Okay, seriously—what is this thing?"
Silence.
No response from the voice. No explanation. Nothing.
Keon's irritation flared. "Oh, now you decide to go quiet? Figures."
The cannon's hum grew louder. A faint red glow built at its center, intensifying with each passing second.
Keon's pulse quickened. Whatever that thing was about to fire, he really didn't want to find out the hard way.
"Right. Guess we're doing this the fun way."
His rift barrier flared to life, the faint distortion around him shifting like ripples in reality itself. The machine locked onto him—
And fired.
Keon's eyes widened as the cannon unleashed a brilliant red beam, cutting through the air like a blade of destruction. Instinct took over—his body moved before his mind fully caught up. His Rift Barrier activated, warping space around him.
The moment the energy beam reached him, it bent unnaturally, sucked into the invisible vortex of his ability. The massive attack vanished in an instant, absorbed into his personal dimensional pocket.
The battlefield fell into stunned silence.
Keon smirked. "Oh? That's handy."
Without hesitation, he flicked his hand forward. Reject.
The same red beam erupted from his palm, hurtling straight back at the towering robot. The machine's sensors flared in alarm as its own attack was used against it.
But it wasn't defenseless.
With a mechanical hiss, a translucent hexagonal barrier materialized around its body just in time. The returned energy slammed into the shield, causing ripples to spread across its surface, but the machine stood firm.
Keon clicked his tongue. "Figures. You're not that dumb, huh?"
The robot recalibrated, its systems adjusting for the unexpected counter. Its glowing eye locked onto Keon again—this time with newfound caution.
The machine's left arm trembled as internal mechanisms shifted, plates sliding apart with a sharp metallic hiss. From within, a massive energy-infused blade extended, its jagged edges crackling with violet arcs of electricity. The weapon wasn't wielded—it was a part of the machine itself, seamlessly integrated into its armored structure like a natural extension of its body.
Keon's eyes narrowed. "Of course, you have a built-in sword. Because why not?"
Without hesitation, the machine's thrusters flared to life. Twin bursts of violet energy erupted from its feet, propelling it forward at breakneck speed. The sheer force of the blast sent the ground shaking in its wake, the air rippling from the heat and kinetic pressure.
Keon barely had a moment to react before the robot was upon him, its blade arcing downward in a devastating swing. The crackling energy left a distorted trail in the air, a clear sign that a single hit wouldn't just cut—it would disintegrate anything in its path.
The moment the robot's blade struck Keon, its arm vanished. Not severed, not shattered—just gone, as if erased from existence. Yet, it was still attached, just… halfway inside something unseen. The machine's systems twitched, unable to comprehend what had happened.
Without hesitation, its cyclopean eye flared, charging a concentrated blue beam. In an instant, it fired. The energy blast streaked toward Keon—
And vanished.
The machine's processors stalled for a fraction of a second. A miscalculation? An error? No, it had hit its target—so why was there no impact?
Keon simply stood there, unbothered, hands in his pockets. His gaze flicked up to the machine's flickering eye.
"Not very creative, huh?"
The robot lurched back, recalibrating. It didn't understand, but it adapted. With a mechanical whir, its free arm shifted, new panels unfolding. Energy pulsed along its frame as it prepared to strike again.
Keon exhaled. "Yeah, you do that."
The air tensed as Keon lifted his hand ever so slightly. A faint shimmer rippled around him—subtle, yet undeniable. Then, without a word, reality itself twisted.
From the space where the robot's attack had disappeared, a brilliant blue beam erupted, surging forward with terrifying speed. It wasn't just similar—it was the exact same energy the machine had fired, now sent hurtling back with precision.
The robot's sensors blared warnings, its eye flashing wildly as it recognized its own attack being returned. It barely had time to react before the beam slammed into its frame, a direct hit to its metallic chest.
A massive explosion rippled outward, blue energy crackling as the impact forced the machine back. Smoke and sparks spewed from the damage, and for the first time, the towering construct staggered.
Keon watched, his expression unreadable. "Huh. So you can feel that."
The robot's systems flickered, its adaptive programming scrambling to comprehend the impossible event. It had fired that shot—there was no record of Keon generating any attack of his own. Yet here it was, suffering the consequences of its own firepower.
With a screech of shifting metal, the machine straightened, its single eye locking onto Keon once more. But this time, there was something different. No hesitation. No recalibration.
It was learning.
Keon's smirk returned. "Alright, then. Let's see what you've got."
The machine's glowing cyclopean eye pulsed ominously, gathering energy once more. Without hesitation, it fired another brilliant blue beam, the concentrated energy lancing straight toward Keon.
Keon barely reacted. The beam reached him—vanishing the moment it touched the space around his Rift Barrier, swallowed whole like the last attack.
Then, in a perfect echo, the same blue beam erupted forward from Keon's side, hurtling straight back at the machine.
But this time, the robot was ready.
With a sharp mechanical whirr, metal plates along its chest shifted. Gears clicked, panels slid open, and from beneath the armor, a brilliant blue core was revealed.
The moment the returned energy reached it, the core pulsed—then absorbed the incoming beam effortlessly. The energy curled and twisted as it was devoured, crackling across the core's surface like veins of lightning.
Then, in an instant, it fired back.
A new beam surged forward, but it wasn't the same as before. This one burned with a ghostly blue hue, its edges flickering like ethereal flames. The sheer intensity of it warped the air, twisting like a living force.
Keon's eyes flicked toward it, his mind racing. This wasn't just a counterattack—it was an evolved version of its original power.
And it was coming straight for him.
The blazing blue beam surged toward Keon, its ethereal flames twisting and crackling as it closed the distance. But just as it was about to make contact—
It vanished.
Or rather, it flickered in and out of existence. The ghostly fire surged forward, only to disappear mere inches before reaching Keon. It reappeared a split second later, still advancing, only to vanish again as if reality itself was rejecting its presence.
The machine's glowing eye flickered in what could only be described as confusion. Its sensors tracked the beam, but the readings made no sense. The attack it had fired—one meant to overwhelm its opponent—was phasing in and out of existence, unable to complete its path.
Keon remained still, watching the disappearing flame with an unimpressed expression. To him, this was nothing new.
Keon lifted his hand, the vanishing flames now coiling around his fingers like living energy. With a flick of his wrist, the unstable fire twisted and condensed, forming several small orbs of blue energy, each pulsating with raw power.
"Huh. Let's see how you like this," he muttered.
With a sharp motion, Keon launched the fireballs toward the machine, each one streaking through the air like miniature comets. They struck its armored frame, bursting on impact in waves of crackling energy.
But—nothing.
No scorch marks, no melted metal—just the machine standing there, completely unfazed.
Keon narrowed his eyes. "Fireproof, huh?" He clicked his tongue, crossing his arms. "Figures."
The robot, still locked onto him, made no acknowledgment of the attack's failure. Its chest plate slid back into place, the core now hidden once more. Whatever energy had been stored within it, the machine was already recalibrating, preparing its next move.
The machine took a step forward—heavy, deliberate, unyielding. Its metal frame groaned as it marched, each movement calculated and relentless. The glowing lines along its body pulsed with energy, its single cyclopean eye locked onto Keon like a predator homing in on its prey.
Keon, unfazed, let out a small chuckle. His violet eyes gleamed with amusement, a faint glow reflecting off his smirking face. As the towering robot closed the distance, he raised his arms in an open, welcoming gesture.
"Oh? You're approaching me?" His tone dripped with playful mockery. "Consider yourself lucky I haven't yeeted you into the air yet."
The machine gave no response—no hesitation. It simply continued its ominous march, closing the gap between them with unwavering purpose.
The machine's march came to a halt. With a series of sharp mechanical clicks, several armored plates along its torso and shoulders slid open, revealing circular red-glowing structures embedded within its frame. The eerie crimson light pulsed in sync with an unseen power source, casting an ominous glow against the cold metal.
Keon's amused expression flickered with mild confusion. "What are those—?"
Before he could finish, a deafening blast erupted from the glowing circles.
A sound—not just any sound, but an earth-shattering, all-consuming wave of force—ripped through the air. It wasn't merely loud; it was a monstrous, reality-shaking roar that made the Obsidian Howler's scream seem like a whisper in comparison.
Keon felt it—not just in his ears but in his very bones, in the air around him, in the space itself. The sheer force of it distorted the battlefield, sending tremors through the ground. The pressure alone was enough to crush lesser beings.
As the soundwave crashed into him, Keon's smug confidence shattered. His violet eyes widened in shock as an unbearable pressure crushed his senses.
"GAHH—!!"
A raw scream tore from his throat as he clutched his ears, his entire body trembling under the sheer force of the sonic assault. His head pounded as if his skull was about to split open, his vision blurred, and for the first time in this fight—he felt powerless.
Instinct screamed at him to act. Through the pain, through the deafening chaos, Keon's body moved on reflex.
His Rift Barrier flared violently. Reality itself twisted as an unseen force wrapped around the towering machine.
Then—
BOOM!
The robot was yeeted.
One moment, it stood its ground, unleashing destruction. The next, it was hurtling into the air like a ragdoll, launched by the sheer force of Keon's Rift Barrier. Its glowing eyes flickered as it spun out of control, vanishing into the distance.
Keon staggered, his legs giving out beneath him. The world tilted, his breath ragged. His mind barely processed what had happened. The sonic attack had been too much at close range. His head throbbed. His body felt heavy.
Darkness crept at the edges of his vision.
Damn… That was… loud…
With that final thought, Keon collapsed—fainting from the sheer exposure to the overwhelming sound.