The dueling grounds of Valenforge were nothing like the open courtyards the younger students used.
This was Arena Nine — reserved for those whose power could level buildings if left unchecked.
The air shimmered faintly with containment glyphs, golden threads weaving into a transparent dome above the stone ring. Beyond it, the Academy's towers loomed — silent, watchful, their windows glowing with the soft pulse of Histinak conduits.
Kael stood at the center of the ring. The ground beneath his boots hummed, feeding the arena's sensors. Every heartbeat, every fluctuation of Flow, would be recorded.
Across from him stood Seren Vale — her posture effortless, confident, and frighteningly calm. She drew her weapon — a slender, silver-edged blade that hummed softly as it cut through the air. The weapon's core shimmered with faint blue light, reflecting her Histinak resonance.
"Flow of Aether: Mirrorform," she said quietly. "I'll keep it restrained."
Kael gave a half-smile. "Generous."
Her lips twitched. "Don't mistake it for mercy."
---
> [Duel Initiation Sequence Active]
Spectators locked out.
Combat recording: Private.
The arena's glyphs pulsed once — then silence fell.
Seren moved first.
One heartbeat — and she was gone.
Kael barely saw her blur before the first strike came, silver light streaking toward his chest. He twisted aside, the blow grazing his shoulder. Sparks burst where her blade met the ground.
He swung his arm reflexively, summoning the Hollow's power — but it sputtered, unstable, the energy flickering in and out like a dying ember.
Not now…!
Seren's second strike came faster, a spiraling thrust of precision and speed. Kael caught it with his bare forearm — pain shot through him as her Histinak tore the air itself.
He staggered back, forcing distance. "You're holding back," he said, panting.
"I told you," she replied coolly. "Restrained."
Kael exhaled, trying to center his focus. The Hollow Veyra stirred beneath his skin, whispering — not in words, but in sensation. Cold pressure coiling through his veins.
He reached deeper.
The ground cracked. Gray mist leaked from his palms, curling into shape. The obsidian blade reformed, unstable but sharp enough to hum with resonance.
Seren's eyes narrowed. "So that's the Hollow weapon…"
Kael said nothing. He simply raised it, letting the shadows tremble against the dome's light.
---
Their weapons clashed — and the arena erupted in sound.
Histinak sparks tore through the air, the ground fracturing beneath every impact. Seren's blade was fast, sharp, a stream of control and calculation. Kael's weapon was wild, reactive — bending and reshaping mid-swing like it was alive.
Each collision left trails of mirrored light and shadow intertwined — her Flow against his Void.
Seren twisted mid-strike, her blade flashing across Kael's guard and slicing his sleeve. She moved like water, her movements a dance of precision honed by endless repetition.
"Your Flow's unstable," she said, voice steady. "Every strike bleeds energy."
Kael grit his teeth. "Then I'll bleed it faster."
He pressed forward, forcing her to step back as the Hollow blade thickened, its form hardening the more he willed it to exist.
The shadow around them deepened, distorting the containment glyphs. The energy readings spiked.
---
From the observation hall above, Professor Veyra Dathis watched the duel unfold on the spectral screens. Her gloved fingers tapped the edge of the control panel, eyes sharp.
"Foolish," she muttered. "The Hollow isn't stable enough for direct resonance combat."
Beside her, Lyra stood pale, her hands clenched together. "Then stop it! If that barrier collapses—"
"Interference would risk triggering his backlash," Veyra interrupted. "If he loses control, he'll implode the Flow channel."
Lyra looked down at the image of Kael on the screen, his weapon flickering between solid and intangible. "He's pushing too far…"
Veyra didn't respond. But her gaze softened, if only slightly. "He has to."
---
In the arena, Seren lunged again — faster this time, her blade splitting into two mirrored copies mid-strike.
Kael raised his weapon instinctively, catching the first — but the second sliced across his ribs.
Pain flared white-hot.
He fell to one knee, his weapon's form distorting as his control faltered. The Hollow power rippled outward, gray waves distorting reality for a brief second.
Seren froze. Her reflection — hundreds of copies of herself — shimmered across the dome's mirrored light.
Kael's eyes flickered black for a moment.
Then everything shattered.
The Hollow Veyra burst free.
A pulse of void energy rippled outward, swallowing the light and silencing the hum of Histinak channels. For one terrifying heartbeat, the world went still — and in that stillness, Kael saw something inside the reflection.
A face.
Familiar.
Smiling.
Watching him through the mirror.
Then the light snapped back.
The arena's systems reinitialized. Kael gasped, collapsing as the weapon dissolved into nothing.
Seren stood motionless across from him, her expression unreadable. Slowly, she sheathed her blade.
"That… wasn't you, was it?" she said softly.
Kael didn't answer. He just stared at the place where his weapon had vanished — the faint echo of a heartbeat still pulsing in his palm.
---
Later, in the infirmary, Lyra sat beside his bed, silent for a long time before whispering, "You scared everyone."
Kael managed a weak grin. "Including you?"
She shot him a glare. "Especially me."
He closed his eyes, exhausted. "I saw something in the Hollow… someone."
Lyra frowned. "Someone?"
"Yeah," he murmured. "And they were smiling."
Outside, as the wind howled across the academy towers, Professor Veyra Dathis stood alone at her office window, whispering to herself,
"…the Hollow remembers faces."
---
End of Chapter 7