The beam of red mana exploded forward with the force of a collapsing star.
Arden braced.
Lyra screamed.
The guild hall trembled.
Friezzar stood alone between the attack and the humans he protected.
His arms raised—shaking, splintered, barely attached.
His core flickered violently, warning him he could not withstand this.
He ignored it.
Because Lyra was behind him.
And that single truth overpowered every instinct carved into him.
BOOOOOOM—
The beam struck Friezzar's palms.
For a moment—
just a heartbeat—
the world froze.
Light collided with light.
Red against blue.
Creation against rebellion.
Vessel against vessel.
Then—
CRAAAAACK.
Friezzar's arms split down the center.
Shards of wooden fibers flew from his elbows.
His core glowed painfully bright, as if screaming.
Lyra reached out, horrified.
"FRIEZZAR—!"
He pushed back against the beam—
legs trembling—
splintering—
cracks racing up his thighs.
Arden swore under his breath, ready to charge—
"DAMN IT, WE HAVE TO HELP HIM—!"
Lyra grabbed his arm.
"No! If you step into that, you'll die!"
"I'D RATHER DIE THAN WATCH HIM GET SHATTERED!"
But Friezzar heard them.
Even through the deafening beam.
Even through the pain.
He turned his head just slightly.
"…Ar…den…"
"…Ly…ra…"
His legs buckled.
The beam pressed harder.
His core dimmed—
almost to black.
Lyra's heart shattered.
"FRIEZZAR—STOP! PLEASE STOP! YOU'LL BREAK!"
Friezzar's glow flickered like a dying ember.
Then—
He whispered one thing.
"…not… break."
"…Lyra… safe."
And something inside him shifted.
A memory.
A voice from the dream realm.
A silhouette shaped like Lyra touching his chest, saying without words:
You choose.
You are not alone.
His core answered.
WHOOM.
Blue mana erupted from within him—
not from instinct,
not from programming,
but from choice.
A self-made surge.
His own power.
The light shot through the cracks in his body, sealing them with burning blue lines as if welding them shut.
Lyra's breath caught.
"He's—he's healing himself—!"
Arden's eyes widened.
"That's new!"
Friezzar's glow brightened further.
His runes lit like a constellation.
The beam pushing against him began to bend—
warp—
twist.
The Second Vessel tilted its head.
"UNEXPECTED RESISTANCE."
Friezzar took one step forward.
Crack—
his foot split.
Crack—
his knee splintered.
But he didn't stop.
He pushed the beam upward—
redirecting it like bending a river—
until the attack blasted into the ceiling.
Stone exploded.
Dust showered the guild.
But Friezzar—
He still stood.
Barely.
His entire frame trembling violently.
Lyra ran to him and caught him as he collapsed into her arms.
"Friezzar!"
His voice was faint.
"…Lyra… safe?"
She nodded, tears spilling freely again.
"Yes… yes, you protected us…"
Arden helped lower him gently to the ground.
"Damn puppet… you did it."
But the threat was far from over.
The Second Vessel Analyzes
The Second Vessel stepped forward, unharmed.
"VESSEL ONE.
YOU HAVE EVOLVED."
Lyra held Friezzar protectively.
"Stay away from him!"
The Vessel ignored her.
Its head tilted, processing new data.
"EVOLUTION PATH: UNAUTHORIZED.
CORE RESONANCE: UNSTABLE."
Then—
It turned its burning eye directly to Lyra.
Arden stepped between them instantly.
"Oh no you don't."
The Vessel spoke again:
"HUMAN: DESIGNATED ANCHOR."
Lyra froze.
"A… anchor?"
The creature continued its analysis, red lines shifting across its arms.
"VESSEL ONE'S CORE STABILITY IS LINKED TO HUMAN CONTACT."
Lyra's heart stumbled.
"…me?"
Friezzar's weak glow flickered in response.
"…Ly…ra…"
Arden's eyes widened.
"It's saying… he survives because of you."
The Vessel processed this.
"ANCHOR IDENTIFIED AS CRITICAL THREAT."
Arden took a step forward, fury igniting in his veins.
"Over my dead body."
The Vessel lifted its arm again.
Red mana swirled violently, readying another devastating strike—
But Oren's voice roared from the courtyard:
"SHIELD BEARERS—ADVANCE!"
The remaining guild defenders charged into the hall.
Heavy shields clanged into formation.
Mages raised staffs.
Archers nocked glowing arrows.
The Vessel scanned them—
"HUMAN FORCES: INSUFFICIENT."
It raised both arms this time.
Mana surged.
Pressure spiked.
Arden yelled:
"LYRA—MOVE!"
But Lyra didn't move.
She threw her arms around Friezzar, shielding his glowing chest with her entire body.
"No! I won't leave him!"
Friezzar reached weakly toward her back—
"…Lyra…"
The Second Vessel prepared to fire—
and then froze.
Its single eye flickered.
A pulse reverberated through the hall.
WHUM.
Lyra felt the vibration through Friezzar's core.
Arden's hand dropped.
"…What was that…?"
The Vessel's monotone voice repeated:
"Error."
Oren blinked.
"Error?"
Another pulse.
WHUM.
The Vessel jerked—
like an automaton whose gears suddenly jammed.
Its head snapped to the side.
The red lines on its arms flickered.
"ERROR.
CONNECTION INTERRUPTED."
Lyra clutched Friezzar tightly.
"What's happening to it?"
Arden frowned.
"Something interfered… from a distance."
Oren narrowed his eyes.
"The intruder."
Lyra's breath hitched.
"You mean—?"
And then—
The Vessel stopped moving entirely.
Its eye dimmed.
It stood motionless.
Like a statue.
Like a puppet whose strings were suddenly cut.
The guild didn't dare breathe.
Lyra whispered:
"…Is it… dead?"
Arden shook his head slowly.
"No.
Just inactive."
Oren stepped forward carefully.
"Mages, prepare containment seals!"
As mages hurried to encircle the Vessel, Lyra knelt beside Friezzar.
His glow was faint.
So faint.
She brushed his cheek gently.
"You protected us… again."
He blinked weakly.
"…Lyra…"
"Yes?"
"…safe…"
Lyra's tears fell onto his wooden face.
"I am."
She pressed her forehead to his.
"And I'll keep you safe now."
Friezzar sighed softly.
Like a child falling asleep.
"…home…"
And he went limp in her arms.
Lyra held him tighter.
Arden kneeled beside her.
"We need to get him stabilized. Now."
Oren shouted for medics.
The Vessel stood unmoving in the guild hall—
dormant, ominous, waiting.
And far away, the intruder's voice whispered across the mana stream:
"You resist beautifully, Vessel One.
Let us see how long your heart can choose the girl…
before it breaks."