Arc I.5: “The Cosmic Guard”
Chapter III: “Crisis”
Episode IV: “Akira’s New Power: Soul Resonance!”
Riella approached Ember, both floating in the air.
“Are you as strong as that other guy? Seems like the Cosmic Guard has come into a bumper crop.”
I can’t let him escape… but there’s no way that I can beat him on my own. I’ll have to stall until reinforcements arrive. If we can use some Oblivium on him…
Ember blitzed her, knocking her back as he caught her off guard.
“Tsk, seems I overestimated you. I guess it would be unlikely for there to be so many strong Cosmic Guards all of a sudden. That other boy must have been an outlier.”
Riella staggered but stayed in the air.
“The two of you are quite tenacious… normally I would take my time to enjoy tearing you apart, but right now you’re just a nuisance!”
Ember flung his arm, sending a wave of fireballs flying towards Riella.
She desperately blocked them all, despite the scorching heat plastering her skin.
“Just die already!”
He sent another wave.
No… just a little longer!
Riella Aether-Skipped, weaving through the fireballs until she was in front of Ember.
“Ha!”
She blasted him with a wave of aether, then continued forward to attack. She landed consecutive punches straight to his face, finishing her combo with a kick— down below…
“Y-you bitch…” Ember muttered as he stumbled back, floating to the ground.
Riella retreated a few meters, landing near Akira.
This is good... she panted desperately as she kept her eye on Ember.
I just have to keep going like this!
[The Cosmic Guard Ship]
“The scanners show no signs of life!” an analyst in the Chamber shouted.
“Dammit! That bastard!” Garren bellowed.
“Captain, I’m picking up a distress signal from a minor system not far from here.”
Garren perked up.
That must be where Akira and Riella ran off to.
“Set full course ahead! We’ll head straight for that signal. Most likely, that’s where Ember currently is.
We can’t let this opportunity escape; we must capture him before he can get his hands on any more victims!
[Thirty minutes later – Riella vs. Ember]
“You just don’t know when to quit!” Ember hollered.
He continued to land blow after blow on Riella, but she didn’t back down.
“I…” she panted, “can’t afford… to lose here!”
She kept her guard up as more fists rained down on her.
Dammit, I don’t have time for this. I’ll just have to burn some energy and kill her in one strike!
Ember backed off, rising into the sky. He raised a hand over his head, aether swirling around him.
“Is that!?” Riella watched helplessly from below as Ember formed a massive fireball.
“Flaming Destruction!”
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The sphere of pure fire plummeted like a meteor, burning even the dust flying around the desert.
This is it… Hopefully, I bought enough time for the others to catch up.
She looked behind her at Akira’s charred body.
Sorry, Akira. I wasn’t able to save you.
She fell to her knees, closing her eyes as tears formed just before evaporating in the stifling heat.
The area seemed to darken as the massive orb descended, despite the light emitting from its flames.
Finally, I can get out of here. Ember thought, sighing in relief.
I exhausted way too much of my reserves. I need to find another solar system to siphon from.
Just as he was about to leave, Ember was startled— turning back to look at his fiery art.
“I-impossible!”
Suddenly, the entire horizon dimmed as a golden light shot up from below. It tore straight through the fireball, obliterating it in an instant.
Golden sparkles rained down from the sky like glowing ash, a man cloaked in white aether ascending into the sky.
“You… how are you still alive!” Ember barked.
“No way… A-Akira?!”
Riella looked up at the sky. She flicked her head around, looking at where she had laid him down— but his body was gone.
Is that really him?
Akira floated before Ember, almost in a trance.
He lifted his palm, analyzing the creamy aether that flowed around him.
His eyes were whiter than white, creamy sparkles surrounding his aura— his hair flowing in the air, pushed up by the sheer force of his aether.
“Ah…” Akira sighed, “So, I’ve finally managed to do it. This Perfect Resonance.”
“W-what…” Ember blurted as he stumbled back.
His body was charred to ash just a moment ago! How the hell does he look fully restored!
Akira squeezed his fist, feeling his muscles stretch as his veins pumped vigorously.
I must have subconsciously released a burst of Utopic energy from the Spirit. Regular Utopic aether wouldn’t have been enough to heal me so thoroughly in such a short time… and it seems that my idea worked. This… Perfect Resonance… instead of only reinforcing my muscles with aether, my entire body and soul have been strengthened. It feels like I’m completely in tune with all my aether. It seems that another side effect is that my meridians have been enhanced, so my flux and yield are being directly affected.
Akira looked up at Ember, who was trembling in fear.
“You alright? You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” He pestered, tilting his head. “Don’t tell me you’re done already; the fun is just beginning.”
“You little brat…” Ember whispered.
“Just stay dead already!!” He howled, the full yield of his aether finally being revealed.
Oh, that’s a bit more than I expected. This won’t be easy.
Akira’s face sharpened.
But now that my meridians are enhanced, and both my entire body and spirit are strengthened, I should be able to handle this!
Akira squatted, holding his fists out to each side as he squeezed out his aura.
“Soul Resonance… Perfect Spirit Resonance!”
His white aura expanded elegantly, as if he were a heavenly being.
That’s not all!
“Golden Energy Mode! Layer… One Hundred!!”
He’s using that again?! Riella panicked, covering her mouth with her hand.
A surge of golden aether hugged around his white aura.
Yeah… it feels a lot more stable now. Akira opened and closed his hand. There’s no more tension in my muscles.
“Alright, let’s get this show on the road.”
Akira and Ember clashed, pushing the weights of their yields against each other as they pressed forearms.
Once they broke out into a melee exchange, Ember had the advantage, pushing Akira back with his strikes.
“Ha! All that aether must be for show!”
That’s still not enough? Riella worried.
Akira jumped back, watching Ember closely.
No… he’s still stronger, but his movements have gotten sluggish.
“Then, how about this?”
Akira vanished into a blur.
W-what!? How is he so fast?
Akira reappeared, then vanished all around Ember.
“Don’t tell me you can’t keep up with this!” Akira teased as he ran circles around him.
How’s he doing that?! It can’t be a normal Aether-Skip! Riella watched, baffled.
“Dragon’s Flash… Barrage!”
Akira started landing numerous blows as he blitzed around Ember. The attacks were never-ending, leaving Ember no choice but to hunker down and attempt to block them.
“Celestial Rend…” Akira said as he continued blitzing Ember.
Dammit, what now! I can’t even counter these attacks!
“Golden Draconic Verse of Utopia…”
A grand ball of light formed in Akira’s hands as he backed away from Ember in a split second.
Dodge! I have to dodge!
Akira extended his arms out, pointing the light at Ember.
“Utopic Dragon… STAR DESTROYER!!”
The dense beam of golden light tumbled forward, blasting Ember out of the sky.
The dark horizon glowed as if a new star had appeared in the system.
“Alright…” Akira said, taking a deep breath. “I know that wasn’t enough to kill you. Let’s keep going, yeah?”
Ember rose from the dregs of the attack, covered in burns all over his body.
“I’m starting… to lose my patience with you,” he said as the veins in his temple pulsated. “RAH!”
His red aura burst out from within.
“Good,” Akira cracked his knuckles, “You’ve still got some fight left in you.”
With his movements ragged, Ember could no longer overwhelm Akira.
In fact, with Akira’s superior fighting style, he was the one now in control of the fight.
D-dammit!
Ember gritted his teeth as he backed off.
His aura started to wane, shrinking as it lost the spark it once had as a great flame.
“What’s wrong? You look like a turtle the way your aether is disappearing.”
“Silence!” Ember barked.
It seems this is it! I’ve already run out of power from these stars.
He gripped his fist.
I would’ve still had a little more if I hadn’t used it to slaughter all these vermin. No… he glared at Akira. If it weren’t for these meddling Cosmic Guards, I would have been just fine!
His aura burned brightly once again; his fire not sputtering out just yet.
“I’ll show you… brat. The price of messing with The Solar Thief!”
He gathered a large amount of aether into his hands in front of his chest.
“Oh? So, we’re gonna see who has the better arts? Alright.”
Akira gathered his energy into his hands as well, taking the stance for his signature technique.
Woah… Riella watched them intently. The air feels dense from all their aether!
“Celestial Rend…”
The same golden light formed in Akira’s hands.
“Infernal Verse…”
Red flames formed around Ember’s body, condensing into a single orb between his hands.
The two of them squared off, the world holding still as they prepared momentous techniques.
“Golden Draconic Verse of Infinite Horizons!”
Akira’s golden light expanded, colors of white, green, blue, and purple all being mixed into the center of the energy.
“Collapse of Eternal Radiance!”
As the flames gathered, the orb burned white— like the center of a flaming star. A sharp hissing could be heard as even the sky seemed to steam from the immense heat.
Can Akira win this…?
A sharp, piercing beam of searing white energy shot out from Ember’s hands.
Akira thrust his arms forward, the massive light being released from his hands and crushing his body.
“Pyric Singularity!!”
“Universal Utopic Dragon Star Destroyer!!”
The two arts hustled towards each other, tearing the sky in two. As they collided, the darkened world turned white. Everything turned white…
[A moment later]
Ember’s charred body fell to the ground, creating a small crater as the dust from the desert clouded around him.
Akira was barely floating in the air, his clothes ragged. As he lost consciousness, his aura dissipated, and he fell backwards— plummeting to the ground.
“Akira!” Riella managed to hop into the air and catch him before he crashed.
“Y-yo…” he managed to grumble, his eyes still closed.
“You did it! You beat Ember!”
“Yeah…”
He squinted his eyes open, looking at the crater where Ember landed.
If he weren’t weakened… if he weren’t using the last of his power— I wouldn’t have won. Akira gritted his teeth. I still have a long way to go!
Soon after the conclusion of their battle, Captain Garren’s troops arrived, taking Ember into custody and providing medical care for Akira and Riella.
Their unit escorted Ember to the Cosmic Detainment Nexus, deep in the cosmic anomaly known as the Nova Parallax.
While he was still in recovery, the Cosmic Guard honored Akira’s heroic actions— promoting him to the rank of Captain despite his short time with them.
[Next Time on Lyte of Utopia]: “Return to Solaris”
[Yield Levels]:
Akira: 2b
- SR:(PSR): 2t
- SR:(PSR) + GEML100: 200t
- Star Destroyer: x1.5
- Advanced Star Fist Style: x1.5 (Fighting Style)
- Dragon’s Flash Barrage: x100 (Multi-Blitz)
- Utopic Dragon Star Destroyer: x30
- Universal Utopic Dragon Star Destroyer: x150
Riella: 500m
- Suppressed: 5
Ember: 1qd
- Suppressed (vs Riella): 1b
- Weakened: 10t
- Flaming Destruction: x100
- Pyric Singularity: x1000