Mauve Canyon. A large canyon stretching over 12,000 kilometers and acts as a natural line drawn between Eukarine civilization and anarchy. Heavily guarded by the military, all travelers must have a background check and go through a strict security system to pass. Bustling motels and markets litter the edges for those waiting entry.

  A devastating missile attack from 4 unidentified shuttles was enough to catch the attention of the Civil Defense officers patrolling the area. They would see the 4 shuttles come in, and then a man flying towards them.

  "Unidentified object heading towards us! Send out the troops!"

  An alarm rang throughout the outpost as the Civil Defense Officers and soldiers rushed into position. They were armed with an assortment of weaponry and were prepared for whatever came next. However they were missing one crucial detail.

  Those 4 shuttles were Dark Intrinium.

  "Ah... shit..." Vincent finally climbed out of the ground. The missiles destroyed the ship and the crash created a crater on the ground. The smoke from the impact was still rising, but not enough to conceal the view of the 4 shuttles coming his way.

  "I'll admit... they got me good." He chuckled a bit. Of course, he was one to acknowledge and compliment good tactic and strategy. Take out as fast as possible, and leave no time for anyone to recover. Atleast, that's in Non-Soul-Wielder standard.

  He wasn't done however, because he still had to fight who were inside those ships. Vincent stumbled around a bit, landed in the middle of nowhere and was injured due to the hard impact on the ground. He looked around and became even more frustrated by the second.

  Is everything so desolate in this land? It is a huge canyon after all, and all there is, is a few outposts and some roads. There were a few towns and villages, but those were too far away.

  "... I hate this planet!" He punched the dirt.

  The shuttles only got bigger and bigger, indicating that they were getting closer. To Vincent, it was probably rich people in Eukaron trying to claim his bounty. However, they were actually from Dark Intrinium. They had been ordered to hunt him down, and kill him.

  Aria Fujimara, who was the middle shuttle in their formation, spoke over the radio.

  [R]: "I can already feel it. He's in the middle of nowhere."

  Heios, who usually just never speaks off-duty, is now talking over the radio.

  [R]: "That aura is just impossible to miss. Great! So much power but he can't keep himself hidden?"

  [R]: "It's only natural. You know his weakness. He has a hard time ACTUALLY controlling his power."

  [R]: "Hah, easy work!" Satono said.

  The four shuttles got closer and were finally able to pinpoint with their naked eye.

  [R]: "Have him in my sights now. Jasper, drop a couple treats on him so he doesn't get a minute of rest."

  Jasper, the third shuttle, was the one who shot Vincent's ship out of the sky.

  [R]: "Right. Heads up."

  Jasper pulled out of formation and began to speed over where Vincent was, flying overhead him. He pressed a few buttons on his console, opening the below hatch to drop several bombs held in the back of the ship like rain.

  Vincent was still stumbling around, his vision was blurry and he was unable to stand up. His hearing was also becoming muffled and his balance was becoming off. He was suffering from a concussion.

  "... Are you fucking kid-"

  Vincent was caught in the cluster explosions.

  "FUCK!"

  He was knocked down and thrown around in the dust. It was a miracle that he didn't get crushed. Vincent had to cover his mouth and nose as the dust blew his way. The blasts had knocked the wind out of him, and the explosions left a few cuts and bruises on his body.

  "You gotta be kidding me!"

  The entire place was in smoke due to the sand and debris. The smoke, a deep pink from the pink sands, was making it harder for Vincent to breathe.

  "These assholes are playing dirty!"

  Vincent tried to make his way through the cloudy dust and find cover, however the concussion made him disoriented. He wasn't able to tell the left and the right apart, or figure out where he was going. His eyes were watering, his ears were ringing and his face was full of dirt.

  He took cover from a rocky formation and hoped for the best. It would buy him time, but not much.

  Jasper pulled back and went for another bombing run, dropping the rest of his payload around Vincent. It wasn't just Jasper having his fun, as Heios, Satono and Aria began their assault as well.

  Heios impulsively flew downwards, pulling down on his steer and dropping bombs on the smoked area. He was being careful however, to avoid the explosions as much as possible. The dust from the bombs was obscuring his view as well, making it easier for Vincent to evade.

  Satono flew around and fired the missiles that were attached to the shuttle's wings. She would fly up, down, left and right, firing at a consistent rate while Aria followed through and fired multiple shots around him to produce flames, as her ship was only equipped with incendiary ammunition.

  As the dust cleared, Vincent had no other option but to charge into the fight.

  "Tch... these fuckers just won't quit!"

  The entire area was in smokes and flames. Surely those bombs created a deeper crater that even Vincent Sparks would have a hard time getting out of. The ground, which was mostly made up of pink sand and dirt, would only make the fire grow bigger and the flames burn more.

  [R]: "I really want to hope that got him."

  Aria said with balled up fists, looking down at all the flames and dust that kicked into the air. Aria had a personal vendetta against the King of Destruction, exacerbated by their previous 'affair' when Vincent was still a Follower of the Uprising of Kytron.

  [R]: "We'll only know once the dust clears. That blast would have gotten anyone." Jasper replied over the radio, his ship circling the area.

  However, the area would lit up purple, and a small beam would narrowly miss Heios' ship.

  [R]: "Heios!"

  "EAH!" Heios steered to the right harshly, almost getting the shuttle off balance. "He's alive even after all that!?"

  "What will it take... to kill him!? I hate how he can survive in these circumstances." Aria smashed the console and looked at the area where Vincent was, her teeth clenched. "Fuck you, Kyuga..."

  [R]: "Fine! If bombs won't kill him, the Soul will!"

  Aria kept staring at Vincent from her own ship, but was put off her trance as Heios spoke. "... You're right. Let's engage then."

  Heios put the shuttle on stable landing mode, flying down to the ground, which also prompted the rest of the team to follow. They all had one goal: Kill Vincent Sparks, the King of Destruction, dead. If not with guns and bombs, then with hand and leg... and the Soul.

  The energy that both shuttles produced as they landed on the ground created a little sandstorm around them. Heios would be the first one to step out of the shuttle, he had green-white armour on and a cape with dots on it.

  Aria jumped out of her ship and landed next to Heios. As a Weapon-Type, she was nimble and quick. Looking down to where Vincent was at, she furrowed her eyebrows. Whatever affair they had, was proper evidence that she was still not over it.

  Heios, visibly angry while he walked towards Vincent, only thought about why Vincent ever betrayed them. He was once a Follower of the Uprising of Kytron, but now, a lone wolf that Lord Veyron wanted captured or dead.

  Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

  .:. How dare... he face us after all that has happened? .:.

  The ground was hot, and it was easy to see why. It was still smoking and burning, and the air was hot and suffocating. As the four approached Vincent, the dust finally cleared, revealing the damage.

  "Friends..." Vincent mumbled.

  "... My old friends are here to kill me?"

  Jasper landed his ship at the same time Satono did, walking out with her and joining Heios and Aria soon after.

  "Hey, so I just noticed..." Satono said as she fixed her UoK inspired armour that she made for herself. It was really just a black fedora, a white sweater with a few purple streaks. "What's the deal with her?" She pointed to Aria Fujimara. She questioned without thinking about the consequences, like an impulsive pupil who doesn't think about her actions beforehand. Or, a child who doesn't understand the world around her.

  "She seems more hellbent on killing him than any of us."

  Jasper folded his arms, staring Vincent down. "He was one of us after all... just, he had something special going on with her."

  "... Eh?"

  Heios looked at Vincent and broke the silence. "Isn't this a surprise... Kyuga?" A little bit of an emphasis on the last part. A little bit of spite, a little bit of anger. Heios was the most angry one of the group, however calm he might be on-duty. He is, someone from Venus after all.

  Vincent, giving Heios a serious stare, was enough to tell him that Kyuga Mazda, a name that he bore before becoming the King of Destruction, was dead. "Kyuga is gone."

  "Then that makes this easy." Heios replied with a cold stare, his aura becoming more and more potent and dangerous. "And I see you've been busy. Not that it'll matter anyways, since you chose a remote, secluded place for your grave. How thoughtful of you." He said with a smile on his face.

  Vincent, however, wasn't fazed, and simply looked at Aria.

  "You'll be dealt right here, right now, Mazda." She drew her weapon, her Enk-X.

  "... Still blossoming bright as ever, aren't you?" Vincent simply sighed.

  Prior to their rather toxic reunion, Vincent survived the dangerous bombing run, and now he was about to engage in a 1 vs 4 battle against four of the most powerful Soul-Wielders from Dark Intrinium. He wasn't too surprised to see them, after all, he knew what he was up against. This only showed that Vincent has a lot of power, and his durability was something to behold. Aria said nothing and got into stance.

  Heios got into stance as well, grabbing his cape and rotating it over his back.

  Aria whispered something to Heios.

  :: Don't give him time. ::

  Heios, with just a simple nod, immediately manifested an atomic beam, discharging it towards him.

  "DIE, KYUGA!"

  The entire area was engulfed in smoke in just mere seconds as both parties engaged in battle. Or better said, the capture of Vincent Sparks.

  Vincent Sparks was largely wanted dead or alive so it didn't matter if they killed him right here, but Lord Veyron reiterated that he preferred to have him captured alive.

  Since nobody can really escape the shackles of Dark Intrinium, the fact that Lord Veyron wanted Vincent Sparks alive was to forcefully re-indoctrinate him into Uprising of Kytron and use his unstable powers for their own needs and goals.

  Vincent Sparks didn't have a choice, he needed to defend himself.

  It was going to be hard battle, not because he's weak or unstable, but because they were previously his friends, partners in crime. It would kill him inside to hurt any of his former allies.

  But if he was to die,

  then he might as well die trying.

  .:. Damn it, Heios... .:. The thoughts grew louder in Vincent's mind. Not one bit of him wants this at all.

  .:.. Why must we fight? .:.

  He would think to himself, as the beam would miss him. He would simply dodge to the left, using the coarse ground to blind his former comrades.

  Aria summoned Enk-X and sped past the dust, her eyes were able to lock on the King of Destruction to catch him mid-roll, going for a fatal downward slash that could kill him.

  This only helped Vincent realize that they were really out to kill him if possible.

  There was no former mutual respect between each other anymore. If they can kill him and take the body back to Lord Veyron, that was one less bothersome problem to worry about.

  Heios then moved to the right, allowing him to beam Vincent from behind should he get the upper hand against Aria. He had a lot of faith in Aria's handwork, of course.

  Who does combat better than Aria in the UoK?

  Jasper waited in the distance, ready to replenish their health as he was the only Support-Type in the group.

  Satono was observing. In the meantime, she was also measuring them up to see whom of the UoK she could take on.

  The beam was easy to dodge but Enk-X was a close shave that Vincent was able to avoid. He was fast enough to roll away as the beam missed him.

  However, Enk-X was a different story. One cut and it was over.

  However he had enough time to touch the ground, which enabled him to form a shockwave that would disrupt their formation. His Soul was truly an unstable force not to be reckoned with.

  Aria jumped back, avoiding the shockwave.

  Heios instead stood his ground, although the shockwave pushed him meters from his last position.

  That didn't stop him from manifesting more beams though, as he discharged multiple at once.

  .:. Wait, I don't have enough moment- .:.

  Vincent got hit by the beams, the knockback enough to throw him in the air, and Aria quickly followed up with an ability.

  "Ascentius Spiral!"

  She would lock Vincent in a three-hit combo, jumping and spinning in the process. It was almost enough to damage his Soul. Which was a gamble, since his Soul's unstable enough.

  "FU-"

  Vincent crashed into rock and debris, a crater of a few meters forming around him. Attacks that damage the Soul are called Soul-Stunning attacks.

  They can render Souls unusable for a few seconds before the stun period ends. His Soul wasn't strong enough to resist a powerful Soul-Stun attack from Aria. He was in trouble.

  "Don't let him get up!" Aria wasn't done there, as she struck the ground to kick up rubble and debris for Heios.

  Heios jumped up, manifesting 75 atomic cannons, creating shockwaves enough to hurl debris and rubble at Vincent double his beams.

  This would create pure destruction, making Vincent's Soul seem like child's play. The cannons were everywhere, and the beams were all pointed at one place.

  Vincent was unable to dodge, and even if he was able to, he would get hit by the debris.

  "Deathstream!"

  He discharged the beams, lighting Vincent's area up in green and white.

  "AH-!"

  Debris, rubble and sand flew everywhere while the ground cracked under him.

  The canyon was the closest to the core of the planet, which is why it had such a pink colour. The entire place looked like a wasteland.

  Aria and Heios' combined attacks are enough to destroy a whole city.

  It would be stupid to think that Vincent Sparks could survive that attack.

  "Good work, Heios." Aria jumped back, landing behind Heios.

  "So that was it?" Satono walked over, inspecting the now even bigger hole in the ground.

  "Looks like it!"

  Jasper yelled from behind. "I suppose I wasn't needed." He said as he walked over to Heios, Satono and Aria.

  Having stayed in the rear of the fight, he couldn't do anything. He has little to no offensive attacks besides the weapons he packed with him. He knew that weapons wouldn't be enough.

  "I'm not sure if he was worn down previously but it was rather easy." Aria still had her suspicions. "But it doesn't matter now, does it? Our job here is done."

  "..." Heios didn't say anything and just looked at the crater. He was thinking.

  If this Vincent Sparks, previously known as Kyuga Mazda, is the same person he used to be, he would know that mere basic Soul abilities wouldn't kill him.

  Heios had a look of suspicion in his eyes, and Aria was the first to notice.

  "Something wrong?" She asked.

  "It's like you said. That was rather easy. Kyuga is stronger than that, and we both know that."

  "Perhaps his time as a lone wolf had weakened him?"

  Heios started chuckling. "Come to think, he had all those injuries. He must've been in a fight prior... What a fucking idiot!"

  "Zip it, you two! Don't you feel tha-"

  As soon as Satono tried warning them, a purple hue that lit up the entire area started increasing.

  A sudden rapid increase in Soul-Energy erupted from Vincent's area - as all the rubble round him exploded.

  He stepped out of smoke, smirking.

  "You're the idiot for thinking that attack will kill me. Or have my friends forgotten what I'm capable of?"

  Vincent had his hands in his pockets. His tracksuit was ripped, some parts burning from the atomic explosion. He wasn't happy, he was frustrated, and he had to put a stop to them. He can't go all-out, not in the state he's in.

  "..."

  "Should've guessed." Aria drew her weapon again.

  "..." Satono was observing Vincent. She was in the same shoes. She has a Soul that rejects her in some way. She could relate.

  But what she couldn't relate to was how unstable Vincent actually was. That sudden Soul-Energy increase did not feel regulated at all.

  It was as if it exponentially increased to maximum, before settling down in a split second.

  .:. Those sudden increases... That almost feels like... .:.

  Satono felt her chest getting heavier, her own Soul reacting to Vincent's Soul. She has an idea of what's happening to Vincent's Soul. She looked down to her chest, where her own Soul is located. The mark that was on it, was resonating with the Soul-Energy that Vincent was putting out.

  .:. Vincent Sparks... undoubtedly a man of fundamental power. But he's simply unable to regulate his power. Is the Soul inside him way too strong for him to control it, or is it because his Soul is... naturally unstable? It almost looks like... Roselka's burden. At first, when I looked at him. I thought he was a Fallen Soul-Wielder, lost in obscurity as his body was controlled by his Soul... but it doesn't look like that. I thought he was another case like Roselka... But his Soul simply doesn't reject what he is doing, it's almost like his Soul... simply can't handle it's own power, due to how potent it is... .:.

  "Hey! Venus Beast, Katana Girl... whatever you do, do not let him go all-out."

  Satono warned both Aria and Heios, her voice enough to reach deaf ears to anyone who wasn't as close to her as they were.

  "What does it look like we're doing, Testharian?" Aria said, clearly talking her down.

  "Did you numbskulls not feel that? That sudden Soul Energy increase was a sign of instability. It felt penetrating, as if a spear struck our heart at supersonic speeds. I have a hunch, you have to t-"

  "Trust you? You're a half-brained Testharian mongrel! How can we trust you!?" Heios yelled at Satono. "You're not even one of us, so don't tell us how to fight! You're just here because the Grand Follower told you to!"

  "He has an unstable Soul! I know you know that better than I do! You guys were his friends, after all!"

  Satono was visibly frustrated, not because she was being talked down, but because they weren't listening.

  "So drop your pride for once and listen to this 'half-brained' Testharian!"

  Satono summoned her own weapon, Nhelv. A Weapon-Type, just like Aria Fujimara. It's a length-changing katana with a Soul-Draining ability. It can weaken the opponent's strength when hit.

  "I know what happens to people that have unstable connections with their Souls, or unstable Souls in general I guess. They'll enter a last-resort state so powerful that you'd think he's an entirely different person. That sudden burst of Soul-Energy is a sign, a warn..."

  Satono continued explaining but Heios and Aria weren't listening. Their eyes were fixated on Vincent Sparks, who was getting closer. Heios then whispered to Aria.

  :: Keep him busy, I know what to do. It'll be fun, trust me. ::

  Aria simply followed what Heios had said and engaged, not giving Vincent a chance to get to his full potential. Satono was ignored in this instance as well.

  "...So you make su- Wait, what are you doing!?"