The chamber rumbled as the first set of massive doors slammed open, revealing a dark corridor lined with crackling veins of energy. The very air inside hummed with anticipation, charged with a power that felt almost alive.
Kael took a slow breath, stepping forward. He could feel it in his bones—this wasn't just a test of raw strength. It was something more. The moment he passed through the threshold, he was being judged.
Veyra and Ryven followed close behind, their footsteps barely audible against the vibrating metal beneath them. Three of the strongest fighters from the coliseum, now part of the Stormborn, walked beside them—warriors hardened by years of battle.
And yet, even they were uneasy.
The doors sealed shut behind them, locking them in.
The chamber came to life.
At first, the space remained still, its walls smooth and featureless. But then the energy veins surged, pulsing brighter, and something stirred.
Shapes began to emerge—hulking, towering figures made entirely of electromagnetic current, shifting like living storms given form. Their bodies were unstable, constantly reshaping, as if the energy itself refused to be contained.
Kael's muscles tensed.
These things weren't just constructs.
They were Stormborn echoes—remnants of those who had fallen in battle, lingering in the charge of this place.
The first one moved.
It came at them with terrifying speed, its entire form crackling as it swung a massive arm of pure energy down toward Kael.
Kael reacted on instinct, twisting away just as the attack slammed into the ground, sending shockwaves through the chamber. The force of it alone could have crushed bone.
Veyra had already moved, dodging to the left. Ryven skidded backward, cursing under his breath. The coliseum warriors scrambled to regroup, but another construct surged forward, hurling a bolt of raw voltage directly at them.
Kael gritted his teeth. They weren't fighting just one. They were fighting a storm.
"We need to take them out—fast," Veyra shouted, already lunging forward.
She struck the nearest construct, her fists wrapped in glowing blue lightning. The impact sent ripples through the creature's form, distorting it for a moment, but it didn't collapse. Instead, it absorbed the charge, its body glowing brighter.
Veyra barely leapt back in time as the construct redirected the energy back at her, sending a streak of electricity racing toward her chest.
She cursed. "They're adapting!"
Kael's mind raced. These weren't simple enemies—they were living currents, energy shaped by the fortress itself.
Ryven flipped over one of them, planting a well-aimed kick to its core. It did nothing.
Kael dodged another wild swing, barely keeping his balance as he pieced it together. If they couldn't destroy them directly…
Then maybe they had to disrupt them.
"I think I get it," Kael called out, dodging another attack. "They aren't solid—they're just energy fields. If we try to overpower them, we just fuel them. But if we match their frequency—"
His words cut off as one of the constructs lunged for him, its form warping like a chaotic storm. Kael reacted fast, reaching deep into the energy around him.
He didn't try to destroy it.
He synced with it.
His pulse matched the charge rippling through the air. His hands reached forward—not to fight—but to pull.
The construct faltered.
Its form wavered, then collapsed in on itself, the energy dispersing like a storm losing its center.
Kael's breath hitched. It worked.
Veyra saw it. "You just—"
"I disrupted its frequency," Kael said quickly. "They aren't invincible—we just have to break their charge, not overpower it."
Veyra's eyes flashed with understanding. "Then let's tear them apart from the inside."
The second construct lunged for one of the coliseum warriors. The fighter barely managed to dodge, rolling across the ground before spinning to strike back. But **this time, he adjusted his attack—**not trying to punch through, but instead disrupting the charge mid-strike.
The construct twisted violently—then exploded into scattered particles of light.
Kael grinned. "That's it!"
The third construct came at Ryven, its energy surging wildly. Ryven gritted his teeth. "Oh, screw this."
Instead of dodging, he let the creature grab him.
The construct's energy surged around him, trying to overwhelm him, but Ryven reached out with both hands, forcing his own electromagnetic field to match it.
For a moment, the two forces struggled.
Then the construct rippled and collapsed, its entire charge flickering out.
Ryven staggered backward, panting. "Okay… that was a bad idea. But effective."
Kael and Veyra turned to the last construct—the strongest of them all, still standing at the center of the chamber.
Kael stepped forward, hands crackling.
"I'll take this one."
The construct reacted instantly, sensing him as the strongest threat. It moved faster than the others, bolts of lightning arcing from its shifting form. Kael barely had time to process the speed before it was already on him.
He twisted to the side, skidding across the floor as the creature's arm tore through the air where he had just been standing. The static energy ripped across his skin, the charge almost strong enough to short-circuit his own power.
But Kael wasn't just dodging.
He was syncing.
With each movement, with each pulse of energy, he felt the construct's rhythm, the flow of its power. The fortress had designed these creatures to test raw strength, but raw strength wasn't what won battles.
Control did.
Kael exhaled sharply and reached out, matching the construct's charge in an instant.
The creature froze.
For the first time, it stopped shifting, stopped moving, caught in perfect synchronization with Kael's field.
Then, with a single pulse of his own energy, Kael ripped it apart from within.
The construct dissolved in an instant, scattering into pure current.
The chamber dimmed, the energy stabilizing.
Kael stood in the silence, his heartbeat pounding against his ribs.
Then, the far wall opened, revealing the passage to the next trial.
Veyra let out a slow breath. "Well. That was fun."
Ryven groaned. "I think I lost feeling in my left arm."
Kael turned back toward the now-empty chamber. The test had been more than just physical. It had been a lesson.
Strength wasn't just about power.
It was about understanding the storm.
And now, they were ready for the next challenge.