Kael straightened his stance before the massive metallic doors. The two Reviver agents stood between him and his goal, a wall of flesh and enchanted steel. He rolled his shoulders, feeling the ache from earlier battles, and settled into a fighting crouch. His daggers slid behind him, blades angled down. His right foot moved forward, weight balanced on the balls of his feet. Ready.
He looked at them. Not with fear. Not with desperation. Just cold, focused assessment.
"Why did you two join the Revivers?" His voice was low, cutting through the hum of distant alarms and the muffled chaos far above.
The shield-bearer blinked, caught off guard by the question. He exchanged a glance with his partner, then a slow, prideful smile spread across his broad face. "I was nothing before them. A street thug with a strong arm and no future. They gave me purpose. They gave me this." He tapped the massive shield with his free hand, the metal ringing softly. "Order. Belonging. A place in something larger than myself. I would have died in a gutter without them."
Kael's gaze shifted to the gauntleted man. The metal-user flexed his liquid steel hand, the surface rippling slightly as he tested his control. His expression was harder, more calculating. There was no pride there, only cold certainty.
"Power," he said simply. "The Revivers don't hoard strength. They cultivate it. Share it. I was born weak, smaller than everyone else. They gave me the tools to become something greater. Now I can crush anyone who looks down on me." He clenched his metal fist, the claws scraping together. "I chose this. Every step."
Kael's face shifted. The cold assessment twisted into something uglier. Disgust pulled at his mouth, hardened his eyes into dark points. These men had chosen. They had walked in willingly, been given purpose and power, while children like him had been stolen in the night, broken in dark rooms, reshaped without consent into weapons they never asked to be.
"I was taken as a child," Kael said, his voice dropping to something barely above a whisper. "Stolen from my family. Beaten. Trained. Tortured. I didn't choose any of it." He lifted his daggers, settling them into a fighting grip. The worn leather of the handles felt familiar against his palms. "You chose to become monsters. You chose to serve the people who made me what I am. I plan to destroy everything you chose to serve."
He took a slow breath, feeling the weight of the moment settle on his shoulders.
"You two are my enemies."
He moved.
Kael ran straight at the shield-bearer, his feet pounding against stone. The large man reacted on pure instinct, slamming the base of his shield into the floor with a heavy crash. The pale red glow erupted instantly, the repulsion field snapping into existence around him. The air shimmered, distorting like heat rising from summer stone.
But Kael had already changed direction.
At the last possible second, he veered hard to the side, his boots skidding as he pivoted sharply. He sprinted toward the curved wall of the chamber, using the angle to slide along the very edge of the field's influence. He felt the pressure tug at his clothes, pulling at him like a strong current, but he was already past the worst of it.
The field activated fully, but Kael was out of its main path, moving along its flank. The two agents were now robbed of their preferred formation. The shield was anchored in place, its user committed to maintaining the field. The gauntlet user was the only one who could pursue.
For a single heartbeat, panic flickered in their eyes. The plan was broken.
The gauntleted agent recovered first. He snarled, a sound of pure frustration, and charged forward. His metal fist came up, ready to deliver a crushing blow. But Kael was already moving, not away, but toward the wall. He ran three steps up its curved surface, feeling the stone press against his boots, and launched himself backward into a tight flip.
He landed lightly several paces behind the charging man, daggers still ready.
The gauntlet user spun, off balance, his momentum carrying him past his target. He stumbled, trying to recover, and Kael was already inside his reach. He didn't strike for the armored chest or the metal-clad arm. Those were protected. Instead, he drove one dagger low and hard into the man's exposed side, just above the hip, where the green armor gaped to allow movement.
The blade sank deep, sliding between ribs. The man grunted, a wet, surprised sound escaping his throat. Blood welled around the steel, dark and immediate, soaking into his uniform.
Kael ripped the dagger free and danced back, leaving a gash that poured crimson down the man's leg and onto the stone floor.
The shield-bearer roared in fury and abandoned his post. He lifted his heavy shield, the red glow dying as he broke his concentration, and lumbered forward. Each step shook the ground. Kael circled, keeping the wounded gauntlet user positioned between them as a living barrier.
The metal man swung wildly, desperation replacing precision. His gauntleted fist cut through the air where Kael's head had been a moment before. Kael ducked under the next punch, feeling the wind of its passage ruffle his hair. He came up inside the man's guard and slashed across the exposed forearm, opening a second wound.
The gauntlet user screamed, more in fury than pain, and backhanded with his metal-clad arm. The blow caught Kael on the shoulder, a glancing hit that still sent a shock of numbness through his entire arm. He stumbled back, his grip on one dagger loosening.
The shield-bearer was closing, his massive form only a few strides away. Kael gritted his teeth and refocused on the wounded man. He couldn't fight both at once.
The gauntlet user charged again, overconfident in his reach. Kael waited until the last moment, then dropped into a low crouch. The metal fist passed over his head. He drove his dagger up under the man's raised arm, into the softer tissue of his armpit.
The blade went deep. The man choked, his momentum carrying him forward even as the wound stole his strength. Kael rolled aside, avoiding the collapsing body, and came up on one knee.
The gauntlet user hit the ground hard, his metal fist flickering and softening as his concentration shattered. He tried to push himself up, but his arm gave out. Blood pooled beneath him, spreading across the stone in a dark stain.
The shield-bearer was almost on top of him. Kael scrambled backward, trying to create distance, but the large man was faster than he looked. He swung his shield not as a defensive tool, but as a weapon, its edge whistling through the air.
Kael threw himself sideways. The shield missed by inches, slamming into a stone pillar with enough force to crack the ancient masonry. Chips of rock sprayed across the floor.
Kael rolled to his feet, his side screaming in protest. He was breathing hard now, sweat mixing with the blood from his own minor wounds. The shield-bearer turned, raising his massive barrier again. His eyes were fixed on Kael with murderous intent.
Behind him, the gauntlet user made a wet, choking sound. His body twitched once, twice, and then went still. The metal on his arm softened completely, flowing into a useless puddle around his dead hand.
The shield-bearer glanced back at his fallen partner. When his gaze returned to Kael, there was something new there. Not just fury. Fear.
Kael straightened slowly, ignoring the pain in his shoulder and ribs. He lifted both daggers, crossing them for a moment in front of his face before settling into a low, aggressive stance. His eyes never left the large man's face.
"You're alone now," Kael said, his voice flat.