The giant ball of mixed purple, gray, and starry energy hung above the camp like a second sun. It grew larger every second, ready to erase everything below.
The Trinity Vessel floated in the air, its three-colored eyes glowing with triumph.
It said, "This ends now. The boy's will is gone. The camp will be the first to fall."
Lira stood up slowly, her silver threads almost completely faded.
She looked at the Vessel and said, "Kai is still in there. I can feel his thread. It is faint, but it is still fighting." Mira wiped blood from her mouth and stood beside Lira. She said, "We are not running. We fight for our friend until the end."
The Vessel laughed with three voices at once. "Brave words. But useless. The final wave is at its peak. With three gods in one body, nothing can stop us."
The giant energy ball started to fall.
Kai's real voice suddenly broke through with a strength no one expected. He shouted inside the Vessel, "I… will… not… let you… hurt them!"
The Vessel's body jerked violently.
The three colors in its eyes flashed wildly. For a few precious seconds, Kai took full control again. He looked at Lira and Mira with his normal brown eyes and said, "Run… please… I cannot hold them much longer… they are going to destroy everything…"
Lira shook her head, tears streaming down her face. She said, "We will not leave you, Kai. We fight together." Mira stepped forward and said, "You are our Kai. We are not giving up on you!"
The Vessel screamed in rage as the three gods pushed Kai down again. The giant energy ball continued to fall. Kai felt the last of his strength fading.
He whispered with his real voice, "I love you both… thank you for never giving up on me…"
The Vessel raised both hands to guide the falling energy ball. At that exact moment, something unexpected happened.
The small god fragments inside Kai — the weakened pieces of Nyxar and Veyra — suddenly stopped fighting him. They whispered together, "If we let this new god win, we will all be erased. Work with the boy… just this once." For the first time, the three gods inside Kai were no longer completely against him.
Kai used that moment. He pushed with every bit of will he had left. He shouted, "This body is mine!"
The Vessel's body dropped to its knees. The giant energy ball slowed down in the air. Lira and Mira saw their chance.
Lira sent her last silver threads toward the Vessel and said, "Kai! We are here! Fight them!" Mira ran forward and hugged the Vessel tightly. She cried, "Kai! Come back! We need our funny voice Kai back!"
The Vessel screamed with three voices. The struggle inside was intense. For nearly a full minute, Kai's real voice was the loudest.
He said, "I am Kai Voss… I died once… but I choose to live as me… I will not let you take my friends…" The giant energy ball stopped falling. It hovered in the air, trembling.
The Vessel's body shook violently. The three gods roared in anger. But Kai kept pushing.
He said, "I choose me… I choose my friends… I choose to stay human!" The Vessel dropped completely to the ground. The three-colored eyes flickered rapidly.
For one beautiful moment, Kai's normal brown eyes returned completely.
He looked at Lira and Mira and smiled weakly. He said, "Thank you… for believing in me…"
Then the three gods pushed back with full force. The Vessel stood up again. Its eyes glowed brighter than ever with the three colors.
It said, "The boy is stronger than we thought. But it does not matter. The final wave is at its peak. We will finish this now." The giant energy ball started falling again. This time it fell faster.
Lira and Mira stood together, refusing to run. Lira said, "We will not leave you, Kai." Mira said, "We fight until the end."
The energy ball was only seconds away from hitting the camp. Kai's real voice broke through one last time, very weak. He said, "I love you both… live well…"
The Vessel raised its hands to guide the final strike. The camp held its breath. The giant energy ball was about to hit.
And then… A single, small golden light appeared in the center of the camp. Solara's voice echoed softly.
She said, "The boy has made his choice. Now it is time for mine." The golden light grew brighter. It shot toward the falling energy ball and collided with it.
A massive explosion of golden, purple, gray, and starry light filled the entire sky. The camp shook violently. When the light finally faded…
The Trinity Vessel was on its knees. The giant energy ball was gone. Solara's golden figure appeared again above the camp.
She looked at the Vessel and said, "The boy chose to remain human. I will not let you take him so easily."
The Vessel stood up slowly. Its three-colored eyes burned with rage.
It said, "You dare interfere, Lightkeeper?" Solara smiled calmly. She said, "The game is not over yet."
The final wave was still raging. Three gods were inside Kai's body. A fourth god had just entered the fight.
And the real Kai was still fighting with everything he had left. The battle for his soul had reached its most dangerous moment.