Chapter 154: A Little Bonding Time
The Nova Sanctum drifted like a shadow across the sky.
Beneath its hull, the world burned. Villages cracked under its cannons, settlements folded into craters. Flames rolled across the forests, rivers boiled dry. Every strike left another scar on the land. To the monster nations below, it was not a ship—it was the end.
Inside, the air was still.
Lucian hadn’t left his quarters since the fall of the Lion King. His door stayed locked, his silence heavy. No one disturbed him. Not even Lucy.
Which left Karl and Lucy in the simulation hall.
The chamber was vast, circular, its walls lined with black plates etched in shifting glyphs. Light hummed faintly in the air, projections folding and resetting reality in controlled loops. The floor itself could bend into landscapes, though tonight, it remained simple—a wide expanse of stone.
Karl rolled his shoulders, his claws catching the faint light. He grinned, sharp as always. "You sure you want this, sis? You’ve seen what these hands do."
Lucy adjusted her grip on Infernal Eclipse. The blade pulsed faintly, black fire curling along its edge. Her hair drifted in the unseen heat, strands burning with a quiet glow. "You talk too much."
Karl’s grin widened. "Better than you pretending you don’t like this."
The simulation triggered with a low hum. Wind rushed through the hall as the floor shifted, fragments of stone rising into jagged spires, air filling with the faint scent of ash.
Lucy’s stance lowered, blade angled at her side. Karl flexed his claws, red-gold flames curling around his fists.
And then they moved.
Karl dashed first, his claws sweeping low. Lucy’s blade snapped up, catching the strike, sparks and fire scattering between them. She twisted, letting his momentum slide past her, and drove her shoulder into his chest.
Karl staggered half a step, grinning wider. "Not bad." He slammed his knee upward, flames bursting outward in a shockwave. Lucy leapt back, her cloak whipping through the air as black fire carved a line across the floor between them.
They circled, their breaths steady, eyes locked.
Karl lunged again, both claws flashing. Lucy parried the first, ducked the second, then swept her blade upward. Black fire erupted, searing across his arm. Karl hissed but laughed through it, grabbing her wrist with his free hand and yanking her forward.
Their foreheads almost collided, heat and flame burning the air between them.
"See?" Karl’s grin was sharp. "You do like this."
Lucy twisted her wrist free, slammed her knee into his ribs, and shoved him back with a burst of fire. "Shut up."
Karl staggered two steps, coughing once, then roared with laughter. Flames erupted higher around him, coating his claws until they glowed white. He blurred forward, faster this time. Lucy caught his strike, the impact ringing through the hall like steel on steel. Her feet slid across the stone, sparks scattering in her wake.
Karl pressed harder, claws grinding against her blade. "C’mon, Lu. You’re holding back."
Lucy’s eyes narrowed. Black fire surged along her sword, the blade pulsing. She twisted, letting his claws slide past, then slashed in a wide arc. A storm of flame erupted, catching Karl across the chest and hurling him back into one of the rising stone spires. The impact cracked it in half.
Karl fell, landing on one knee. He looked down at his chest, smoke curling from the burn marks, then barked another laugh. "Now that’s better!"
He sprang back up, faster than before. Lucy spun her blade once, her stance resetting, steady as stone.
The next exchange was faster—too fast for words. Claws against blade, strike after strike, sparks blinding, fire rolling across the floor. Every clash sent tremors through the chamber. Lucy’s precision met Karl’s brute force, her blade cutting through every gap he left, his claws hammering through every weakness she showed.
At one point, Karl caught her ankle mid-spin, yanking her down, but she twisted with it, rolling onto her hands and kicking upward, fire erupting from her heel. Karl caught the strike on his arm, his grin sharper than ever.
At another, Lucy’s blade traced his throat, stopping just shy of flesh. Karl leaned into it with a smirk, eyes gleaming. "Do it." She shoved him back instead, fire trailing from the cut in the air.
They broke apart, both breathing harder now, sweat and blood mixing with the flames around them.
Karl spat a thin line of blood to the side, still grinning. "Alright. You’re stronger than I thought."
Lucy didn’t smile. She raised her blade again, her eyes sharp. "And you’re slower than you think."
Karl chuckled low, flames flaring brighter. "Careful, Lu. Keep talking like that, I’ll have to take you seriously."
The simulation chamber shifted again, the spires collapsing, the ground splitting into cracks that glowed with simulated lava. Heat rolled higher, the system feeding their auras back at them, amplifying the intensity.
Karl roared, his flames spilling outward in a dome. Lucy answered, black fire rushing from her blade, the two storms colliding in the center. The air cracked with the impact, pressure blasting outward, stone splintering underfoot.
They charged again.
Lucy ducked under a claw swipe, her blade stabbing upward, catching Karl’s shoulder. He grunted, swung his other arm down, and slammed her to the ground. She twisted immediately, rolling onto her back, sword flashing up. The blade seared across his ribs, black fire biting deep.
Karl howled, his grin feral, eyes wide with thrill. He grabbed the edge of her sword with both hands, fire spilling from his claws, and forced it down. The flames licked his palms, burning him raw, but he pushed anyway. Lucy gritted her teeth, her arms trembling as she held her ground.
The clash hung there, locked, fire and black flame clashing, sparks raining down.
Then Lucy let go.
Her blade slipped from Karl’s grip, his arms stumbling forward. She caught Infernal Eclipse again mid-fall, spun, and slammed the hilt into his jaw. The impact rang through the chamber. Karl staggered, blood flying from his mouth.
Lucy’s eyes narrowed, her voice quiet. "You’re too predictable."
Karl spat blood, his grin still wide despite it. "And you’re too damn clever."
They stood there, fire still burning around them, both breathing heavy, both cut and bruised.
For once, Karl didn’t laugh. He just looked at her, blood dripping from his lip, then gave the faintest nod. "Not bad, Lu."
Lucy sheathed her sword in one smooth motion, the flames around her fading. She brushed a strand of ash-black hair from her face, her breathing steadying. "Not bad yourself."
The simulation room dimmed, the false landscape crumbling back into smooth steel. The glyphs along the walls flickered, resetting the chamber to silence.
Karl stretched his neck, wincing at the cuts still steaming across his chest. "Next time, I’m not holding back."
Lucy gave him a flat look. "You weren’t holding back."
Karl chuckled, low and rough. "Guess I wasn’t."
They left the chamber together, their steps slow but steady. Outside, the hum of the Sanctum’s engines echoed faint through the corridors. Beyond its walls, another settlement burned to ash under its cannons.
And while the world crumbled below, inside the ship, two friends walked side by side—stronger than before, and not yet finished.