The announcer’s voice crosses the corridor before I can answer the System.
"Competitors of the main attraction, enter the arena and take your positions!"
I look past the gate. Staff collect broken weapons while two stretchers carry off the last wounded from the previous fight. A crew scrubs stains from the floor and checks the runes near the barrier. On the other side, Freya and Rahul’s three fighters are already moving toward the entry zone.
We won’t have time to discuss what the Soul Link means.
I turn back to Rhayne.
Her hand is still on my face, without pressure, and her eyes show no hesitation. Maybe she doesn’t understand this option any better than I do, but she’s the one who opened the way.
I trust her, and I select YES.
[Soul Link Enabled.]
The bond closes around my OXI reserve. I feel the first point pulled out, slow enough to almost go unnoticed. I keep the HUD open and wait for the next change.
Five seconds.
Another point disappears.
[Maintenance Cost: 1 OXI every 5 seconds.]
[Shared Burden: Up to 35% of the Bearer’s OXI expenditure will be diverted to the linked Void Catalyst.]
[Diverted OXI will accumulate within the Void Capacitor.]
[Void Capacitor: 0%.]
[Warning: At 100%, Void Monarch will enter Frenzy and consume all available OXI within the Link.]
’The system gave me far more information this time than it ever did with Void Link. I wonder why.’
Rhayne’s hand leaves my face. A thin line of blood appears at the corner of her left eye, but it doesn’t run down her cheek. She wipes it with her thumb and checks the small stain on her skin.
The bond still charges her. The difference is the speed.
Before, Rhayne’s body took my energy like an open wound. Now the Soul Link stabilizes part of the impact and stores the diverted energy inside the capacitor. That would cut my consumption by up to thirty-five percent while I use skills.
The price stays with her, accumulating. This time not in wounds.
When the bar reaches a hundred, Void Monarch takes over and tries to consume every OXI source connected to the bond. I still remember the state Rhayne fell into against Mira Voss. That started with precision and ended in hunger.
"You got the same messages?" I ask.
Rhayne nods while she pulls the glove back on. "All of it. The cost, the OXI diversion, and the warning about the capacitor."
"Did you know Void Link could evolve like this?"
"No. There was never any sign of it before today." She looks back at the arena, where the judge is already waiting at the center. "Maybe the resonance had to reach a threshold. Or maybe I had to choose to deepen the bond."
The second possibility explains the touch.
"Is the last part clear?"
Rhayne turns her eyes to me. We don’t need to mention Mira.
"It’s clear. You stop using skills before the bar hits a hundred, and I tell you if I feel myself losing control."
"Don’t wait until you feel it. Tell me when the percentage starts climbing fast."
She confirms with a firm nod, and we head into the arena.
The announcer finds his voice again the moment we cross the gate. Magic fireworks burst above the barrier, forming spirals of light that come apart over the stands. Our war names return to the screens as we walk out onto the field, paired with the images taken during inspection.
The crowd shouts Uncle Den when my picture appears.
Kraken leaves my inventory and fits the grip into my hand before I reach my position. The blade angles toward the enemy side, recognizing the hostility building in front of us.
I pick Freya.
Veric takes the center line, Undertow coiled at his arm, the black mask hiding part of his face. Rhayne settles a little behind and to the left, inside the range she needs to hold the chain. Oliver closes the other side with Motorhead resting against the ground.
Across from us, Split Fang draws the two short blades and studies our formation without hiding how little he thinks of it.
"Rahul made us watch hours of footage for this?" he says to White Wake. "A man with a hammer, a girl with a ribbon, and a prince in a mask."
White Wake spins the spear and tests the distance to Rhayne.
"The hammer man delivers the strike before he moves his feet. If he advances, step off the line and take the knee. The girl loses space when someone gets inside the Ribbon."
She says it calmly, treating Oliver and Rhayne as problems already solved.
Split Fang tips one blade toward Veric. "I’ll take the prince. When he throws the chain, I cut the attack line from underneath and open the center. After that, Sands is alone."
Deep Echo touches the runes around his neck. His eyes stay closed, but his face turns toward me.
"You’re all assessing weapons. Sands is the one who sets the rhythm. If you let him complete the first sequence, the others will look better than they are."
Split Fang breaks into a smile. "Then we stop the first one."
That’s already better than facing four hired bodies brought in to fill the other side of the arena. They studied our fights, formed opinions, and came here convinced they know where each of us breaks.
Freya takes no part in the conversation.
She holds the Scythe of Eternal Ice in both hands, body angled slightly, feet set. The discomfort I noticed during the announcement doesn’t change her posture. When the fight starts, she won’t be doing anyone favors. She’s a war machine, plain and simple.
The judge walks to the center and raises a hand. The barrier finishes rising around the field, muffling part of the crowd without erasing the weight of their voices.
I bring Kraken close to my body and keep my eyes on Freya.
"After this fight, I promise I’m taking that collar off you."
Her expression hardens. Her hand slides a few centimeters down the scythe’s shaft, adjusting the reach before she answers.
"Try surviving it first."
The judge drops his arm.
"FIGHT!"
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