(Ezra's POV)
Dumbfounded, I couldn't believe a barrage of attacks that whipped Kael's world-splitting cannon did not even faze the man beneath me.
"Do you understand it now, Ezra? Your attacks mean nothing to me. They are useless. I told you—you rely too much on that power of yours. How does it feel to be powerless? How does it feel to know that you are staring death in the face?" Enzo said as he stuck his hand out, summoning his astral forge. Out of the portal, he pulled a black bow etched with red markings.
"The look on your face is priceless. It's the same look every one of your clan members had that wonderful day."
Furious, I solar stepped into his position, unleashing a devastating horizontal slash to his abdomen. He was keen to dodge, noticing that I wasn't imbuing solar energy into Dawnbringer—only the brute force of my cosmic energy. He wasn't immune to sheer force, similar to the men that ambushed me in the town near the mountains.
If Enzo has the same armor, all I have to do is break it. Preparing to solar step one more time, several crimson arrows were already upon me, but before I could slice through the constructs, their forms shifted. The arrows were now a net of crimson, trapping me in place.
"Constrict," Enzo yelled out, making the net shrink. I could understand why Sol was so wary regarding his ability. The net wasn't touching my body, but I could feel its essence slowly breaking down my shell of solar energy around me. I could only imagine what this power has done to those who've gotten in its path.
With several more arrows coming and my space being restricted, I had only one option. I expelled solar energy from every part of my body to destroy everything in my vicinity. Enzo was starting to annoy me. He kept his distance at all times, never wanting to get close, and every time I got close, he seemed to just slip my grasp. I had the air advantage, and my core was a stage above his, yet he was still in control of the fight.
The battle reminded me of how sparring matches would go against my father. He never allowed me to get close, and my solar-based attacks never did anything. Just like then, my frustration grew, and my control over my cosmic energy began to loosen. I was keeping a great deal of it suppressed in hopes of keeping the port city safe. Now, in order to catch him, I understood I couldn't anymore.
With more energy being released, the land around me and the atmosphere began to tremble, as if it were a child in the presence of its worst fear. With Dawnbringer firmly grasped in my hand, my movement was nearly instantaneous as I accelerated toward Enzo once again. Quickly, he shot a large volley toward me as he prepared to evade further back into the mountain range. I swiped the volley away with Dawnbringer and anticipated where his trajectory would take him.
This time, he wasn't able to evade my strike. The blunt force sent him crashing into a nearby mountain. That wasn't enough for me, and I could hear the words of my son in my mind, yearning for more. I gave in to them. In a matter of moments, I closed the distance. My next strikes were personal. I sent Dawnbringer back to my forge and began to unleash terror upon his body.
I landed several strikes to his body—only for it to be a fake. The body transformed into a two-headed snake and clasped onto my arms, trying to hold me still.
"You know, that kind of hurt, but I think this might hurt a bit more."
When I looked up, I was face-to-face with a crimson arrow radiating with a sinister aura. I tried to solar step up into the sky, but I fell into his trap. Hundreds of javelins appeared in the air to intercept my path. All I could do was brace for impact.
Crashing into the mountain below me, all I could feel was the essence of the attacks gnawing away at my body. The initial impact and the barrage whittled away my solar shell along with my layer of cosmic energy. Laying in the crater, excruciating pain took over—first I felt my skin peel away, then my flesh rip, and finally, my bones start to crumble. The worst thing about it all was that it was slow and methodical. The essence felt like it had a mind of its own, acting as if it were enjoying the feast.
I was hoping the passive solar energy I received from the physical realm's sun would aid in the healing and help counteract the effects of the attack. But the rate of energy I was receiving wasn't fast enough. If I didn't think of something fast, I would fall to this horrible man.
"I've heard you were trusting almost to a fault. But I see now you are really just gullible. I'm surprised that worked on you. I see why everything crumbled under your rule," Enzo said, now standing over me.
In my current position, there was only one thing I could do right now. I just had to hope there wouldn't be any fallout. I forced cosmic energy into my third rune before it was too late. With a large release of cosmic energy, my celestial domain awakened, encapsulating Enzo and myself. The idea was risky; it was the only way I could counteract the decaying process and end the fight quickly. I watched as the mountain range vaporized, exposed to the heat of several suns.
My body rapidly healed as I was now bathed in the radiant energy of my domain.
"So, you actually risked using this. Part of me thought you were gonna do the noble thing and accept death and not risk the lives of these people. But I see that I was wrong."
Staring at Enzo walking toward me, I couldn't understand how he wasn't burning to a crisp. The hit I landed should have destroyed the armor that absorbed solar energy. Now that I looked closer, I saw he never had any armor on to begin with.
"How are you doing this? How are you unscathed in my domain?"
"You haven't figured it out yet? Well, I guess you were always more book smart than street smart," he responded as the light from my domain bathed him with radiant energy. "It's been a long time since I've felt the embrace of the sun."
Now everything clicked. The knowledge of my past. The precise understanding of my abilities. The immunity to my attacks.
Enzo was part of the Solaris clan.
He fought like my father… Was he a student of his that I didn't know about? The questions running through my head were endless.
"Who are you really, Enzo? In my entire time living in Arthenos and being a part of the clan, I have never heard of anyone going by that name."
"Well, I guess I can finally take this off now then. No need for me to hide anything," he said as he took off his mask.
What I saw almost made me drop to a knee. What I saw was the same face that I grew up with—the same face I looked up to. But now all it had was this dark and cold expression. The traditional clan locks were no more, all that remained was a short buzz cut that was died blonde.
"Ther… Theron, is that you?"
"It's been a while, little brother."