THE BATTLE FROM THE PAST
Long ago, Calista lived in peace as the leader of her tribe. That peace solidified when she met Lucas and gave birth to their son, Ethan. But the heavens had other plans.
One night, under a moon so bright it turned the jungle silver, Calista felt a pull she couldn't ignore. She stepped into the clearing, Lucas following close behind.
"What is it, Calista?" he asked, sensing the shift in the air.
"The wind and the moon... they are whispering to me," she murmured. Suddenly, a gale erupted, and Calista began to float, her feet leaving the earth. From a pillar of moonlight, a woman of ethereal beauty appeared.
"Mayari," Lucas whispered, immediately dropping to his knees.
Mayari, the daughter of Bathala and Goddess of War and the Night, looked down at them with solemn eyes. "Sigbinan, a war of races is coming. Your kind is the key to restoring the balance, but the path will be treacherous. Even your son will be consumed by this tide."
"This war begins after the blue moon," Mayari warned before vanishing into the night.
Calista collapsed back into Lucas's arms, her eyes wide with terror. "The Bellators and creatures from distant nations... they will bring only chaos."
Present Day: The Light Baptism
"Ethan!!!" Cristine's voice cracked like a whip.
The negative energy in the room had become a physical weight. Ethan, unable to process the betrayal and the dark history of his bloodline, began to transform. His shadow grew, swallowing the light as he shifted into a creature of pure darkness.
"I warned you, Minjoon!" Cristine shouted, grabbing her Kampilan. "He was in the middle of purification!"
"I'm sorry!" Minjoon cried. "I couldn't help it—I couldn't let him be deceived by that man!"
Baekhyun tried to rush forward. "Ethan, please, listen to me!"
But Akihiko, now fully shifted into his Kitsune form, snarled and blocked his path. "Stay away from him!"
"Enough!" Cristine yelled. She swung her Kampilan, and the heavy blade transformed into a glowing rope of energy, binding Ethan's thrashing form. "Minjoon, draw the symbol of Light Baptism now!"
Minjoon grabbed the magical pen, but seeing Aki and Baekhyun still at each other's throats, he slammed his hands onto their foreheads. "If you want him to live, draw this together!"
The two rivals froze as the complex sigil burned into their minds. They split the pen in half, and with desperate speed, began to etch the symbol onto the floor.
"Minjoon, I can't hold him much longer!" Cristine strained against the rope. "Cite the spell!"
The Past: The Great Betrayal
While the ritual raged in the present, the past revealed its scars. The tribe was under siege. Ye Joon Choi from White Dove Korea had arrived as reinforcement, but the threat was overwhelming. The Nogitsunes (Black Kitsunes) were tearing through the village.
"Let me give the boy a blessing," Cristine had told Calista back then, her voice desperate.
"Wait!" her companion Zanjo warned. "That isn't a blessing, Cristine—it's a curse. You aren't ready."
But Calista was desperate. "My son must be safe! Give him the protection, please!"
Cristine placed her hand on baby Ethan's forehead. "This curse will hide you until you are ready. When the time comes, find me, and I shall remove it."
As the Bellators and Nogitsunes closed in, Calista turned to her most trusted student, a seventeen-year-old girl named Amelia.
"Run, Amelia! Save my son!"
Amelia, the woman Ethan would one day call his grandmother, clutched the baby to her chest. Using every incantation she knew, she vanished into the shadows, escaping the hunters and the black foxes just as the village fell to flames.
The Fall of the South
"Cristine and I will face the Bellator," Lucas announced, dividing the White Dove forces. "Zanjo, you and my wife will take on the Nogitsune."
"Right," Cristine agreed, her hair shifting to a vibrant, glowing red. "Zanjo can reflect their curses and amplify Calista's incantations."
"Understood. Please be careful, love," Calista said, squeezing her husband's hands. Lucas leaned down, kissed her knuckles, and promised he would return.
Japan Headquarters: White Dove Facility
The facility was under siege. Black kitsunes swarmed the halls, overwhelming the defenses.
"Taikyaku! Taikyaku!" the commander screamed, ordering a retreat. Just as hope seemed lost, reinforcements arrived.
"Find the last kitsune and protect him at all costs!" shouted a soldier from the Philippines. Dressed in a traditional Barong and Salakot, he swung his Kampilan blade, cleaving through the Nogitsune ranks.
"Lieutenant!" another soldier called out. "We just received word from the South. The Gumihos are under attack."
Lucas's eyes narrowed as he surveyed the wreckage caused by Kaito's forces. "It's a trap. The South was the main target all along. Open the portal immediately. We're leaving!"
"But Lieutenant, we don't have enough men to take the South," his subordinate argued.
Before Lucas could respond, a panicked White Dove soldier ran toward them. "Sir! Miss Calista... she's been captured by the Nogitsune!"
"What? Where is she?" Lucas's voice cracked with worry. He looked around; the hunters were losing ground, and Cristine and Zanjo were nowhere to be found. He took a steadying breath. "Open the portal. We save them all. Now!"
The Portal
"Lieutenant Lucas Salvador!" an old man gasped, watching as the leader began to change.
"Open the portal now, Major Choi! I don't have time!" Lucas's voice distorted, deepening into a guttural growl as his body contorted into the form of a Sigbin.
As Lucas stepped toward the shimmering gateway, an arrow whistled through the air, burying itself in his shoulder. They spun around to find Major Choi's sister, Hana, standing with her bow drawn.
"Hana, what are you doing?" Choi cried.
"Killing him! His kind killed the love of my life. He must pay!" Hana snarled, reaching for another arrow. Before she could fire, Major Choi transformed into a massive tiger. With a swift swipe of his paw, he snapped her next arrow mid-air.
"You don't know what you're doing! His people were possessed by Kaito!" Choi roared at his sister. He turned his heavy head toward Lucas. "Go! I'll handle her."
Lucas didn't hesitate. He leaped through the portal.
The South
In the Southern territory, Min Joon was struggling. He stood frozen, paralyzed by a spell, unable to tap into his natural abilities.
"Hutoe! Hutoe!" Min Joon managed to shout, urging the remaining Kumiho to flee.
Lucas burst from the portal with his team. "Where are the others?" he barked.
"We saved one baby Kumiho... he's with the healers," Min Joon stammered. His eyes went wide as he looked past Lucas.
"Calista?" Lucas whispered.
His wife stood beside Kaito, her eyes cold and vacant.
"She's possessed, just like Hana," Lucas realized. "Kaito, free her!"
As Lucas stepped forward, a wave of magical pressure crashed over him. He felt his limbs turn to lead—Calista's own spell was pinning him down.
"Haechi... useless creature!" Kaito sneered, stepping toward the paralyzed Min Joon to deliver a killing blow.
With a roar of pure willpower, Lucas shattered the spell's hold. Using his supernatural speed, he blurred across the battlefield. Since Kaito was in his wolf form, he was vulnerable; Lucas's blades flashed, severing six of the demon's tails in a single spray of blood.
"AARRGHH! HOW DARE YOU!" Kaito screamed in agony.
Min Joon saw his opening. He hurled his boomerang, the curved blade whistling through the air to claim two more of Kaito's tails.
The demon fell to his knees, weakened and desperate. As Lucas moved in to cut the final tails, Kaito let out a piercing shriek. "Calista, help me!"
The earth began to groan and buckle. A violent earthquake threw Lucas and Min Joon off their feet. In the chaos, Calista reached out, grabbed Kaito, and the two vanished into thin air.
"Calista, NO!" Lucas's scream echoed across the ruined South, but only silence answered him.
The Light Baptism
Back in the present, the air was still warm from the ritual. Cristine let out a long, weary breath; she had successfully performed the Light Baptism.
"Finally, he is free from the curse," Cristine whispered. She stared at Ethan, who lay unconscious and pale against Baekhyun's shoulder.
"I'll carry him to his room," Baekhyun offered, adjusting his grip.
Before he could move, Aki stepped forward, his eyes flashing. "No. Take your hands off him. I will bring him to his room." He turned toward the elder. "Master Min Joon, will you lead the way?"
"Aki," Cristine warned, her voice stern. "I just finished purifying him. Do not start clouding this room with negative emotions."
Aki stiffened, then bowed his head. "My apologies, Miss Cristine."
"Let our fellow hunter help the Sigbinan," Cristine commanded, signaling that the matter was closed.
The Gym in the Shadows
While the White Dove celebrated a victory, Kaito was already weaving a new net. He had traveled far to seek an alliance with the creatures of the deep, knowing he needed a specific kind of strength to capture the young witch.
"I've heard that Mermen are invulnerable to almost any type of magic," Kaito said, his voice smooth and oily.
He was standing in the corner of a high-end fitness gym, speaking to a man currently mid-set in a series of explosive push-ups. The man froze. He pushed himself up slowly, sweat glistening off his sunburnt skin and short, curly hair. He was strikingly handsome—as all his kind were—possessing a rugged, youthful beauty that hid his true nature.
"How do you know what I am?" the man asked, his voice low and dangerous. "And who are you to come here?"
Kaito offered a thin, sharp smile. "I am someone who needs your unique talents. Help me, and I will give you a prize even the ocean cannot offer."
The Merman stood tall. Among his people, males were a rarity compared to the many mermaids of the sea, making them prized warriors. Above the waist, he looked like a perfect human athlete; below the surface of the water, however, he was a predator of scales and power. And Kaito knew exactly how to use that power.
TO BE CONTINUED...