Erenyx flinched as a figure cloaked in black dropped from the rooftops. Instinctively she raised her hand to summon lightning — only to see her arm encased in frost. "What—?" The question barely left her mouth before a burst of ice stars erupted from her fingertips, streaking toward the stranger. He crossed his arms to guard himself as the stars detonated on impact.
"The hell is happening?" she muttered, launching forward with a kick. He caught it with effortless precision and yanked her in, a fireball flaring to life in his free hand. She reacted on instinct, forming her own and driving it into his, the clash bursting in a spray of sparks. Using the momentum, she snapped her knee into his ribs, vanished in a blink, and reappeared above him. Her knee slammed into the back of his neck, driving him into the pavement.
Her ice-covered fist crackled with lightning as she hammered it into the back of his skull. The body went limp.
"...Did I kill him?" she breathed, pulling his head up to check his face.
What stared back at her wasn't human — smooth skin, no hair, just the bare minimum of features. A humanoid shape, nothing more.
"A golem?" she whispered, scanning the empty street for anyone else.
She snapped a picture and sent it to the Visionary group chat. Y'all ever see some shit like this?? Rui and Heartz answered almost immediately with nope. Seconds later, Loretta chimed in:
Yeah actually — one of these jumped me before I got back to my hotel. Like forty minutes ago.
He attached a picture — a more feminine version of the one at her feet.
Wasn't strong or anything. Any clue what it is?
Erenyx snorted, about to answer, when Heartz replied first:
Looks like a humanoid golem. Those things are banned in Thalmyra, so whoever's behind this... it ain't good news.
That sank in fast. All of them stared at their screens, a quiet dread settling in.
Rui sent one last message: Let's meet up in the morning, compare notes. If we can't figure it out, we tell Mr. Ceto.
Everyone liked the message.
The next morning, the Visionaries crowded around a table in a small coffee shop, each with a drink in hand. Erenyx opened the discussion. "So they're being produced out of Thalmyra?"
"Illegal doesn't mean extinct," Loretta said. "Back in Rakiel we still had factories running them in secret."
Rui nodded thoughtfully. "Even then, they could be conjured by someone's Aegis. Doesn't have to be industrial at all."
The group went quiet, considering the possibilities — until Erenyx's phone buzzed. She glanced at the screen and froze, her eyes widening before she caught herself. Her fingers flew across the screen as she typed back.
"You good?" Rui asked, raising a brow as she sipped her drink.
"Yeah... texting my dad," Erenyx murmured, trying to hide the tension in her voice. She set her phone face-down and forced herself back into focus.
"So what, someone's mass-producing golems and sending them after us?" Loretta asked. "Why?"
"We don't know it's targeted," Heartz replied. "Could be hitting random people in the city."
"True," Rui said, leaning back. "Until we find more of them, we're flying blind."
"So we sit around and wait for stronger ones to show up and beat our asses?" Erenyx asked.
Loretta shrugged. "We have zero leads. What else can we do?"
Erenyx sighed and slouched into her chair. She stole another glance at her phone — still no response.
"Do the last two fights of round one happen today or tomorrow?" Loretta asked.
"Tomorrow," Heartz said. "Today Mr. Ceto wants us out in the city, talking to people."
"Bloody great," Loretta muttered as he stood and tossed his empty cup. "I'm heading back to my hotel to rest. We can start that in an hour."
He waved as he left. Erenyx suddenly stood as well. "Yeah... I'll be back," she said, voice low, slipping past him and almost breaking into a jog toward the exit.
Loretta watched her go, confused. "What's up with her?"
Heartz and Rui both shook their heads.
Loretta shrugged and headed out.
Erenyx slammed her hotel room door shut and threw her satchel onto the bed. Come on... just answer already. She clutched her phone with both hands, rocking anxiously as the minutes dragged on with no reply.
An hour passed. Eventually she forced herself to get ready, changing into something more casual—sweats instead of cargos, a jacket instead of her cropped hoodie. Her dimensional satchel hung over her shoulder as she stepped out into the hallway.
The moment she opened her door, the rest of the Visionaries were already waiting.
"Took you long enough. C'mon," Rui said, waving her over. She managed a half-nod and followed them outside.
Together, they walked through the bustling streets of Arystel. Cheers met them from all sides; merchants offered them gifts, calling their thanks; children swarmed around them with bright eyes and eager questions. Visionaries were treated like true heroes here — symbols of hope.
Rui and Erenyx knelt to play with the younger kids while Heartz and Loretta entertained the older ones, sharing stories about training, battles, and their home regions. The children hung onto every word. They weren't used to seeing powerful figures stoop down to their level; the elites of their land were distant, self-important, untouchable.
But the Visionaries — like their land master Zephyr — were different. They talked, laughed, and connected with the people they were meant to protect.