Part 1
The next few days in Kael's apartment felt like an awkward ceasefire. Ignis began to come out of her room, although she mostly spent her time sitting on the farthest sofa, hugging a pillow while glaring at anyone who moved. She had started eating with them at the dining table, but always in complete silence, only answering questions with a mumble or a huff.
Kael knew this was progress, but the tension between Ignis and Lyra was so thick you could almost cut it with a knife.
Lyra, who had now crowned herself as "Kael's primary protector," saw Ignis as a latent threat. She would always sit between Kael and Ignis, as if acting as a human (or Phantasm) shield. If Ignis looked at Kael for too long, Lyra would stare back with her cold, icy-blue gaze.
That afternoon, Kael was trying to help Chroma choose colors for her new painting. Chroma, in her own world, seemed unaffected by the tense atmosphere around her.
"What color do you think would be good for the sky in this painting, Kael?" Chroma asked, her voice small.
"Hmm, maybe a light blue with a hint of orange, like at sunset," Kael answered with a smile.
Suddenly, Ignis, who had been quiet on the sofa, snorted. "A sunset sky is blazing red, not some childish orange. You know nothing about fire."
"I wasn't asking you," Kael replied calmly, not taking the bait.
"Hmph!" Ignis looked away, but Kael saw her ears turn slightly red.
Lyra, who was sitting near Kael, immediately went on the defensive. "My cosmic sky has a billion colors that your narrow, rage-filled mind could never comprehend," she said with a cool, superior tone.
"What did you say, you arrogant Space Lady!?" Ignis snapped back, a small flame briefly flaring at the tip of her hair before she quickly extinguished it.
"I said, you are loud and inelegant," Lyra replied, her tone piercing.
"That's enough, both of you!" Kael immediately intervened before World War III, Phantasm version, could break out in his living room. "Lyra, be nicer. Ignis, don't start a fight."
Both of them turned away with a synchronized "Hmph!", like twin sisters having a spat. Kael could only sigh. Managing three Phantasms with clashing personalities was proving to be more exhausting than fighting them.
Just then, Rina entered the apartment using her access card. She had come for Kael's regular training session.
"Looks like I came at a bad time," she said flatly, observing the tense atmosphere in the room.
"You came at the perfect time," Kael said with relief. "Let's go train. I need to blow off some steam."
Part 2: The First Spark of Trust
In the Order's underground training facility, Kael and Rina faced each other.
"Today, we'll continue with basic training," Rina said. "Focus on what you've already mastered. Synchronization with Lyra and Chroma. Improve the duration and efficiency."
Rina dashed forward, launching a swift kick. Kael, now more trained, tried to use his borrowed powers.
"Fading Step!"
He managed to dodge, his body blurring slightly like one of Chroma's illusions.
"Good!" Rina exclaimed. "Now defend!"
She threw a powerful punch.
"Celestial Aegis!"
A mini star-shield appeared on Kael's arm, blocking the punch, though it cracked immediately.
"The duration is still too short!" Rina said, continuing to press Kael. "You have to be able to maintain it longer!"
They continued to train relentlessly. Kael was pushed to his limits. He fell, got up, dodged, and defended. He could feel his bond with Lyra and Chroma growing stronger, but he also felt something was missing. There was a limit he couldn't cross with just those two powers.
"That's enough for today," Rina said after an hour, seeing Kael sprawled on the floor, soaked in sweat and panting. "You've worked hard."
"But… this isn't enough," Kael said, his breath ragged. "I'm already overwhelmed just fighting you. How am I supposed to face an enemy like Alaric?"
Rina was silent. She knew Kael was right.
"My powers can only be used to defend and evade," Kael continued. "I have no way to fight back, not even to create an opening."
Rina sat down beside him, handing him a bottle of water. "Your power is tied to trust, Kael. You can use Lyra's and Chroma's powers because they already trust you completely. They've become part of your 'family'."
She glanced at a monitor on the wall, which was showing a recording of their training. "But Ignis… she's different. She still has a wall built around her heart. As long as that wall is there, you won't be able to connect with her."
Kael looked at his hands. He knew Rina was right. To gain Ignis's fire, he had to win her heart first.
That night, Kael returned to the apartment feeling frustrated. He saw Ignis sitting on the sofa, watching TV with a bored expression. Since moving in, Ignis had always kept her distance, rejecting every attempt Kael made to talk to her.
I have to try, Kael thought.
He got two glasses of orange juice from the kitchen and walked over to the sofa. He sat next to Ignis, keeping a small distance. He offered one glass to her.
"For you," he said simply.
Ignis glanced at the glass, then at Kael's face, then back at the TV. "I'm not thirsty," she replied curtly.
"Alright," Kael shrugged and placed the glass on the table in front of Ignis. "If you get thirsty later, just drink it."
Kael didn't leave. He just sat there silently, watching the boring news program on TV with her. An awkward silence enveloped them.
A few minutes passed. Suddenly, there was a news report about a small fire in an old warehouse. The cause was an electrical short.
Seeing the image of fire on the screen, Ignis's body tensed slightly. Her hands clenched. Kael could feel a small wave of anger and trauma from her.
"Fire… it only destroys," Ignis whispered softly, more to herself.
"Not always," Kael replied gently.
Ignis turned to him, slightly surprised that Kael had responded to her murmur. "What do you mean?"
"Fire can cook food," Kael said. "Like the breakfast you ate this morning. Fire can be a campfire that warms people on a cold night. Fire can be the light of a candle that illuminates the darkness. Fire doesn't always destroy."
He looked at Ignis sincerely. "Just like you. You don't have to be a destructive fire forever, Ignis."
Ignis was stunned. She looked at Kael, then at her own hands. For the first time, someone had told her that her fire could be something else.
She looked at the glass of orange juice on the table that she hadn't touched. Then, she looked at Kael again, her usually sharp gaze softening slightly.
Suddenly, an emergency alarm blared throughout the apartment. The lights turned red.
Rina's face immediately appeared on the main screen. "Kael! We have intruders in the building! Several Crimson Hunt units have breached the lower-level security! They're heading your way!"
Damn it! Alaric didn't wait long.
The front door of the apartment began to dent inward from a blunt force from the outside.
"Elara, Chroma, get in the room!" Kael shouted.
Lyra was already standing in front of him, her scythe beginning to form in her hands. "I will protect Kael!"
The door was finally smashed open. Three Crimson Hunt soldiers in black exoskeletons stormed in.
"The Tamer, we've finally found you!" one of them said.
Lyra immediately charged forward, facing two soldiers at once with slashes of her scythe. But the third soldier managed to get past her and aimed his weapon straight at Kael.
There was no time to dodge.
Just as the soldier was about to shoot, a small fireball shot out from the side and hit his weapon, causing it to explode in his hands.
Everyone turned.
Ignis was standing there, her hand outstretched, still smoking faintly. Her face was a mixture of shock at her own actions and anger at the intruders.
"I'm the only one who gets to annoy him," she growled.
The soldier, now enraged, turned and attacked Ignis. "You traitorous girl!"
Ignis, without her armor and weapon, wasn't ready for a physical fight. She could only cross her arms in front of her face.
Seeing this, Kael moved without thinking. He dashed forward and stood in front of Ignis.
"Celestial Aegis!"
The star-shield appeared, blocking the soldier's punch. But the force was too great. The shield cracked severely, and Kael was thrown backward, crashing into Ignis.
Time seemed to slow for Kael as he was thrown back. The world spun. He could only see flashes of light from Lyra's fight and hear the curses from the soldier in front of him. He closed his eyes, bracing for a hard impact.
The impact came, but it felt strange. Not hard, not solid. Instead, his back landed on something… incredibly soft and springy. There were two plush mounds that cushioned his body perfectly.
Kael opened his eyes in confusion. His view was the smoky ceiling of the apartment. But the sensation on his back... He moved his body slightly. The soft thing moved with him underneath.
Wait… this isn't the floor… he thought.
He looked down. His face was just centimeters away from Ignis's, who was now staring at him with wide, shocked eyes. And Kael finally realized. He had fallen right on top of Ignis, with his back pressed against the Blazing Warrior Phantasm's chest. The "softness" he felt… was unmistakably… Ignis's breasts.
Kael's face instantly went hot, all the way to his ears. "I-I-I-I—!"
"Y-YOUUUU...!" Ignis's usually pale face was now as red as a ripe tomato. Not from anger, but from total embarrassment. "GET OFF OF ME, YOU PERVERT!"
"Sorry, it was an accident!" Kael panicked, trying to get up. He moved his hands to find purchase on the floor.
And that's when it happened.
Accidentally, in his panic, his palm landed right on the back of Ignis's hand.
An incredible sensation coursed through Kael's body. Not just warmth, but a refreshing euphoria, as if every cell in his body was being bathed in pure life energy. His fatigue and pain vanished instantly.
Ignis also gasped, her body tensing up. Her embarrassment-fueled anger suddenly subsided, replaced by a strange sensation she had never felt before. The fire of hatred inside her seemed to be soothed by the gentle flow of Kael's empathy. It felt… nice.
A resonance bond was formed.
They stared at each other, both still in a very embarrassing position, their faces equally red. The fight around them seemed to be forgotten.
"U-uhm..." Kael was the first to snap out of it. He scrambled up, pulling his hand back as if he'd been electrocuted. "I'm so sorry! Really!"
Ignis also quickly sat up, hugging herself and looking away, not daring to meet Kael's eyes. "...Hmph. Forget it," she muttered, though her ears were still as red as fire.
But something had changed. Kael could feel it. A calm flame had awakened within him. The power of Ignis.
"Now…" Kael stood up fully, his gaze now sharp, focused on the Crimson Hunt soldier. His hands were now wreathed in a soft, golden-orange flame. "...it's our turn."