Part 1: When Fire Meets Shadow
Location: Sector 17 – The Guild's Recruitment Arena
Hundreds gathered in the towering dome-shaped arena—new Awakened, Guild trainers, system analysts.
But Riven was just passing through.
He wasn't here for promotion.
He was here for a lead—intel about a "Gateborn anomaly" reported in this area. Someone who might understand what he was becoming.
Someone who might know what a Warden really was.
But he didn't expect to see her.
Center Ring – Trial Combat Field
She stood alone in the arena, eyes half-lidded, bored as three mid-tier Guild Hunters charged her at once.
They didn't last five seconds.
A flick of her fingers. A pulse of mana.
And the air around them shattered into violet flame.
They dropped, twitching, barely breathing.
[Combat Ended]
[Victory: Subject - IRENE VEL'THARIN]
[Class: Elemental Gateborn – ??? Tier]
[Note: Subject registered as Self-Stabilizing Anomaly – Watchlist Candidate]
She flipped her hair back, looked up at the Guild tech running the match, and said, "Next?"
Riven felt it instantly.
Not attraction.
Recognition.
Her aura pulsed like a half-opened Gate. Forbidden. Wild. Exactly like his—but stable.
Their eyes locked across the crowd.
She tilted her head.
Smiled faintly.
Then turned her back like he wasn't worth the time.
Which was fine.
He wasn't looking to impress her.
He was looking to understand her.
Meanwhile – Cafeteria Roof (Riven Looking for Silence)
He stepped out to clear his head.
Instead?
He walked right into a full-on argument with a vending machine.
"Come on, you stupid brick—how does punching D-rank monsters count as a taxable income?! I haven't even looted the boss chest yet!"
The speaker turned—
A guy with bright silver hair, two mana-bands around his arms, and an energy drink tucked into his belt like a weapon.
He blinked.
"Oh. Sup."
Riven raised an eyebrow. "You yelling at that thing?"
"Yelling?" the guy laughed. "Nah, bro. This is bonding. Me and this idiot go way back. I scream, it eats my credits, we cry together. Romance, really."
Riven snorted despite himself.
The guy grinned wider.
"Name's Aros. Summoner-slash-support caster-slash-hyper-speed escape artist. Also, certified monster bait and Guild's least responsible member."
"Riven," he said simply.
Aros leaned in.
"Wait. Are you that Riven? The one who took down that Executioner-class with a phantom slash and no support?"
"…No."
Aros snapped his fingers. "Dang. Would've bought you lunch. Guess you're just mysterious and brooding for no reason then."
Riven cracked a smile.
Maybe for the first time in days.
Back Inside – Irene Watching
She saw him on the roof.
Saw him laugh.
Her eyes narrowed.
"I've seen him before," she muttered.
The system whispered in her mind—different than Guild protocol. Older. Wild.
[Entity Identified: Riven Kael – Unbound Status: Partial Confirmed]
[Compatibility Potential: 94% – Gate-Stabilizer Link Possible]
[Emotional Danger: High]
[Do not fall in love.]
She scoffed.
Too late.
Guild Office – Crisis Brewing
While they laughed above the city, the Guild leaders were panicking.
Sarn Veller slammed a report down on the console.
"Two anomalies. Both in Sector 17. One unstable—Riven. One untethered—Irene. And the system says they're converging?"
An analyst trembled.
"Sir… if they link?"
The Guild's AI pulsed a red alert.
[Projected Outcome: System Rewrite – Unbound Gate May Open]
[Suggested Action: Terminate or Isolate]
Veller's voice dropped.
"Then start preparing the execution order."
Final Scene – Riven's System Warning
As night fell, Riven sat on the ledge with Aros beside him, watching the lights flicker across the city.
"Ever wonder," Aros said, sipping his third energy drink, "if all this system stuff is just the world trying to kill us politely?"
Riven didn't answer.
Because his system had just updated.
[New Anomaly Detected: Gateborn Entity – Sync Pulse Detected (Irene Vel'tharin)]
[Connection Possibility: High]
[Warning: Emotional Link May Destabilize Sovereign Path OR Accelerate It]
Riven stared into the dark.
And for once?
He didn't feel alone.
Just uncertain.
And dangerously close to something real.
Part 2: Sparks, Teeth, and a Summoner's Ego
Location: Sector 17 Training Arena – Dawn
The arena was empty.
Except for two.
Riven stood still, blade lowered but eyes locked forward.
Across from him, Irene adjusted her gloves, hair tied back, expression cool as frost.
"You've been watching me," she said.
"Only because I can feel it," he replied. "You're like… a storm pretending to be still."
She smirked. "And you're a sword pretending to be sheathed."
No crowd.
No referee.
Just quiet tension.
[System Notice: Compatible Gateborn Entity Within Combat Range]
[Optional Link Test: Class Synergy Engagement Trial]
[Condition: Survive 60 seconds against Irene Vel'tharin]
[Reward: Emotional Sync Unlocked | Risk: Partial Sovereign Acceleration]
The system wasn't subtle.
But neither was Irene.
She raised one hand—and the sky cracked.
Violet fire spiraled upward as a Gate sigil opened behind her. The air warped. Gravity shifted.
Riven stepped forward.
And vanished.
Combat Trial – 60 Seconds of Chaos
Irene launched a barrage of flame-tipped mana spears—each one pulsing with forbidden resonance.
Riven dodged, dipped into the shadows, and countered with a wide sweeping slash.
[Skill: Shadow Pulse]
→ Strike leaves a ghost aftershock 0.2 seconds later
She dodged the first.
Didn't expect the echo.
It singed her shoulder.
She smiled. "You're fast."
He vanished again.
She blinked, adapted, cast Gate Shield—only to have it nearly shattered by a point-blank Revenant Cross.
The ground exploded beneath them both.
[Time Remaining: 19 seconds]
Their blades clashed now.
No more distance.
Up close.
Close enough that when Irene caught Riven's wrist mid-swing, their faces were inches apart.
"You're holding back," she said.
"I don't want to hurt you."
"Cute. Don't make me like you."
[Time Remaining: 3 seconds]
She let him go.
And dropped her final spell:
Gate Collapse Pulse—a radius-wide wave designed to flatten everything in 10 meters.
Riven activated Soul Echo to pull one of his previous shadow clones into position—just before the blast hit.
They both flew back.
Riven landed hard.
So did she.
And then… laughter.
Result: Trial Complete
[Class Synergy Trial Complete]
[Emotional Link Potential: 94% Confirmed]
[Warning: High emotional fluctuation may affect Forbidden Path stability]
[System Suggestion: Maintain distance or embrace link and evolve accordingly]
Riven groaned.
"You always flirt with violence?"
Irene dusted herself off. "Only with people worth fighting."
He looked at her.
She looked back.
And then…
"YOU TWO HAVE SERIOUS CHEMISTRY!" a voice yelled from the arena entrance.
Enter: Aros – Chaos Summoner
Aros stood with both hands up, grinning like an idiot, three summon scrolls floating behind him and a soda in his mouth.
"Yo, Riven! You didn't tell me you were out here writing romantic haikus with death-mage Barbie!"
Irene raised an eyebrow.
"Who's this ?"
Riven sighed. "This is Aros. He thinks he's funny."
Aros strode over. "Correction: I know I'm funny. I'm also devastatingly handsome, obscenely talented, and probably your next teammate."
She blinked. "You summon monsters?"
Aros winked. "Only the cuddly ones. Like this guy—go on, Bubbles."
[Skill: Summon Familiar – Type: Void Toad]
A massive blue toad with glowing red eyes appeared beside him.
It licked its own eye.
Irene stared at it.
Then at Aros.
Then at Riven.
Then laughed.
Just once.
Quick. Beautiful.
And gone.
Guild Surveillance – Shadows Closing
Far above, on a private Guild monitor…
Sarn Veller watched the footage on repeat.
Riven, Irene, and the summoner boy—all locked together in a micro-squad formation.
Linked.
Stable.
Unpredictable.
Too dangerous.
"Deploy Hunter Team Delta-9. I want them separated."
"If they resist, kill the summoner first. He's the weakest."
"Or the loudest."
Final Scene – Gate Pulse
That night, as the three of them walked toward the outer wall—bantering, arguing, laughing—something deep underground stirred.
A hidden chamber, far from any Guild map, lit up with forbidden symbols.
A second Forbidden Memory pulsed beneath Sector 12.
Waiting.
Calling.