[Scene: Sea Level — Solis vs Ryven]
The sword came down like a hammer of judgment.
Ryven was no longer passive. He was advancing.
Each swing of his enchanted blade cut through the sea air with a roar, wind curling in its wake. Solis grunted, blocking with the flat of his own blade, boots skidding across a thin sheen of water.
He was on the back foot now.
"Would've not attacked recklessly if I knew he was storing the force…" he thought bitterly, deflecting another strike that would've cracked bone.
Ryven didn't let up. He lunged, spun, slashed—a blur of controlled fury.
Solis's arms burned. His focus narrowed.
"Okay. Think. If it absorbs force... I can't just power through him. Need something else. Something unexpected."
The next blow came in low, aiming for his gut.
CLANG!
Solis blocked—barely.
But this time, instead of resetting, he twisted, flipped his weight, and launched a kick straight toward Ryven's face.
Ryven's eyes widened for the first time.
But his size saved him.
With an almost casual backstep, he leaned away. The kick whooshed past his chin.
Ryven's smirk returned.
Ryven:
"Nice try, short stack."
Solis dropped back into stance, breath ragged, brain racing.
---
[Scene: Ryven's Ship | Deck — Within the Nullwake Field]
Kael and Rhask both flinched as Silver-Hair touched his palms together.
A hum filled the air.
The three dolls surrounding them glowed faintly—then blurred.
Kael:
"...What now?"
In a flash of light, the three figures merged.
One stood in their place. Taller. Heavier. And radiating power.
Kael:
"...It's huge."
Rhask:
"The three combined height as well."
The merged doll's eyes lit crimson. It didn't wait. It struck.
The deck thundered.
Kael and Rhask scattered, barely dodging a heavy punch that cracked the floorboards.
Kael ducked under a spinning elbow.
Kael (gritting his teeth):
"So Rhask... what's your idea?"
Rhask, weaving between strikes, muttered:
Rhask:
"Listen. I need you to focus whatever mana you've got left... into your boots."
Kael blocked a punch.
Rhask rolled under a kick.
Rhask (urgent):
"Channel everything. And when I yell—GO—you jump toward me. Fast as you can."
Kael (internal, dodging a punch):
"Just jump?"
The doll kept coming. Unrelenting. Every blow stronger than the last.
But together, Kael and Rhask slipped through its assault.
Then—
THUD.
A clean strike from Rhask's elbow, and a kick from Kael's heel — the doll stumbled back a few feet.
Rhask:
"GO!"
Kael didn't hesitate.
He bent his knees and jumped.
A blur. A comet.
Straight toward Rhask.
Rhask:
"Sorry, this one's gonna hurt."
He twisted his stance, raised his blade sideways like a bat, and struck Kael mid-air—flat of the sword to Kael's ribs.
WHAM.
Kael's body rocketed through the air, boosted by Rhask's strike.
He shot forward like a bolt of lightning, straight at Silver-Hair.
Too fast.
Too unexpected.
The doll blurred forward to intercept—but couldn't make it.
CRASH!
Kael slammed into Silver-Hair. Both of them went flying—through the captain's door. Wood splintered. Walls cracked.
Then silence.
Kael was out cold.
Silver-Hair groaned beneath him.
But the air changed.
Rhask blinked. Stared around.
The shimmer was gone.
The Nullwake Field had vanished.
Rhask felt it instantly—his limbs lighter. His strength returning.
And without wasting a second, he lunged.
The merged doll turned to face him—but it was too late.
BAAM!
BAAM!
THUD!
Rhask pinned the monster down, his blade digging into its chest. The creature thrashed—but it felt weaker now.
Because the field was gone.
Rhask snarled and pressed harder, sword slicing deep into where a heart would be—if it had one.
The doll didn't die.
Because it never lived.
But it stopped moving.
Silver-Hair coughed from the wrecked door, eyes wide with panic.
Silver-Hair:
"How did you figure it out?"
Rhask turned toward him, slow and steady.
Rhask:
"You never moved from your original spot. Not once. Even when a doll was sent flying at you—you didn't dodge. But used another doll to stop it mid-air before it could hit you."
He stepped forward, dragging his sword.
Rhask:
"I figured... your field was tied to your position. Move you, field's gone."
He smirked.
Rhask:
"So come on then. Do it again."
Silver-Hair snarled. Sweat on his brow.
He couldn't.
The Nullwake Field couldn't be activated twice in a day.
But he wasn't done.
In one motion, he grabbed Kael's unconscious body—dragged him up by the hair.
Pulled a blade to his throat.
Silver-Hair:
"One move, and he dies."
And right then—
THWIP!
An arrow pierced through his chest.
Straight through the heart.
Silver-Hair froze.
His eyes went wide.
Then slack.
He collapsed.
Kael's body rolled free from his grip.
Arjun lowered his bow.
Arjun (quietly):
"Sorry Rhask but this one was necessary."