Reality bent and folded around Solaris as he materialized at the eastern perimeter, the cold mountain air shocking his system after the warmth of Maron's living room. In the instant before Eli appeared beside him, his enhanced perception captured the scene with perfect clarity—a tableau of desperation frozen in a heartbeat of time.

  Three figures now huddled near the gate, all showing signs of extreme exhaustion and injury—clothes torn and bloodied, faces etched with desperate fear and determination beneath layers of grime and fatigue. The young man—Akira, Solaris remembered from Eleanor's briefing—had disengaged slightly from the others, his stance defensive despite obvious exhaustion.

  The young swordsman had positioned himself protectively before his companions, his crimson blade wavering slightly in his two-handed grip, betraying his fatigue despite the disciplined stance. His eyes, though heavy-lidded with exhaustion, remained sharp and calculating, constantly assessing his opponent's movements. The taller girl with artistic clothing—Yuki—had collapsed to her knees, her elaborate hairstyle now disheveled, blood trickling from a cut above her left eye. The third member—Mei, with their androgynous appearance—knelt beside her, visibly trembling yet maintaining a protective posture.

  Behind them, the Sentinel advanced with fluid, almost dancer-like movements that belied its lethal intent—a tall, imposing male figure wielding a darkened blade that seemed to devour any light that touched its surface. Unlike the mechanical precision Solaris had encountered with Neph Mark 1, this Sentinel's movements were unpredictable, almost erratic. Where Neph had been calculating and efficient, this one was chaotic and manic.

  "Come on, little flame!" the Sentinel taunted, its voice surprisingly human, laced with cruel amusement. "Is this really all the great Tribe of Fire can offer? Pathetic," it spat.

  Akira's jaw tightened, his eyes narrowing at the provocation, but he maintained his defensive stance—conserving what little energy remained rather than rising to the bait.

  Solaris made his decision in microseconds. Before Eli fully materialized, he warped directly to Akira, whose combat-honed reflexes registered the approach with a startled defensive shift that Solaris noted but ignored. Grabbing the exhausted Sovereign by the shoulder, Solaris instantly warped back to the others, depositing Akira beside his companions before any of them could fully process what had happened.

  "Nan da—" Akira began, his eyes widening in confused recognition as he found himself suddenly displaced.

  The Sentinel, showing momentary surprise at Solaris's teleportation, recovered with disturbing quickness, its face contorting into a manic grin. "A new playmate!" it exclaimed with childlike glee. "And here I thought this game was getting boring."

  The sentinel rushed Solaris, bringing its blade down in a wild, unpredictable arc that would have bisected Solaris had he remained stationary—not the calculated efficiency of Neph Mark 1, but something more primal, more instinctually dangerous.

  Golden light flooded the clearing as Eli materialized, immediately extending her hands to create a large protective barrier around the three exhausted Sovereigns. "Watch," she told them confidently, her eyes never leaving Solaris as the fight began. "You're safe now."

  Solaris raised his arm, his shadow jacket hardening to intercept the Sentinel's blade. The impact sent a tremor through his body, the force far greater than he'd anticipated. With calculated precision, he pivoted and kicked outward, driving his opponent back several meters.

  "Why are you chasing my Sovereigns?" Solaris demanded, his voice carrying both authority and anger.

  The Sentinel—Akio—rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck, grinning with unsettling enthusiasm. Unlike Neph's blank expression, Akio's face was animated with a disturbing cocktail of emotions—excitement, rage, and something like hunger all mixed together.

  "Your Sovereigns?" Akio laughed, the sound sharp and discordant. "They're just pieces on a board, resources to be claimed. No different from pawns in a game." He flourished his darkened blade, the movement unnecessarily showy yet undeniably skilled. "Besides, hunting is so much more fun than guarding, don't you think?"

  "What are you waiting for, then?" Solaris challenged, shifting his stance. “Let’s see who’s hunting who.”

  "You are nothing." Akio replied, his expression suddenly darkening. "I will make your death as painful as possible, Tris Morgan!"

  The answer was followed by disturbing visual distortions. Akio's form blurred, creating afterimages that solidified until four identical figures stood where one had been before—perfect duplicates arranged in a semicircle, each holding the same darkened blade, each wearing the same unsettling grin.

  "WATCH OUT!" Eli shouted, her perception detecting what Solaris had missed.

  The real Akio, partially imperceptible, had dropped low and circled to Solaris's blindspot, giggling under his breath like a child playing hide-and-seek. Before Solaris could react, the Sentinel delivered a devastating kick that sent him flying into the rock wall at the clearing's edge. The impact shattered stone, dust and rubble exploding outward from the point of collision.

  "Too slow!" Akio crowed, bouncing on the balls of his feet with barely contained excitement. "Come on, show me what the great Sovereign of the Sun can do! Or are you just another dull flame waiting for me to snuff it out? Ahahahaha. AHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!" His crazed laugh echoed through the mountains.

  Solaris extracted himself from the impact crater. Had he not been in Alice Mode, that single kick would have separated him into pieces. The Sentinel's strength was formidable, but it was the unpredictability that made it truly dangerous—no pattern to anticipate, no programming to exploit, just pure chaotic aggression.

  If this Sentinel is Akira's counterpart, it makes sense it would have combat skills beyond ordinary parameters, he thought, assessing his options as he straightened. But where Akira has discipline, this creature has only destructive impulse. I need to match its capabilities more directly while exploiting that lack of control. Yeah. Yeah, I can do that.

  The Sentinel's sword gave it reach, and Akira's crimson blade had been effective enough to keep it at bay until now. A decision formed in Solaris's mind as he walked slowly back to the center of the clearing, positioning himself again between Akio and Eli's barrier.

  "Getting serious now?" Akio asked, his voice dropping to a mock whisper. "Good. I was starting to think this wouldn't be any fun at all."

  “Stop yapping.” Closing his eyes, Solaris focused his consciousness inward, drawing on memories and connections beyond his current incarnation. Akio immediately exploited this apparent vulnerability, its form blurring once more into multiple afterimages, cackling with delight at what it perceived as an opening.

  "SOLARIS!" Eli's voice carried desperate warning as the real Akio appeared directly above him, blade descending in what would certainly have been a sure-kill, his face contorted with savage joy at the prospect of the kill.

  Solaris touched his hand to his chest where the number thirteen was etched into his jacket, directly over his heart. "Blue Flame, grant me your power," he whispered.

  Blue fire erupted from his form with explosive force, enveloping him in a corona of azure flames that illuminated the entire clearing. The intensity matched what they'd seen from Vander in his final battle—pure, elemental power channeled through conscious intent.

  Before the Sentinel's blade could connect, something materialized from within the flames—a katana of pure white metal. The cross-guard formed a perfect halo of light that emitted a gentle, high-pitched hum. Within that halo, blue flames danced and swirled, contained yet powerful. The grip alternated blue and white wrapping, and the pommel formed a small, stylized cat head with two pointed ears, always pointing to the ground regardless of the sword’s orientation.

  The white blade intercepted Akio's attack with a shower of sparks and the resonant clash of metal against metal. The impact created a shockwave that rippled outward, bending the grass and stirring the trees surrounding the clearing. Eli, Yuki, Akira, and Mei stared in silent awe at the spectacle in front of them.

  Akio landed on his feet, eyes widening at the sight of the blue-flamed sword. For the first time, a flicker of uncertainty crossed his features before being quickly buried beneath renewed bravado. "Ooooh, pretty light show. Does it do any tricks besides making you look like a walking nightlight?"

  Despite the taunt, the Sentinel kept his distance, maintaining eye contact with both Solaris and Akira in Eli's barrier. Something about the white katana seemed to give him pause—a threat beyond Solaris himself.

  Within the golden barrier, Akira struggled against the containment. "I fight too!" he insisted in broken English, his expression determined despite obvious exhaustion. "Let me out!"

  "You're injured," Eli countered firmly. "Please stay inside!"

  Akira turned to Mei, speaking rapidly in Japanese. "Mei-chan, onegai. Kono baria wo chotto dake..."

  Mei hesitated, then nodded reluctantly. "Gomen nasai," they whispered to Eli before touching the golden barrier with slender fingers.

  The barrier shimmered and partially dissolved where Mei touched it, creating an opening just large enough for Akira to slip through. Eli's eyes widened in shock—her protection neutralized by a simple touch from one of the Sovereigns.

  "How did you—" she began, quickly repairing the breach.

  Akira caught her wrist gently. "It is okay," he assured her, his accent thick but his meaning clear. "I fight with flame of sun." His eyes flickered toward Solaris with unmistakable recognition, a connection that transcended their brief acquaintance.

  Eli hesitated, then nodded, releasing him. "Don't die."

  Akira moved to stand beside Solaris, his crimson blade raised in perfect complementary positioning. The two Sovereigns, meeting for the first time yet somehow familiar to each other, shared a brief glance of acknowledgment.

  Akio's manic grin returned as he observed this new development. "Two against one? No fair, guys! But I suppose I should be flattered you think you need the help."

  The moment shattered as an electric ATV roared into the clearing, Maron at the controls, his tactical rifle already firing controlled bursts at the Sentinel. "GET DOWN!" he shouted, his face a mask of concentrated fury.

  You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

  "Really?! Come on," Akio complained, sounding genuinely put out as bullets whizzed past him. "Can't a guy have a little one-on-one combat around here?"

  The Sentinel responded with inhuman speed, its blade becoming a blur as it deflected bullets while simultaneously retreating toward the rock wall, movements punctuated by dramatic flourishes and unnecessary spins that somehow never compromised his defensive effectiveness. Maron continued his advance, herding the entity into a more vulnerable position with methodical precision.

  In the momentary lull, Solaris turned to Akira. "Syncro kougeki yatte miyou," he attempted in japanese he wasn’t confident about over the loud gunfire.

  Akira's exhausted face lit up with a grin of recognition. "Hai, yarimashou!" he agreed enthusiastically, understanding and seemingly grateful that after their desperate escape, help had finally arrived. His eyes sparked with renewed energy despite his obvious fatigue.

  Akira centered himself. "Honou yo…" Crimson flames erupted along Akira's sword, intensifying until the blade appeared to be constructed of fire itself, the heat bending the air around it. Simultaneously, blue flames surged through Solaris's white katana, the halo at its guard expanding as the crystalline hum increased in pitch and volume.

  "For the Blue Flame," Solaris declared, his voice carrying across the clearing.

  "Tomodachi no tame ni," Akira responded.

  Maron stopped firing just before their explosive rush.

  They moved in perfect synchronization, blitzing the Sentinel with parallel arcs of their flaming blades. Akio parried desperately, his expression shifting between excitement and genuine concern as his darkened sword began to melt where the combined flames made contact with a deafening hiss.

  "No fair! No fair!" he complained childishly as he struggled to maintain his defense. "That's cheating!"

  Solaris and Akira pressed harder, their coordinated assault forcing the Sentinel to commit more energy to defense. They roared in unified effort, pushing against the Sentinel's resistance until its blade began to give way under the combined heat of their crimson and azure flames.

  "Fine then, have it YOUR WAY!" Akio snarled, his playful demeanor evaporating into raw fury as his weapon began to fail.

  The Sentinel vanished—reappearing instantly behind Eli and her barrier where the two female Sovereigns remained protected. His face was no longer playful but contorted with rage and desperation.

  "If I can't win, no one does!" he screamed, raising his partially melted blade toward the barrier.

  Akira's and Solaris's slashes continued through empty air, carving a superheated 'X' through solid rock. The stone glowed molten red along the intersecting lines, split clean through for tens of meters beyond the impact point.

  Akira spun in horror, his exhausted reflexes too slow to respond to the new threat. But Solaris had already detected the shift. Looking over his shoulder at Akio, Solaris’s gaze carried the same terrible intensity that had preceded Ereshkigal's destruction.

  Not my wife, nor my friends. He thought, with a cold, absolute zero temperature.

  The world bent around him as he warped directly behind the Sentinel, white katana positioned for a backhanded upward slash. His consciousness flowed with cold precision, calculating angles and velocities with quantum accuracy.

  What followed defied ordinary perception—combat executed at speeds barely visible to human eyes. Solaris and Akio engaged in a bewildering sequence of warps and counter-warps, appearing and disappearing across the clearing in milliseconds. Each materialization lasted just long enough for a single strike or parry before space folded again.

  "Can't catch me! Can't catch me!" Akio taunted between breaths, his voice increasingly strained despite the childish singsong. "You'll never be fast enough!"

  Eli maintained her protective barrier while tracking the battle, her expression betraying both awe and concern at the unprecedented display of power. Maron held his rifle at the ready as he circled to a better vantage point.

  The pattern crystallized in Solaris's mind after the seventh exchange—not a mathematical predictability as with Neph, but an emotional one. Akio's movements weren't random but driven by impulse, each translocation chosen based on momentary feeling rather than tactical advantage. And now, Solaris sensed the building rage, the wounded pride, the desire to lash out at the easiest target.

  With clarity, he anticipated Akio's next target.

  Akira had barely registered the shift in rhythm when the Sentinel materialized behind him, blade raised for a killing blow, face twisted in pure hatred. "Die, little flame!" Akio screamed.

  In the same instant, Solaris appeared behind the Sentinel, his white katana arcing in a clean horizontal slash across its neck.

  "Wha—?" Akio gasped, the final emotion on his face not rage but something approaching surprise.

  Blue flames exploded from the connection point, scaling upward in an arc of azure fire that reached the clouds overhead. The Sentinel's head separated cleanly from its body, both dissolving into particles of darkness that scattered across the clearing.

  Silence descended, broken only by the combatants' heavy breathing. The intense heat from the blue flames disrupted atmospheric patterns overhead; clouds gathered and thickened with unnatural speed. Within seconds, rain began to fall—light drops quickly intensifying into a torrential downpour.

  Solaris dropped to one knee, the white katana dissolving into motes of blue light that faded into the rain. The shadow jacket flickered around his torso as his energy reserves approached critical depletion. Akira stood nearby, staring at the space where Akio had been with complex emotions playing across his exhausted face—relief mingled with something like recognition of the dark and twisted person he might have become under different circumstances.

  Eli dissolved her barrier as she moved to Solaris's side. The Tokyo trio huddled together, Mei and Yuki supporting each other while Akira stood nearby, his crimson blade evaporated, eyes fixed on Solaris with a mixture of gratitude and recognition.

  "Can't take everyone on the ATV," Maron assessed pragmatically, already helping Yuki and Mei toward the vehicle. "You three good to walk back?"

  Solaris nodded, rising unsteadily to his feet with Eli's support. The rain had already soaked through their clothing, cold mountain water chilling them despite the residual heat from combat.

  As Maron departed with the two young women, Solaris, Eli, and Akira began the trudging journey back to the compound. The rainstorm gradually transitioned to snow as temperatures dropped, white flakes replacing droplets with silent grace.

  Little was said as exhaustion claimed the last reserves of their energy. Akira finally broke the silence as the compound's lights became visible through the trees.

  "Arigatou ne," he offered quietly.

  "Iya iya," Solaris and Eli responded in unison, their accent making Akira smile despite his fatigue.

  The snowfall intensified around them, transforming the forest into a silent wonderland of white. The three figures moved slowly but steadily through this transformed landscape. Behind them, only footprints marked where the battle had occurred—already being filled by fresh snow, nature reclaiming the space where the light of divine fire had momentarily conquered the darkness of shadow.

  "They've been running since California," Kira explained once they had all gathered in Maron's living room, blankets wrapped around shoulders, hot drinks warming cold hands. "System Zones, federal agents, private security—running, always running."

  Maron had built the fire higher than usual, the crackling flames providing both warmth and psychological comfort after the night's ordeal. Eleanor sat in her usual chair, Shalke a normal shadow as she listened with analytical intensity.

  "Tell us everything you can," Eli encouraged gently.

  Mei started up the narrative. "We go to Los Angeles. Very excited to find others like us." They gestured around the room, indicating the gathered Sovereigns. "But DuPont find us first. They control city."

  "The DuPonts," Eleanor nodded. "One of the thirteen Luciferian bloodlines. Their West Coast operations are particularly extensive."

  "Three Sentinels at airport," Akira added, his face hardening at the memory. "Hunt us through city."

  Solaris, his energy partially restored after food and rest, leaned forward. "How did you escape?"

  "Sometimes... help come," Yuki said hesitantly, as if uncertain how to explain. "Not person we ever see. But thing happens—door opens when needed, train arrives exact moment, guard looks away."

  "A Guardian," Eli suggested. "Operating covertly."

  Maron nodded. "Standard infiltrator tactics. Minimum interference, maximum deniability."

  "But help stop when we reach mountains," Akira continued. "Only us now. Running from Sentinel."

  "You killed the other two?" Solaris asked, impressed despite his exhaustion.

  Mei shook their head. "Not kill. Trap them in Zones. I have... ability to find Zones."

  "Remarkable." Eleanor observed, her analytical mind clearly cataloging this information for future reference.

  "We trap two Sentinel in black Zones," Yuki explained, her hands mimicking a circular enclosure. "But Akio too strong."

  "You can say that again," Solaris agreed, remembering the entity's combat capabilities. "The coordination, the afterimages, the warping—far beyond even what Sarah had initially. But completely different in style."

  "No soul," Akira stated with certainty. "Not human, not like Sarah. Oversoul told us. Just hollow shell with program and... hate."

  "The emotional volatility was extreme," Eli added quietly. "Almost childlike in its rage."

  Maron had remained typically stone-faced throughout their account, but his eyes betrayed analytical calculation. "The immediate threat is neutralized," he summarized practically. "But the DuPonts know our approximate location now. Security protocols need adjustment."

  Solaris caught his eye across the room. "You held that Sentinel at bay with just conventional weapons though. Pretty impressive."

  "Distraction tactics," Maron dismissed, though something in his expression suggested the compliment registered. "Your coordination with Akira was more noteworthy. Never fought together before, yet you two moved like a trained unit."

  "Sovereign resonance," Eleanor explained. "When members of the Monad come into proximity, capabilities harmonize naturally. Even without conscious training."

  Solaris thought back to the battle—the instinctive understanding that had flowed between him and Akira despite having just met, the perfect positioning they'd maintained relative to Eli's protective barrier, the complementary attacks that had nearly overwhelmed the Sentinel. It had felt natural, like a dance they'd practiced countless times.

  "Your sword?" Akira asked, turning to Solaris. "Blue flame katana. Very powerful."

  "I'm not entirely sure," Solaris admitted, looking down at his hands. "I called upon the Blue Flame, thinking of Vander, my old sensei. In that moment of meditation, it just... manifested."

  "A Guardian weapon," Eleanor suggested, leaning forward with interest. "Perhaps Vander's consciousness continues supporting you from the higher dimensions."

  The conversation continued late into the night, the Tokyo trio sharing more details of their journey while Maron periodically excused himself to check security parameters. With each passing hour, the initial awkwardness dissolved into growing familiarity—strangers becoming allies becoming something deeper.

  Yuki described the first System Zone they'd encountered in Tokyo, her dramatic gestures bringing to life the terrifying beauty of the experience. Mei explained how their rain-based abilities had provided crucial support during their flight to America. Akira contributed tactical assessments that revealed a mind as disciplined and analytical as it was martially skilled.

  As exhaustion finally claimed them, Maron showed the newcomers to the prepared accommodations. Solaris caught the briefest hint of satisfaction in the older man's expression as he watched the Sovereigns settling into his compound—the fulfillment of a purpose long prepared for.

  "Six Sovereigns gathered," Eleanor noted quietly as the living room emptied. "Halfway to completion."

  "With the Anunnaki and their proxies getting more desperate with each arrival," Eli added.

  Solaris nodded, his gaze drifting toward the window where snowflakes continued their silent descent beyond the glass. The Tokyo trio's arrival represented both progress and escalation—the Convergence gathering momentum while adversarial forces intensified their countermeasures.

  He contemplated the white katana that had manifested during battle. Though now invisible, he could still feel its resonance within his consciousness—another tool, another connection to powers beyond his current understanding. The blue flame that had enveloped him had felt like Vander's presence, a guidance from beyond dimensional boundaries.

  Instinctively, Solaris reached to his left side, his hand finding the hilt that wasn't physically there but existed on another level of perception. With a fluid motion, he unsheathed the katana, consciously focusing on not manifesting the blue flames. The white blade gleamed in the firelight, impossibly beautiful in its simplicity, the halo at its guard emitting that same gentle crystalline hum.

  He admired the weapon with a sense of wonder. Like his shadow jacket, the katana was created from his own consciousness—a physical manifestation of his feelings of protection and guardianship toward those he cared about, including himself. It wasn't just a weapon but an extension of his very essence.

  "I swear," he whispered to the blade, the words forming a covenant, "as I did with Vander and Alice before you, that I will use this power only for good. You're not a tool, but a companion in ending the Phoenix Ascension."

  As soon as he completed this pact, he felt several pings in his mind—memories rising to the surface like bubbles in water. He recalled his first encounter with Vander, how the Guardian had made him touch his blue flame sword, explaining that the blade itself would reveal whether his heart was true. Solaris understood with sudden clarity that his own sword carried this same discernment.

  The resonance he felt was nearly identical to Vander's weapon, yet more synergized with his own frequency. This wasn't a borrowed power but something that had always existed within him, waiting for the right moment to manifest.

  maybe everything in the multiverse is a jojo's reference