(Agon's POV)
The air was thick with mist, suffocating and cold. I stood beside Celia, my breaths steady, my mind calm. Jess and Uvan flanked us, their weapons drawn, their postures tense. The green smoke that had seeped from me moments ago now dissipated into the void-like battlefield.
I broke the silence, my voice low but firm. "Our first evolution has begun. Be careful."
Before anyone could respond, my body shifted. My form dissolved into mist, the transition so seamless it felt like second nature. The world around me blurred as I surged forward, my presence scattering into the haze.
From the mist, I began to reform, the silhouette of my figure taking shape. My bow materialized in my grasp, the ethereal weapon humming with latent power. I pulled the string taut, and an arrow forged itself in the air... a swirling vortex of blue energy, crackling with violent intent.
I released it.
The arrow shot forward like a streak of lightning, its power distorting the space around it. But the Crimson Knight moved with inhuman precision. His great mist sword rose in an arc, deflecting the projectile as if it were nothing more than a raindrop.
The blowback sent a ripple through the mist, scattering it momentarily. But my attack wasn't meant to strike.
The real plan was already in motion.
Behind the Crimson Knight, Jess moved silently, her presence hidden by my lingering mist. She had been there all along, unnoticed. Flames coiled around her sword, growing in intensity, the air shimmering with heat. The moment she struck, it was as if the sun itself had descended upon the battlefield.
Her blade pierced through the Crimson Knight's armor, the searing flames tearing a hole into his tattered chest plate.
The Knight's roar echoed, a guttural sound of rage and pain that shook the ground beneath us. He twisted instinctively, his great mist sword slicing through the air toward Jess.
She barely moved in time. The blade cleaved through her right arm, severing it cleanly at the shoulder. Her great sword vanished in a burst of dissipating flame as she stumbled back, her arm falling to the ground with a metallic clatter.
"Jess!" I called out, my voice sharp with alarm. But when I saw her face, I froze.
She didn't scream. She didn't even flinch. Instead, a smile played on her lips, calm and unfaltering.
A chime sounded, cutting through the chaos.
[SYSTEM]
+
|##0918##| FIRST EVOLUTION COMPLETE
TRAIT: FLAME SALAMANDER
+
Before my eyes, her severed arm began to regenerate. Flames licked at the wound, reshaping flesh, muscle, and armor. Within moments, her arm was whole again, stronger, and unscathed.
Her grin widened as she summoned her great sword once more, the weapon now burning with an intensity that seemed alive. "Looks like it's my turn," she said, her voice carrying a dangerous edge.
Nearby, Uvan's screen appeared.
[SYSTEM]
+
|##0908##| FIRST EVOLUTION COMPLETE
TRAIT: ELECTRIC CHEETAH
+
Uvan's body crackled with electricity, his movements becoming a blur of motion. He dropped to all fours, sharp claws extending from his fingers. Lightning sparked as he sprinted forward, faster than the eye could follow.
The Crimson Knight barely turned in time to block Uvan's first strike. The claws raked against the mist armor, leaving jagged scars across its surface.
But Uvan wasn't done.
Before the Knight could retaliate, Uvan was behind him again, striking once more. His speed was dizzying, a storm of slashes and feints that left the Knight staggering.
Then Uvan leaped into the air, electricity gathering at his sword. The blade shimmered, a bolt of lightning condensed into a single point.
"Let's see how well you handle this!" Uvan roared.
The strike landed with a deafening crack, the energy exploding outward in a blinding flash. The force tore through the Knight's mist armor, shattering sections of it into fragments that dissolved into the air.
But the Crimson Knight didn't fall.
Instead, he stood tall, his great sword planted in the ground as he used it to steady himself. His mist began to reform, thicker and more oppressive than before.
"Is this the extent of your evolution?" the Knight sneered, his voice echoing like a death knell. "I have endured millennia of war. You are but infants crawling into the abyss."
The mist surged outward, a suffocating tide that forced us to scatter. His figure became a monstrous shadow, his form blending with the mist until it was impossible to distinguish where the Knight ended and the mist began.
Then, Celia's screen appeared.
[SYSTEM]
+
|##0923##| FIRST EVOLUTION COMPLETE
TRAIT: FROST EAGLE
+
Celia stood her ground, her icy blade glowing with a cold, blue light. Her eyes met mine, and she smiled faintly, as if sharing a silent understanding.
"Don't keep us waiting," she said, her voice calm.
The Crimson Knight roared again, his attacks growing more frantic, more desperate. Jess's flames seared through his armor, and Uvan's lightning tore at his exposed wounds. Celia's ice began to spread across the battlefield, slowing the Knight's movements.
Even so, he fought on, his mist sword cutting through the air with devastating force. Every time he landed a blow on Jess, she regenerated. Every time Uvan struck, he darted away before the Knight could retaliate.
Then, my screen appeared.
[SYSTEM]
+
|##0924##| FIRST EVOLUTION COMPLETE
TRAIT: MIST PARASITE
+
The mist coiled around me like a living thing, merging into my body, into my very essence.
I felt it then.... a formless power coursing through me, the mist no longer an enemy but an extension of myself. My body shimmered as I reformed, the bow in my hands glowing faintly.
I looked at the Crimson Knight, his form now ragged and faltering.
"It's over," I said, my voice steady.
The Knight's mist swirled violently, his rage palpable. "The abyss does not yield," he growled. "You will fall wanderers, as all before you have fallen."
I stepped forward, joining Jess, Uvan, and Celia.
"No," I said, pulling the bowstring back as an arrow of swirling energy formed once more. "The abyss bends to us now."
Our first evolution is complete,
it's time to end this....
I released...