NOVEL NEXT Chapter 53: Brothers Reunited
The skies above Kairos Castle were silver-streaked, quiet, save for the whisper of wind over stone. The training yard was empty besides the only two souls in the castle that remained at its center.
Lukas sat cross-legged on the smooth, cold stone. Styx sat beside him, one hand wrapped tightly in his. Her grip was firm, grounding. Her presence was a steady hum beside the chaos already beginning to stir in his chest.
He glanced sideways at her. "You don't have to stay."
She rolled her eyes while squeezing his hand tighter. "Quiet. I'm not leaving. Just focus."
Her presence gave him much-needed comfort yet he still felt anxious. But there was no point in delaying it any longer. Lukas nodded once, inhaled deeply, then closed his eyes. Then he reached inward.
The Crest of the Lord activated like a sun igniting behind his ribs. It bloomed, brilliant and overwhelming, and the flood came just as he remembered—a torrent of voices, visions, lives, and power from the countless Dragon Lords who came before him. It pressed down on his mind, heavier than anything he'd ever held, the weight of history itself demanding his surrender.
But this time, Lukas did not panic. He braced himself. Styx's hand was still in his. He focused. The storm howled, but he did not lose himself to it.
Find Rodan. He repeated those words in his head like a mantra. Those words were what gave him direction. Through the roar of battles long past, the screams of ancient wars, the echo of fire and waves, of dragons both noble and monstrous, he searched.
Then—
A spark of familiarity. Warm. Heavy like the tide. Sharp like sea-salt in the air. Rodan. Lukas pushed toward it, navigating through the living maze of memory until the rest of the storm fell away, blurred into the background. The pressure didn't ease, but it no longer terrified him. And then there he was.
Rodan Drakos. He looked a bit younger than Lukas remembered, he looked...happier—dirty blonde hair swept back, sea-blue eyes bright with mischief and wisdom, arms folded across his chest.
The former Dragon Lord was standing near the edge of a rocky shore within the memory realm, as if waiting.
"About damn time," Rodan said with a grin. "I was wondering when you'd come."
Lukas didn't speak. He just stepped forward and, without a word, the two brothers embraced. The roar of memories was silenced, even just for a moment.
Rodan clapped him on the back, firm and proud. "You seem different." he murmured, voice full of something more than just approval. "You sure as hell look like a Lord to me now."
"I am a Lord now." Lukas replied, without a single second of hesitation. Because he meant it. For the first time, he truly believed it. He wasn't holding onto guilt anymore. Not shame. Not the weight of his past life or the echoes of his failures. He was Lukas Drakos. He was now the Lord of Linemall's Seas.
It had been a century and a half since he had seen Rodan and…it was just good to see his brother again. Lukas finally pulled away, planting his feet firmly in the memory realm's wet sand. The waves behind Rodan glimmered like liquid starlight—a manifestation of the Divinity itself.
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"I need you to teach me," Lukas said, getting straight to the point. His time here was limited and every second mattered. "I need to master the Divinity of the Seas."
Rodan raised an eyebrow, amused. "Is that so?"
"You promised you'd teach me," Lukas insisted, jabbing a finger into Rodan's chest, a faint grin touching his lips. "And I intend to make damn sure you keep your word. Even if it means you have to do it from beyond the grave."
Rodan let out a genuine laugh. "Very well. I will keep my word." He grinned, looking Lukas up and down. "There's a lot to be done, brother. How long do we have?"
Lukas looked up, eyes clear, unshaken. "All the time in the world."
It took a while for Lukas to explain. The Trials of Kairos Castle, the sandglass of centuries. Because of it, they would have as much as time as they could ever need for Lukas to complete his training. Rodan listened intently, and when Lukas finished, the former Lord grinned wide, the kind of smile that could move storms.
"The Divinity of the Seas has always been our source of strength. I will teach you to breathe with the tide, speak through the waves, command the sea like it's an extension of your will. I promise you that you will become the strongest of us all."
Lukas felt it—the fire in his brother's words, the ancient pulse of the sea beginning to answer in kind.
But then something shifted in his expression, Rodan's excitement faltered.
"Lukas…" he said, a seriousness creeping into his voice. "You have to go back. Now."
Lukas blinked. "What?"
"You're starting to crack," Rodan noted. "You've been here too long already. I understand that you know the risks of using the Crest?"
Lukas nodded. Like he had told Styx, it was everything. He was risking everything to receive Rodan's guidance. Ignoring and suppressing the effects of the Crest had been much easier than he'd thought. That was doable once he found Rodan, a presence he could focus completely on. But this was why it was so easy to go insane. Even if he was able to handle the pressure; if he stayed too long, Lukas would lose himself in the worlds within his mind. Worlds which were not his own.
"But-"
Rodan's hand landed on his shoulder, firm, shaking his head. "You have to go. You have already taken the first step. We'll meet again soon—and next time, we train in earnest. Now go."
Lukas looked at him one last time. "I'll be back. Soon."
Rodan smiled. "I'll be waiting, brother."
With that, Lukas forced himself back to reality and the Crest broke. He thought of Styx. He remembered that she was waiting for him. He had to get back to her. The image of Rodan and the shore fractured like a mirror catching sunlight —shattering into light and sound as Lukas came crashing back into his body.
He gasped. Violently. Air tore into his lungs like ice. He collapsed forward, breathless, skin clammy with sweat. Panic rose in his chest as he tried to regain his bearings and as his vision returned; he searched frantically for her. But Styx was there. She was right there beside him.
The Goddess caught him by the shoulders, holding him upright, arms wrapped around him as tightly as she could. Her breathing was shallow, overwhelmed by the power radiating off him. Within him, he held the power that he had gained through these Trials as well as the power of all the Dragon Lords of the Seas before him. It was immense. It was not anything a mortal should be capable of possessing.
Still, she didn't let go of him. Lukas couldn't speak at first. Couldn't find the words. But when he looked up, he saw her eyes—wide, wet, and full of relief.
Without saying a word, the dragon pulled the goddess into his arms and he held her close, burrying his face in her shoulder.
"I'm here," Styx whispered into his ear. "I'm here, Lukas. I've got you."
He just nodded and just held her tight as if she were the only thing that mattered. Because she was. She was his anchor. And she didn't let go.