The sky was still collapsing.
Not slowing.
Not stopping.
Still breaking - like reality had already decided it was over.
And below it-
Olympia screamed.
They didn't fall from above.
They were already there.
Minotaurs.
Massive. Violent. Uncontrolled.
They tore through the floating platforms like the city was nothing - horns ripping through steel, hooves crushing stone, bodies thrown aside without resistance.
Screams didn't fade.
They stacked.
Then-
Shadows moved.
Low.
Fast.
Wrong.
Three heads pushed through the distortion-
Eyes glowing.
Teeth bared.
Cerberus.
More than one.
Zane stood still.
Completely still.
Not by choice.
His body refused.
The pressure from above hadn't disappeared-
It had settled inside him.
"Move."
Nothing.
A Minotaur charged past him-
Straight toward a group of civilians.
Zane's eyes sharpened.
"Move."
Still nothing.
Another scream.
Closer.
Too close.
His breathing changed.
His thoughts narrowed into one thing-
Protect.
His hand dropped to his blade.
Not calm.
Not controlled.
Desperate.
His fingers wrapped around the hilt-
And this time-
Something answered.
Zane's voice cut through everything-
Low.
Focused.
Final.
"Water Acranum - Endless Tide."
The pressure shattered.
Not the world-
Him.
Zane vanished.
The first Minotaur split apart mid-charge.
Clean.
Instant.
It didn't even react.
Then another.
Then another-
Five dropped in less than a second.
Blood hit the ground after they were already dead.
He didn't stop.
He couldn't.
Movement became flow-
Flow became instinct-
Instinct became destruction.
He moved through them like water through cracks-
Unstoppable.
Every step killed something.
Every swing ended something.
Iris stared.
"…Zane…"
This wasn't the brother she knew.
This was something built for this.
And she ran.
The ground shook behind her.
Screams chased her.
She didn't know where she was going-
Only that stopping meant death.
A shadow fell over her.
Heavy.
Fast.
Too close.
Iris turned-
A Minotaur.
Right behind her.
Its horns lowered.
Its hooves lifted.
She froze.
Her body refused to move.
Just like before.
This is it.
Thunder cracked.
Not from the sky-
From beside her.
The Minotaur stopped.
Its head tilted-
Then slid off.
Clean.
Silent.
Its body collapsed a second later.
Iris dropped to her knees.
Her ears rang.
Her vision shook.
She couldn't even feel the ground.
Footsteps.
Calm.
Unhurried.
Like none of this mattered.
A figure stepped past the corpse.
White hair.
A black blindfold.
No tension.
No rush.
He glanced down at her.
Tilted his head.
"…Oh?"
A faint smirk.
"Well, that's interesting."
Iris couldn't speak.
He crouched in front of her-
Like this was casual.
"You're Zane Aetherion's sister, right?"
A pause.
He studied her face.
"…Yeah. I see it."
Another roar echoed behind him.
He didn't even turn.
"Man," he sighed lightly, almost amused, "he really left you in a bad spot."
Iris's hands trembled.
She tried to answer-
Nothing came out.
Kaelios stood.
Finally glancing toward the battlefield.
"…Guess I'll clean this up before he embarrasses himself."
Then, like he just remembered-
He looked back at her.
"Hey."
A small grin.
"Try not to die, alright?"
A beat.
Then simpler-
Sharper.
"Run."
His gaze shifted past her again.
Already done with the conversation.
"Me and Zane will take care of this."
No hesitation.
No doubt.
Just certainty.
Kaelios Dorian.
Iris forced herself up.
Her legs barely responded.
But she ran.
Deeper into Olympia-
It got worse.
Blood covered the platforms.
Bodies everywhere.
Some still.
Some moving.
Some reaching.
None safe.
The air tasted like iron.
Like something had already torn through the city-
And kept going.
Iris slowed.
Just for a second.
And that was enough.
This wasn't an attack.
This was a beginning.
Above her-
The sky was still breaking.
END OF CHAPTER 2