Magic Abyss So Far-Chapter 14: Ep - Sky Gate

The air crackled.

From the shadows of the trees, the Sky Blades descended like obsidian falcons—armor glinting, wings forged of etheric steel, cresettla sigils glowing across their helms. Sera stepped forward, the silver pendant at her chest blazing. Akira reached behind him, unsheathing his cresettla-forged saber. Kurumi cracked her neck, sparks snaking across her knuckles.

But before the first Sky Blade could land—

A shockwave split the glade.

Trees splintered, wind screamed, and the very sky fractured.

A red glyph—complex, ancient, humming with cursed resonance—spiraled open above them.

From it, Justin dropped like a meteor.

His boots slammed the earth, carving a crater around him. His coat fluttered like wings of blood and shadow. His sword, Venient Sangre, gleamed in his hand—dripping not with blood, but with seething energy.

"I warned you," he said, voice like razors and mourning bells. "Run, and I'll find you. Resist, and I'll break you."

Sera stepped forward, arms out. "Please, Justin—this isn't the way! Let us go. Let me go."

"You don't get to speak like that anymore, Sera." His eyes—once warm and golden—were now crimson pits. "You made your choice."

The Sky Blades backed away, letting their commander work.

Justin raised his sword—

—and vanished.

"INCOMING!" Kurumi shouted.

He reappeared behind Akira, blade arcing toward his neck.

CLANG!

Akira barely blocked, his saber vibrating from the force. Justin didn't hesitate—he twisted, slashing horizontally. Sera summoned her crystalline shield, blocking just in time, but shards exploded from the impact, cutting her arms.

Kurumi launched lightning bolts—Justin caught one midair with his palm and hurled it back. She rolled aside, but her left arm took a hit, the flesh searing.

"You can't beat me," Justin said, eyes fixed on Akira. "The Crest has chosen poorly."

Akira darted forward, trying a vertical strike.

Justin sidestepped.

Then kicked him—a brutal blow that launched Akira across the glade into a tree, bark cracking under the force.

"AKIRA!" Sera screamed.

"Stay behind me!" Kurumi shouted, stepping forward, electricity coiling around her body. "I've got him."

Justin turned. "Kurumi Hoshigaki. Elemental-born. Thunder-soul. Always too brave for your own good."

She spat blood, then grinned. "You talk too much."

She charged.

The sky exploded above them with her speed.

Justin parried her strikes, one after another, but she pressed him, her fists wrapped in crackling power. Left, right, duck, uppercut. He slid back a few feet—his first real movement.

"I see." Justin's voice was calm. "You've improved."

"Still not enough to kill you, though, right?"

"No. But enough to make it interesting."

He lunged—and the world bent with his motion.

His blade struck Kurumi's shoulder—deep. She cried out, falling to a knee.

Sera screamed and summoned another hex-barrier. Akira staggered back into the fight, limping.

But Justin was done playing.

He flashed between them—speed beyond comprehension. He struck Sera's barrier—shattering it. Backhanded Akira—sending him flying. Then grabbed Kurumi by the throat, lifting her effortlessly.

"Let her go!" Sera roared, hands glowing silver.

"I've changed my mind," Justin said coldly. "You two are useless to me now."

He raised a glyph with his other hand—a portal of red and gold, swirling like a molten storm.

"I'll take her instead."

Kurumi kicked and fought, but his grip was iron. "Sera—don't you dare follow!"

Sera reached out—"KURUMI!"

Akira crawled toward them—"NO!"

Justin stepped back into the portal. "I'll see you in Frestco."

And then they were gone.

The glade fell silent.

Only the wind moved.

Sera fell to her knees, hands shaking.

Akira didn't even feel the tears—only the cold. The hollowness of failure.

Kurumi was gone.

---

A New Dawn

They made camp at the edge of the glade, far from the broken trees and blood-soaked grass. Akira sat beside the fire, staring into the flames. Sera stood a few feet away, arms crossed tightly, cloak wrapped around her like armor.

Neither spoke for a long time.

Then—

"It's my fault," Sera said.

Akira didn't look up.

"I hesitated," she continued. "I should've known he'd change tactics. He always was a tactician first. I should have—"

"You're wrong," Akira said quietly.

She blinked. "What?"

"He didn't take Kurumi because you failed. He took her because she was the one who could fight him. She made him bleed. You saw it."

Sera turned to him, pain in her eyes.

"He's scared," Akira added. "He won't admit it, but she's the only one who didn't fall in two hits."

Sera lowered her head. "Then she's in danger. He might break her. Twist her."

Akira stood.

"We're going after her."

Sera looked up sharply. "What?"

"We're going to Frestco."

She hesitated. "But you'd be leaving Earth behind. Once you pass through the Gate—"

"I don't care."

He stepped closer, hand extended.

"She saved us both. I'm not letting her face your brother alone."

Tears welled in Sera's eyes again—but this time, they didn't fall from sorrow.

She placed her hand in his.

"Then we'll need to find the Skygate."

Akira nodded. "How?"

Sera turned, gaze sharp. "I'll take us to someone who can help."

---

Elsewhere...

Kurumi opened her eyes to cold metal and humming light.

She was chained by the wrists, suspended in a circular room of floating glyphs and celestial gears. The air tasted like ozone and sorrow. She was in the Spire of Reformation, a floating fortress in the skies of Frestco.

A realm of divine mana. The birthplace of the Crest bearers. The land of the First Blade.

Justin stood with his back to her, staring through a curved window that overlooked clouds tinged with gold and crimson.

"You'll never get what you want from me," she said, voice hoarse.

He turned, his eyes no longer red—but empty.

"I don't want your loyalty, Kurumi."

"Then why am I here?"

"Because you matter to them," he said. "And because pain shapes people. Break enough bones, and even thunder learns to whisper."

She glared. "You'll have to try harder than this."

"I plan to." His eyes narrowed. "But first, I want you to see the truth. About the Crest. About Sera. About our father."

She stiffened.

"Everything you know," Justin whispered, "is a lie."

Then he raised a hand—and the walls parted, revealing a chamber beyond.

A woman floated there, in a crystal prism.

Her hair was silver.

Her face, older, worn—but unmistakable.

Kurumi's breath hitched. "That's—"

"Mother," Justin said quietly. "The one Sera believes is dead."

Kurumi's eyes widened.

And then everything began to crack.

---

To Be Continued...