The shrine trembled as Leonis wrenched his hands from the altar, his newly fused arms crackling with unstable energy. The blood moon's glow intensified, casting jagged shadows across the ruins.
The Syndicate's insignia on the altar seemed to pulse mockingly, a silent confirmation of his worst fearsthis world was a construct, a gilded cage designed to break him.
A cold laugh echoed through the ruins.
*"You always did have a talent for stumbling into traps, Leonis."*
Celia emerged from the shadows, her silver hair gleaming under the crimson light. Her blade was drawn, moonlight dancing along its edge, but her stance was different nowless predatory, more calculating.
The wound on his left arm where shed grazed him still throbbed, but the pain had dulled, replaced by a strange warmth.
The stolen moonlight magic hummed beneath his skin, foreign yet familiar.
*"You followed me,'* Leonis growled.
*"'I didnt need to.'* Celia tilted her head, her eyes flickering with something unreadable. *
"The system flagged your location the moment you triggered the Blood Moon Ritual.
I'm just the closest hunter.'* She stepped closer, her blade lowering slightly. *
"But you already knew that, didnt you? You wanted me to find you."*
Leonis flexed his fingers, feeling the remnants of her magic coil around his knuckles.
*'Maybe I just wanted to return the favor.'*
In a flash, he lunged,
Celia parried, her blade meeting his shadow-wreathed forearm with a shower of sparks. The impact sent a shockwave through the ruins, toppling crumbling pillars.
Leonis twisted, his right arm igniting with searing flames, and slammed a fist toward her ribs. Celia barely dodged, the heat singing the edges of her cloak.
*"Youre learing,"* she hissed, retreating a step. *"But youre still predictable."*
She flicked her wrist, and a crescent of moonlight shot from her blade,aimed straight for his throat. Leonis barely raised his left arm in timethe shadows surged, forming a jagged shield. The moonlight struck, and for a heartbeat, the two forces warred, hissing like live wires.
Then, impossibly, the moonlight *splintered*.
Leonis gasped as the energy fractured, tendrils of silver light snaking into his right arm. The flames there roared, brighter and hotter, and a rush of power flooded his veins. Celia's eyes widened in genuine shock.
*"You're not just absorbing it,"* she breathed. *"Youre *adapting* it."*
Leonis didnt wait for her to recover.
He surged forward, his movements faster now, sharper. The moonlight magic guided his strikes, lending an eerie precision to his chaos. Celia blocked, but he could see the strain in her arms, the flicker of doubt in her gaze.
*"Youre not just a hunter,"* Leonis snarled, pressing his advantage. *"Youre a test. They sent you to see what l'd do with their little *experiment*."+
Celia's jaw tightened. *"You dont know what youre talking about."*
*"Dont I?"* He feinted left, then drove his right fist into her gut. The flames flared, and Celia staggered, her breath leaving her in a rush.
Leonis caught her wrist before she could counter, his grip like iron. *"Tell me, Celiahow much of you is still *you*?"*
For the first time, something fractured in her icy composure. Her free hand twitched toward her face, as if to touch the scar beneath her maskthe one Leonis had glimpsed earlier. The one that marked her as another pawn in the Syndicate's game.
A tremor ran through her.
Then, with a snarl, she wrenched free, her blade flashing in a desperate arc. Leonis barely dodged, but the edge still caught his shoulder, drawing blood. He hissed, but the pain was distant, drowned out by the adrenaline and the stolen magic thrumming in his veins.
*"You're right,'* Celia spat, her voice raw. *
'I *was* sent to test you. But not for the reason you think."*
She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, smearing a streak of blood across her pale skin. *
'They wanted to see if youd break. If youd *run*."*
Leonis stilled. *"And?"*
Celia's lips curled into a bitter smile. *'You didnt.'*
The ground beneath them shuddered.
The ruins groaned, stones grinding as the altar's runes flared to life once more, A notification seared across Leonis's vision:
*"Dual Bloodline synchronization at critical levels. Proceed with caution.'*
Celia's eyes flicked to the altar, then back to him.
*"Youve got about ten seconds before this place collapses."*
Leonis didnt move. *"Youte not trying to kill me anymore."*
*"No,"* she admitted softly. *"But they will.'*
A distant roar echoed through the ruinsmechanical, unnatural. The sound of Syndicate enforcers, hunting them both.
Celia turned to leave, but Leonis caught her arm. *'Why help me?"*
For a heartbeat, she hesitated.
Then, so quietly he almost missed it:*"Because I remember you. And I *hate* that I do."*
With that, she tore free and vanished into the shadows, leaving Leonis alone in the crumbling ruins, his arms burning with stolen power and his mind racing with questions.
The Syndicate had made their move.
Now, it was his turn.