RISE OF THE SWARM

Chapter 76: Sylas vs Kael



An abrupt total silence fell over the market square the panicked screams died in throats. Guards froze mid-action The only sound was the faint crackle of energy from Sylas's trapped sword and the ragged gasps of Elara, still on her knees, staring up at the back of her protector in sheer uncomprehending awe.

Sylas snarled, his face contorting with rage He yanked with all his might, but the blade might as well have been set in solid granite. "What in the burning hells are you" he spat, his voice a mixture of fury and a dawning, primal fear.

Kael didn't answer with words. Instead, he released the blade with a sharp precise twist of his wrist The sudden lack of resistance sent Sylas stumbling backwards, off-balance and confused. In that single critical moment, Kael's internal command center ignited.

<Combat Initiated.> <Target: Sylas. Classification: Spellsword. Threat Assessment: Elevated.> <Primary Directive: Neutralize. Secondary Directive: Maintain Cover.> <Solution: Application of Spellcode. Disguise parameters active. Simulate human casting limitations.>

To the crowd of onlookers, it looked like Kael was simply a remarkably fast and skilled battle-mage He didn't engage in the long dramatic chants some mages used Instead, he muttered under his breath, quick low syllables that sounded like arcane words of power, sold with a convincing urgency It was the auditory mask for the silent digital commands he was issuing.

As Sylas regained his footing with an enraged roar he didn't bother with swordplay this time He thrust his free hand forward, and a torrent of raw lightning jagged and wild erupted from his palm screaming towards Kael.

Kael's left hand came up in a sharp pushing motion.

<Spellcode: [Defensive_Shield_Blue_v3.2]>

. A shield of shimmering blue energy snapped into existence a foot in front of him It was a strong solid barrier but Kael had programmed in deliberate imperfections to maintain his cover The edges of the shield flickered erratically and after the lightning bolt shattered against it in a spectacular display of sparks a visible wisp of blue mana drifted away from it dissipating slowly It looked powerful but believably cast by a human—flawed and leaking residual energy.

Elara scrambling back to a safer distance stared her fear now mixed with a soaring hope "By the Light…" she breathed She had seen skilled battle-mages before but the speed of his reaction was breathtaking.

Sylas snarled mistaking the controlled imperfection for weakness "A shield-mage Is that all" He decided on a more direct approach He charged his sword now wreathed in hungry orange flames He swung it in a wide horizontal arc aiming to cut Kael in half at the waist.

Kael didn't just stand and block He acted He let out a grunt of effort feigning a stumble as he dodged backwards The fiery blade whooshed past his chest so close that the heat made the air around him shimmer "That was too close" he panted putting a convincing shake in his voice The performance was flawless.

He counter-attacked immediately not giving Sylas a moment to recover Pointing two fingers he muttered another "spell"

<Spellcode: [Projectile_Simulation_EnergyDart_4c]>

. Three glowing darts of concentrated light shot from his fingertips They flew straight but Kael intentionally altered the trajectory of two One dart slammed accurately into Sylas's shoulder plate making the Spellsword grunt in pain and stagger but the other two went wide smashing into the brick wall behind him with a loud crack sending chips of masonry flying It looked aggressive and effective but not perfectly accurate—just what you would expect from a mage fighting for his life.

"You'll have to do better than that mage" Sylas screamed shaking off the hit His eyes burned with manic intensity He was a Spellsword and he began to use his hybrid abilities in earnest He stomped his foot hard on the ground and the cobblestones in front of him rippled then shot upwards in a wave of shattered rock and dirt aimed to engulf Kael At almost the exact same time he gestured with his left hand and the moisture in the air crystallized into three jagged foot-long shards of ice that shot forward like arrows.

A human mage would be forced to choose—block the earth wave or evade the ice shards To be hit by either would be fatal It was a classic deadly combination.

"Kael look out" Elara cried her heart in her throat This was a move Sylas was infamous for.

Kael's processors multi-tasked effortlessly calculating trajectories and energy outputs in nanoseconds But he had to make it look like a desperate split-second decision He widened his eyes a perfect mimicry of panic and concentration.

"Not today" he yelled throwing both hands out in front of him in a wide sweeping motion

<Spellcode: [Multi-Barrier_Earth_And_Heat_Sequence_2]>.

From the ground directly in front of him a barrier of packed earth and stone erupted meeting Sylas's wave head-on The two forces collided with a tremendous grinding roar canceling each other out in a huge cloud of dust and debris Simultaneously a shimmering wall of heat visible as a distortion in the air materialized in the path of the ice shards They struck it and instantly vaporized into plumes of harmless steam The dual defense was technically perfect but Kael sold the effort He let the concussive force of the colliding earth spells knock him back a step and he breathed heavily his chest heaving He even raised a sleeve to wipe his brow as if wiping away sweat a quintessentially human gesture of exhaustion.

"How how are you doing this" Sylas panted his own breath now coming in ragged gasps This stranger was not just skilled he was relentless his stamina seemingly inexhaustible A sliver of doubt was finally piercing his fury.

Kael gave him a tired determined smile It was a good smile well-practiced in a mirror "I've had good teachers" he said the line delivered with just the right mix of weariness and resolve He knew he needed to end the fight Sylas was getting desperate and a desperate opponent was an unpredictable one The risk to the civilians and to his own cover was increasing.

Sylas came to the same conclusion His face set into a mask of grim fury He would not be humiliated by this nobody He planted his feet wide gripping his sword with both hands and began to chant This was not a muttered spell It was a loud guttural drawn-out invocation that echoed unnaturally through the square The air grew heavy and thick pressing down on everyone Above them the clear sky began to darken as if a storm were brewing at impossible speed Dark purple-tinged clouds swirled into a vortex directly over the market and within them forks of violent lightning crackled and danced.

"You can't stop this" Sylas yelled his voice amplified by the gathering power "This ends now Everyone here will burn with you"

Elara's face lost all color "Kael no Thats a storm-call Its to powerful You cant block it you have to run" She knew the spell It was a area-of-effect cataclysm designed to obliterate everything in a large radius.

Kael's internal sensors flared with urgent warnings

<Incoming High-Yield Mana Discharge. Lethal Radius: 30 meters. Risk to Civilian Population: Critical.>

<Calculating Optimal Counter.>

<Spellcode Required: [Mana_Diffusion_Field_Protocol_5]. Execute with maximum theatricality.>

This was the critical moment He had to use a complex spellcode to neutralize the threat but the display had to be grand believable and look like it cost him everything.

Kael took a deep visible breath spreading his feet wide as if bracing for an unimaginable impact He raised his arms high above his head and instead of a mutter he called out a single resonant word that sounded ancient and powerful but was in fact meaningless: "Valdris" His fingers twitched minutely writing the intricate rapid-fire code that would safely unravel the cataclysmic spell.

The colossal bolt of purple lightning thick as an ancient tree trunk screamed down from the heart of the vortex It was a spear of pure destruction Instead of meeting it with a solid shield Kael's spellcode created a series of large rotating interlocking rings of silver light in the air above him They looked like a magical funnel As the lightning struck the top ring it didn't explode It was captured The rings spun faster and faster each one absorbing and diffusing a portion of the immense energy breaking the single destructive bolt down into a thousand harmless strands of light The process was accompanied by a deafening roaring WHOOSH that sucked the air from the square and made everyone's hair stand on end It was still a spectacular awe-inspiring display but it looked like a highly specialized incredibly difficult counterspell not a silent perfect negation.

When the last of the lightning had been harmlessly dissipated and the dark clouds above vanished as quickly as they had appeared Kael dropped to one knee his whole body slumping He let his head hang low his shoulders shaking with simulated ragged breaths He held the pose selling the absolute exhaustion of a mage who had just poured every ounce of his being into a single monumental spell.

Sylas stood utterly frozen his mouth hanging open in sheer uncomprehending shock His sword arm dropped limply to his side All his power his ultimate technique had been not just blocked but systematically dismantled before the entire city The effort of the casting and the psychic shock of the failure left him hollowed out and defenseless.

Kael gave him no time to recover With a visible effort that made his muscles tremble he pushed himself back to his feet He looked weary battered but his eyes held a determined glint He pointed a single trembling hand at Sylas

<Spellcode: [Kinetic_Strike_Moderate_Visible]>.

A visible wave of force white and shimmering like a heat haze shot from his palm It was slower than his earlier attacks easier for the onlookers to track It struck Sylas square in the chest lifting the rogue Spellsword off his feet and hurling him backwards Sylas slammed into the solid stone wall of a bakery with a sickening thud cracking the plaster before sliding down into an unconscious heap His sword clattered to the cobblestones its runes fading to dullness.

The battle was over.

For a moment there was a profound ringing silence broken only by the moans of the wounded and the crackle of a few small fires started by stray sparks Then as if released from a spell themselves the square erupted into sound Guards rushed forward to secure the unconscious Sylas binding his hands with heavy manacles The civilians who had been hiding in terror began to emerge their fearful whispers quickly turning into cheers and cries of relief and admiration They stared at Kael as if he were a hero straight out of a legend.

Elara was at his side in an instant her face a canvas of overwhelming relief and amazement She grabbed his arm her touch firm and real "Kael That was I have no words Ive never seen anyone counter a storm-call Its supposed to be impossible You were you were incredible" Her eyes shone with tears of relief "Are you alright You look like youve been through a millstone"

Kael offered her a weak exhausted smile leaning on his knees as if he might collapse "Ill Ill be okay" he managed between forced heavy breaths "Just just need to catch my breath That that took everything I had" He was the perfect image of a heroic mage pushed to the very brink of his endurance.

Across the square hidden in the deep narrow shadows of an alleyway squeezed between a weavers shop and a granary the masked figure stood as still as the stone around him He had watched the entire confrontation his keen experienced eyes missing no detail no matter how small He had seen the muttered spells the flickering shields the panting exhaustion It was a masterful performance A very very convincing one.

But he had seen other things things the cheering crowd and the relieved cleric had missed The way Kael's "panicked" dual defense against the earth and ice spells had been executed with two perfectly separate simultaneous motions a level of mental partitioning that was almost unheard of The way his "stumble" during the fiery sword swing had placed him in the exact optimal position to launch his counter-attack without an extra adjustment step The way the mana from his spells while appearing to leak and flicker like human magic always dissipated in the same uniform predictable pattern Human spellcasting was wild emotional messy—it flared and sputtered unpredictably Kael's for all its apparent flaws had an underlying rhythm a foundation of cold flawless precision that felt… inorganic.

It was all just a little to neat The emotion was there the effort was sold but it was like a brilliant actor following a script The soul of true desperate combat was missing underneath.

The masked man didn't step forward to congratulate the hero He didn't reveal himself He had seen everything he needed to see His initial suspicion a small nagging ember after observing Kael in the tavern was now a steady burning flame This "Kael" was not what he appeared to be He was something new something unknown and therefore something dangerous The perfect calculated choreography of the battle had been a spectacle but for a trained eye it had also been a revelation.

He turned silently his black cloak making no sound as it brushed against the alley walls He melted away into the deeper darkness unseen and unheard by the celebrating crowd His mission was clear now He needed to report this finding to his own masters The quiet weary wanderer was a wolf in sheep's clothing and the masked man's distrust was now an absolute chilling certainty.


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