"H-he's been brought to a world fragment near here! That's all I know! Now please, spare me!"

Seira gave Elder Fang a withering glare, keeping him trapped in the bottle for another few seconds as he squirmed. "For the past eight years up until the day I left, you gave me a speech every week on how I needed to stop putting so much faith in a worthless Sun, and how a bright young woman like myself needn't bother with charity to the lower ranks."

The wispy outline of a man trembled, bowing before her. "This humble one beseeches your generosity, honored mystic of the Infusion stage."

"Hmm… how did I go from 'traitorous scum' to 'honored mystic'?"

Kiro tapped her on the shoulder, offering her an elixir. "Drink up. We need to be as refreshed as we can in case they send more after us."

"Right, right." She released the witless Elder from the bottle, drawing her aura back in. "Do you think it's worth it keeping our mana signatures low, after that battle?"

He scratched his head. "Well, better safe than sorry. I just hope that Aer —"

A deafening boom shook the cave, and the rocks blocking off the entrance were smashed away by an onslaught of debris. Roaring winds rushing into the room, nearly sweeping them off their feet.

She channeled mana to her lungs, shouting to him. "What was that?"

"I don't know!" he shouted back, lowering himself to the floor to avoid getting blown away.

Lightning lit up the sky, and a torrent of rain came pouring down, covering the cave floor in seconds. An emerald shroud sprung up around her, and she marched through the winds, getting closer to the entrance.

"I'm going in."

Kiro followed closely behind, a shroud of his own evaporating any raindrops that happened to land near him.

She reached the edge, and her jaw dropped. They were surrounded by a sea of storms. Typhoons so large she couldn't even see their end danced along the horizon, hurricanes and blizzards devastated the land, and lightning crackled at every possible instant, scorching the ground with its devastating power.

"Aer!" she called, desperately searching for their master. "Are you there?"

She should be able to hear them no matter how far away she was, and her technique should allow her to whisper back into their ears. But, tens of seconds later, still no response came.

Kiro brightened his flames, illuminating their surroundings. "Aer?"

The wind tousled her hair, and the rain seemed to part before her, leading in a line towards the area where the storms seemed to cluster.

Then, the slightest whisper brushed against her ear, so quiet that if it weren't for the mana running through her body, the pounding rain would have drowned it out.

Remember, no matter how far I may seem, I will always be right beside you.

Lightning flashed above them, and before she could so much as flinch, it struck down, passing through her and into the blade in her hand. She fell to her knees, but to her surprise, her skin wasn't even touched. Instead, lightning seemed to crackle within her core, passing through to the blade without a hitch. She turned around just to see the same thing happen to Kiro.

She blinked the spots out of her eyes, looking around for any sign of the Saint.

"Aer!"

And remember… I love you.

"Where are you? Do you need help?"

No answer.

She looked to the sky, and noticed that despite the utter chaos happening around them, they remained untouched. The swirling winds softened to a gentle breeze, and lightning lit their way, guiding them forwards through the sea of storms.

She hefted her blade, feeling the odd warmth that seemed to radiate from it. What had the lightning done? And where was Aer?

In the direction they were headed, a gout of molten rock erupted on the horizon, and a bolt of lightning flashed down to meet it.

Kiro accelerated into a run, pulling her along behind him. "Let's hurry."

***

They crested the final hill, and the storms seemed to part before them, revealing a slate of land so devastated it could hardly be called a valley. Half the area was submerged in volcanic rock, newly cooled from the eruption of wind that surrounded them, and the other was covered in a web of cracks spanning the entire expanse, as if the heavens themselves had struck this piece of land down. However, those weren't what she had noticed first. No, that honor had gone to the lightning that laid frozen in the air, crackling beautifully like a living painting.

Then, she noticed a man in the middle of it, convulsing on the charred ground in a cloud of electricity. Upon seeing them, he cackled, flaring his aura and pinning them to the ground. The lightning intensified, but he conjured something between his fingers, and it disappeared with a flash of light.

"You're lucky that it looks better for me to come back from this expedition with something public, children. That's the only reason I don't kill you right here and now. However, I can't say the same thing about your precious mentor…"

She growled, gripping Storm and slowly pushing herself off the ground. "She would never lose to someone as pathetic as you!"

The man stood, and she noticed that his right arm had been sheared clean off.

"Oh, is that so? Well, I'm afraid to tell you that it's true. She put up quite a fight, though. I do lament the loss of my business associate, but her clansmen will make for a fine addition to my sect."

Kiro glared at him, stoking the flames in his shroud. "You're with her?"

The man chuckled, effortlessly prying Rain from his hands. "Oh, Hong Ma? No, I was planning on killing her the moment I got my hands on the wind Saint's treasure. She was quite convenient, though."

Seira opened her mouth, shooting a plume of emerald flame in his direction. The man stepped through them, grabbing her by her hair and bringing her face to face with him.

"Hmm. This is the prodigy she was talking about? Barely better than the boy."

She spat at him, and a chunk of earth rose to block it. "Mind your manners, girl. I could kill you with my pinky toe and you wouldn't even be able to put up a fight."

"I will never be a part of your sect."

The pressure on her intensified, and she bit her cheek to stop from passing out. "What did I just say about manners, girl?"

"Aer will come any second now, and then she'll kick your ass to the heavens for ever threatening us!"

She struggled, but nobody came. Was she actually dead? How?

I will always be right beside you.

A bolt of lightning came down on her, and the man let go, cursing as he shook his one remaining hand. She smashed to the ground once more, and though the air was knocked from her lungs, she gave a satisfied smirk.

"Even past death, that woman still finds a way to torment me! Well, it's too bad for her. It seems her mana won't hurt her disciples."

The air rippled in front of them, and a Warrior stepped out, followed by… Rynn?

However, the Warrior didn't stay long, as she was instantly swept away, screaming as she was assaulted by debris. Rynn shouted, and his aura flared.

Even through the enormous pressure, she could tell that he had gotten stronger. Stronger than even the peak of Infusion. Had he somehow advanced to Soul Formation?

Whatever it was, it gave him the power to manipulate the roaring winds around them, catching the Warrior and carefully lifting her back to him. Then, he noticed them.

A conjured whip of water flashed at their assailant, but the man let it impact harmlessly against him, snorting. "Are you sure you want to do that?"

The Warrior — she now vaguely recognized her from her classes — clung onto Rynn's arm, eyes wide. "Rynn! That's Rythian Marlowe, the Saint that Hong Ma has been working with. He's even more powerful than she is, and he's willing to accept you as a Chosen of his sect!"

"Rynn! He killed Aer! Run, before he gets you too!"

Thunder boomed above them, and Rynn looked at her, a dark expression on his face. "I'm sorry, Seira. Aer has been manipulating you just as much as me. Come with us, and true power could be yours."

Kiro glared at him, forcing himself off the ground. "Rynn. What have we said to you, time and time again? And I thought that we had finally gotten to you."

The Saint laughed. "Hong Tiang Rynn, I take it?"

"Yes, honored Saint," the man said with a bow.

"Good, good. I… regret to inform you that the wind Saint has killed your matriarch."

Rynn's aura flared, and he looked to them with an incredulous expression. "So even her story about never wanting to kill anyone every again was a lie!"

Seira gritted her teeth. "She did it to protect us, Rynn! Look around! She isn't — she isn't here anymore…"

Killing intent flowed from her, but it was instantly extinguished as the pressure from the Saint's aura redoubled.

Rynn harrumphed. "It was for the better. Honored Saint, please don't mind her. She is rather emotional at the best of times."

"Of course, of course. Now, Rynn, I have taken the rest of your clan into my sect, as a gesture of goodwill. I would be willing to take —"

"The same clan that ambushed us twice on the orders of Hong Ma?" Kiro spat.

"Enough." Rythian Marlowe closed his hand, conjuring a web of iron chains to wrap around them. "You two should close your mouths before I close them permanently."

Seira struggled against the bindings, but the Saint's aura hadn't let up, and she doubted she would have been able to break free even if she had all her strength.

"As I was saying, I would be willing to take you in as a Chosen. You would be given resources and privileges far beyond the rest of your clan, and you could grow to be a hidden Elder, a secret force for me to deploy whenever overwhelming strength is needed!"

The Saint smirked, conjuring a gout of flame hotter than anything she had ever witnessed before. "I can see you have potential, Hong Tian Rynn. Far more than either of these two do. Come with me, and I will train you myself, far better than that wind Saint ever could. The secrets of Sainthood could be yours, if you stay with me for long enough."

Rynn's face twisted into a grin, and he bowed twice before the man. "I would gladly accept, honored Saint."

"Good, good."

Suddenly, the chains around Kiro unraveled, and he fell to the ground, desperately coughing for air.

"However, I would be a fool not to test your loyalties before inducting you." The Saint turned, pointing at Kiro with his only remaining arm. "Kill him."