The drums grew louder. A deep, rhythmic thunder rolling through the ice valleys, echoing like heartbeats made of stone. Every wolf-warrior in Frostclaw Vale tensed. They knew the rhythm... war.
Lyra gripped her spear, eyes glowing in the twilight. "The Kote hunt again. Too soon after last moon."
I briefly checked my pistol, ensuring a round was chambered. "Maybe they didn't like the fireworks show."
Eva whispered in my ear, tone unnervingly calm. "Multiple hostiles approaching from southeast. Thirty-two lifeforms. Energy patterns corrupted. Aether density unstable."
"Unstable?" I asked. "As in explosive?"
"Potentially."
I sighed. "Great."
Lyra glanced at me. "You fight with us, Heavenfallen?"
I unslung the 6.5 from my back . "Lady, if I don't, they'll just eat me after they eat you."
We reached the outer ridge where the vale sloped into a frozen canyon. Frostclaw warriors stood shoulder to shoulder twenty strong, each armed with spears that shimmered faintly with inner light. The sky above shimmered violet as Aether currents rippled.
And then the Kote came.
They moved in a swarm of twisted flesh and bone, humanoid in outline but warped beyond recognition. Their skin was a sickly gray, patches of chitin and metal fused to muscle. Their eyes glowed with the same blue fire as the wolf tribe's Aether — but corrupted, inverted, like flame turned inside out.
I aimed, squeezed the trigger. The rifle barked three times; two Kote dropped, blood steaming in the snow.
Lyra moved beside me, her spear igniting with Aether as she struck. The weapon sang literally, a resonant hum as energy carved through corrupted flesh.
But there were too many.
Eva's voice broke through the chaos. "Commander, I can amplify your prosthetic through ambient Aether. However, control will be limited."
"Fuck it Eva... Do it."
A surge of cold fire crawled up my arm. The metal glowed circuits lighting with blue fractal veins. For a moment, I felt everything: the wind, the heartbeat of the planet, the vibration of light itself. I thrust my left hand forward. The wrist opened.
A shockwave of blue energy erupted, tearing through Kote line.
The world froze literally. The ground flash-froze, shards of ice bursting outward. When the light faded, silence fell. Only the crackle of energy remained.
The Frostclaws stared. Lyra dropped to one knee, eyes wide.
"You spoke to the Aether."
I was panting, smoke rising from my arm. "Yeah… and it yelled back."
Eva spoke quietly. "Commander, your neural pattern synchronized briefly with the local energy field. This phenomenon may represent a shared language
.. not verbal, but emotional."
"An emotional programming interface," I muttered. "Magic runs on feelings."
"Aether listens to the heart," Lyra said softly, touching the ice. "The stronger your will, the louder it hears."
"So if I get mad enough, I can vaporize mountains?"
She blinked. "If your soul survives it."
I laughed breathlessly. "Right. Soul firewall. Got it."
After the battle, the tribe gathered the dead two of their own and the Kote's. The shamans burned the bodies in blue flame, chanting. I watched as the corrupted energy bled from the corpses, rising into the aurora like smoke.
Lyra approached, her fur singed, her expression torn between awe and fear.
"You wield both fire and storm," she said. "The elders will call you Skybrand."
"I'm not looking for titles," I replied. "I'm looking for answers."
She tilted her head. "Then you must speak to Seyra — the blind one. She knows the tongue of Aether better than any."
Later that night, I sat in the the hut, Eva's sphere floating beside me, projecting diagrams of energy flow.
"Eva, compare the Aether field to known plasma and gravitic models."
"Comparison inconclusive. However, patterns suggest quantum entanglement at macro scale... responsive to neural stimuli. This is not energy, Commander. It is perception made real."
I rubbed my eyes. "You're telling me magic runs on thought."
"Affirmative. Your emotional state directly influences the field. Recommend cognitive discipline to avoid catastrophic results."
"Yeah, no pressure."
I looked down at my cybernetic hand. The metal was still faintly warm. When I closed my eyes, I could feel the Aether again a current beneath the surface of the world, vast and alive.
I whispered to it, not knowing why. "If you can hear me… teach me your language."
For a moment, the blue glow flared brighter like it understood.
When I opened my eyes again, the aurora outside had changed. It no longer shimmered randomly. It pulsed rhythmically, almost like code.
Eva's voice quivered slightly, for the first time. "Commander… I believe it's answering you."
"Eva.... Did you just stutter?" I asked, her cold static voice ripe with the right amount of sarcastic elegance had never fluctuated like that before.
Eva was silent for a few moments then in her usual tone replied "I apologize Commander. I was just surprised"
Eva surprised? That was new. I was used to her just being there... Her... My AI... When did I think of it as her... AI can grow, learn, adapt... I should probably be nicer to the robot that can control my vitals.
I snickerd to myself "Eva, it's fine... You're allowed to be confused or surprised.... I can say with confidence we are definitely out of our normal element"