The dimly lit brothel was quiet, eerily empty. The familiar scent of ale and incense filled the air, mixing strangely with something unsettling. Jalen blinked, confused by the sudden familiarity of the place. The laughter, the noise, everything that had once made this space feel alive was now painfully absent.
"You look terrible."
Jalen turned sharply, heart hammering. There, sitting comfortably at their old table, was Stix, casually turning his dagger—the very one Jalen had given him—over in his hands.
"Stix?" Jalen murmured, stepping forward hesitantly. He couldn't hide the relief or disbelief in his voice. "You're... here."
"Of course I'm here," Stix said easily, flashing that familiar crooked grin. "Where else would I be?"
Jalen moved to sit across from him, eyes locked onto Stix, struggling to find words. Stix placed the dagger gently onto the table between them, its blade gleaming softly under the dim lights.
"Missed you," Jalen finally managed, his voice barely a whisper.
Stix smiled faintly, leaning back comfortably. "Missed you too. Though honestly, you look like you've seen better days."
Jalen chuckled weakly. "It's been rough lately."
"Yeah, I can imagine," Stix replied, expression turning thoughtful. "Everyone still okay?"
Jalen hesitated slightly. "We're managing. Rhea misses you the most. You should've seen her fight yesterday—she's grown."
"I bet," Stix said, his smile gentle yet melancholic. His eyes suddenly narrowed, losing their warmth as his voice took on a sharper tone. "But why did you let me die?"
Jalen froze. "What?"
"Why did you let me die?" Stix repeated, voice cold, accusatory. The lights dimmed further around them, shadows creeping closer.
"Stix, I tried—"
"You promised me protection," Stix pressed, leaning forward, eyes intense and unforgiving. "Why did you let me die?"
Jalen's heart pounded painfully, guilt crushing his chest. "I wasn't strong enough!"
"Why did you let me die, Jalen?" Stix repeated louder, echoing endlessly. "Why did you let me die?"
Jalen covered his ears, squeezing his eyes shut. "Please—stop!"
Suddenly, Stix vanished. The dagger hovered ominously in midair, pulsing with dark energy. A deep, sinister voice replaced Stix's, filling the empty space with its oppressive presence.
"Tell me, Jalen," the voice boomed, dark and demonic, "what is it you truly desire?"
Jalen trembled, shaking his head. "I just want to protect them."
"A noble lie," the voice mocked cruelly. "Your true desire is power. Power you do not yet possess."
The darkness shifted abruptly, revealing a horrifying vision:
Lucio's lifeless body, impaled and bloodied, hung limply from a shattered spear. Nathan lay twisted unnaturally, bones protruding from shredded limbs. Rhea's once-bright eyes stared emptily at the sky, her body shattered and mangled, broken beyond recognition. Madame Velda lay sprawled, crimson pooling beneath her, expression frozen in terror.
"No!" Jalen screamed, collapsing to his knees, horror clawing at his sanity. "No, please!"
The sinister voice whispered into his ear, cold yet enticing. "This is the future you fear, inevitable without true power. But it doesn't have to be."
Jalen clenched his fists, desperation filling his chest. "Then give it to me. Give me the strength to never fail again!"
The demonic presence laughed, triumphant. "Show me then, Jalen. Show me how ruthless you can be."
With a thunderous roar, the voice demanded again, "SHOW ME!"
Jalen jolted awake, drenched in sweat, his heart slamming violently against his ribs. He gasped desperately for air, disoriented, barely registering his surroundings. His glyphs pulsated vividly in a blend of black and red, and his regulator had expanded dramatically, covering his chest and stretching halfway down his legs.
A knock at his door startled him again, Lucio's voice muffled yet concerned. "Jalen? You alright?"
Clearing his throat, Jalen called back shakily. "Yeah, just give me a moment."
Glancing down at the dagger resting ominously on his bedside table, he murmured darkly, "Velda... what the hell did you do?"
By dawn, the group had gathered at the docks, preparing to set sail. Though Jalen had rested, exhaustion clung to him, visible enough that the others took notice.
"You sure you're okay?" Rhea asked gently, her new companion Ember flickering quietly on her shoulder.
"Fine," Jalen lied with forced ease, grabbing the fishing rod Nathan held out to him. "Ready to lose?"
Nathan grinned, unbothered by Jalen's weariness. "You wish. First one to catch dinner wins."
Lucio leaned against the railing, shaking his head with quiet amusement, though his patience wore thin as Rhea pestered him relentlessly.
A few days passed at sea. Rhea soon regretted teasing Lucio, as nausea left her miserable, prompting endless jokes from the smug Lucio. Nathan and Jalen occupied themselves fishing, pulling exotic catches from the ocean's depths—rainbow-scaled fish whose fins shimmered like silk, translucent jellyfish glowing neon under the sunlight, and predatory creatures with rows of obsidian-sharp teeth.
Realizing they needed storage, Jalen casually waved his hand, his glyphs lighting briefly as he crafted a large tank from thin air, effortlessly preserving their catches.
Nathan whistled, impressed. "Useful as always."
Their peace didn't last long. Midway through their journey, the calm seas grew turbulent.
"What now?" Lucio groaned, gripping the railing tightly.
The water around their boat began to churn violently, with massive waves crashing against the hull. Without warning, an enormous figure burst from the depths—a colossal water elemental wielding a giant, menacing trident. Its eyes glowing fiercely as it roared, shaking the ocean around them.
"Seriously? Another elemental?" Nathan shouted, brandishing his fishing rod defensively.
"Looks like we've overstayed our welcome," Jalen said, glyphs igniting fiercely as he drew the dagger. "Guys protect the fish! I got this!"
Nathan blinked, completely baffled. "Th—the fish?"
Rhea stared at Jalen as if he'd grown a second head. "You want us to protect the fish? Why?"
Jalen shrugged impatiently. "Because it's our food, duh—and Nathan and I were planning to sell some of them for extra money."
"He's got a point," Nathan admitted, holding his fishing pole defensively, glancing at their catch with newfound respect.
Lucio pinched the bridge of his nose. "Seriously, that's your priority right now?"
But before anyone could stop him, Jalen sprinted forward and leaped headfirst toward the enormous water elemental, blade raised dramatically.
The elemental paused, visibly confused by this sudden and reckless move, before casually swiping its massive hand, effortlessly knocking Jalen straight down into the ocean.
Splash.
A stunned silence hung over the deck.
"Did… did he just dive straight into a water elemental without knowing how to swim?" Lucio asked incredulously, peering over the railing.
Nathan sighed deeply, shaking his head. "Yep."
Below, Jalen struggled wildly, arms flailing as he gasped for air, repeatedly swallowed by crashing waves. The elemental watched him, genuinely puzzled, before casually batting him around like a ragdoll, repeatedly sending him skimming comically across the surface of the water.
"Someone should probably help him," Rhea suggested hesitantly.
"Hold up," Nathan interjected, suppressing laughter. "I wanna see where he's going with this."
After another minute of chaotic splashing, Jalen's glyphs suddenly blazed with a surge of crimson and emerald energy. His regulator pulsed powerfully, vaporizing his clothes and revealing to his friends the new glyphs that spread across his body.
"Guy... did Jalen mention that his regulator grew again?" Rhea looked towards Lucio and Nathan.
"No, we knew nothing about this."
Below, Jalen stopped struggling abruptly. His eyes snapped open, glowing fiercely as his glyphs blazed green and red. Without warning, his body rose steadily above the waves, hovering effortlessly in midair. He glanced down, startled, then gave a triumphant laugh.
"Hey! I forgot I could do this!"
Lucio groaned. "Great. He remembers now. He's done this before..."
Rhea frowned. "When?"
Lucio exhaled slowly, tense memories flooding back. "Back in Stablious. Right before he leveled an entire city."
"Should… should we be worried?" Nathan asked nervously.
Lucio hesitated. "Maybe."
Floating confidently, Jalen turned smugly toward the water elemental. "Alright, big guy, round two."
The elemental swung its massive trident with impressive force, but Jalen simply rolled gracefully mid-air, narrowly evading the strike.
Jalen flashed an arrogant grin toward his friends. "See? I've got it under—"
THWACK.
The elemental's second swing caught him squarely, launching him comically into a series of painful flips through the air.
"Oof!" Nathan winced sympathetically. "Spoke too soon."
Steady himself in the air, Jalen looked at the water elemental up and down. "Okay big guy, I think I've got the right idea now."
Grabbing Stix's dagger, Jalen charged forward, sliding his hand across the blade causing it to ignite. As he maneuvered through the monster's swings, he slashed it, cutting off the water arm with a loud hiss.
Steam hissed from where Jalen's flaming dagger had sliced through the elemental's watery arm, the massive limb falling into the ocean with a loud splash. Jalen hovered mid-air, glyphs blazing vividly with hues of green and red, breathing heavily but grinning triumphantly.
Lucio shook his head, half-impressed, half-annoyed. "I don't know if I should congratulate him or throw him overboard myself."
Nathan snorted, clearly entertained. "I'd hold off. Elemental's still kicking."
The creature roared, its watery form quickly reforming, the lost arm regenerating almost instantly. Jalen's expression dropped, the confidence fading. "Oh, come on!"
Lucio cupped his hands around his mouth, yelling upwards sarcastically, "Maybe try not hitting the giant WATER monster with FIRE?"
Jalen scowled, glancing down at the dagger. "Alright, fine. Let's try something new."
His glyphs pulsed again, their colors blending more violently. The dagger in his hand shimmered and shifted, coated suddenly in crackling electricity. "Huh," Jalen muttered appreciatively, "that's handy."
The elemental swung again, its massive trident slicing through the air, leaving trails of swirling ocean spray. This time, Jalen maneuvered gracefully, weaving around its attacks, his glyphs guiding him instinctively through the air. He darted forward, embedding the electrified dagger deeply into the elemental's chest.
The elemental convulsed violently, electricity coursing through its watery form. With an ear-splitting shriek, it burst apart in an explosive cascade, raining harmlessly back into the ocean.
Jalen hovered there, drenched but victorious, breathing heavily.
Nathan applauded slowly from the deck. "About time!"
Rhea shouted enthusiastically, waving Ember around excitedly. "That was incredible!"
Jalen descended awkwardly back onto the ship, stumbling slightly as he landed. Lucio immediately approached, arms folded sternly. "Mind explaining why your regulator expanded, and you conveniently forgot to mention it?"
Jalen rubbed his neck sheepishly. "Honestly, I didn't fully notice it at first. It happened after that Fire Elemental. I figured it wasn't important… until now."
Lucio raised an eyebrow. "Not important?"
Nathan shook his head in disbelief. "You have weird priorities."
"Yeah, maybe," Jalen admitted with a shrug, glancing down at his glyph-covered body. "But hey, at least we still have our fish."
Rhea laughed brightly, shaking her head. "You're impossible, Jalen."
Lucio sighed, "Alright, we should be that far from the jungle, everyone get some rest and we'll be there in the morning."