Chapter 29: The Sword of Dreams

Cerebro's amusement faded. He regarded the radiant sword before him with newfound concern. “What is this nonsense?”

Cerebro spoke low, almost dismissive. His hulking form was framed by the swirling sands that now flickered around him like a shroud. “This sword magic... it’s not like the others I’ve faced. The power spike isn’t there.” His eyes narrowed. “Is it one of those illusion types? Do you believe you can get me with some cheap parlor trick?”

Hyorine remained silent for the moment but she shook her head. The glow around her blade pulsed gently.

“Well? If it’s not an illusion, then what? A disappointment? I expected more from someone in a lieutenant’s position.” Cerebro’s smirk returned, though this time with a hint of impatience. "You talk of dreams, but all I see is weakness."

The night air hung still for a moment as Hyorine stood there. For a while, she simply stared into the darkness with her head held high. Finally, she lowered her head and spoke.

“Humans are bound by limits,” she began softly. “When we are born, we’re limited to two elements, two magical affinities. If we’re lucky, we’re born with the talents suited for those affinities. Some of us... are not so lucky to have what we want.”

Cerebro's brow furrowed. He was curious despite himself.

“I was born with Light and Water talents,” Hyorine continued steady. “Light was my strength, but... it wasn't enough. I wasn’t satisfied. I had dreams, grander than just mastering what came naturally. I wanted something more—something no one believed I could have. So, I did something foolish. I tried to learn an element I had no talent: Darkness.”

Cerebro let out a low chuckle and crossed his arms. “Darkness? You? So that’s it. You split your focus between Light and Darkness, and now you’ve ended up weaker for it. Typical human greed, reaching beyond your grasp.”

But Hyorine didn’t flinch at his mockery. Her face remained calm. “You’re right about that. While others mastered their talents, I was always one step behind. I wasn’t strong enough in Light to match the best, and I couldn’t even tap into the true depths of Darkness. To most, I was... average.”

Her words hung in the air, and Cerebro’s grin grew wider. “So how did someone as ‘average’ as you become a lieutenant then? If this is all there is to your story, I’m not impressed.”

Hyorine’s eyes lifted to meet his, and a small, knowing smile tugged at the corner of her lips. “I spent years chasing what others said was impossible. Not because I wanted to surpass them, but because I wanted to confront my own fear. The fear of limits. The fear that I couldn’t be more than what I was born into.”

She grew stronger in speech now and said with conviction, “That’s the thing about dreams, Cerebro. They’re about defying the limits set before you. While everyone else stayed within their comfort zones, I trained my ass of in the one thing that no one else dared to try. I combined the two elements that shouldn’t co-exist in this way…and that is how my sword magic was born.”

Cerebro's grin faded quickly into annoyance as Hyorine’s words sank in. “I’ve heard enough of this bullshit,” he growled. The sands around him churned violently, swirling into a massive vortex. "I don't care about your little dream."

With a flick of his wrist, the sandstorm surged forward with the intent of swallowing Hyorine whole.

Hyorine stood her ground She charged her blade with her Lunar magic. “Light is what creates the shadows of the dark,” she murmured, lifting her sword. It’s glow intensified until it resembled a crescent moon with it’s aura. “Lunar... Starlight!”

She swung her sword, and a crescent-shaped wave of radiant energy erupted from it. The wave was wide, arcing through the air with devastating force. It cut through Cerebro’s sand like a blade through water, cleaving most of the attack in half. Only a dense wall of sand that Cerebro hastily raised in front of himself managed to block the full brunt of the attack.

The two forces clashed with the crescent pressing hard against the wall of sand. This created a standoff of power that vibrated the very air around them. But slowly, they began to cancel each other out, the light dimming and the sand dissipating into the wind.

When the last of the energy vanished, Cerebro blinked and realized Hyorine was gone.

His eyes darted around in confusion. “Where are you...?” He scanned the battlefield for any trace of her.

Suddenly, a second crescent wave of energy cut through the night. This time, it was from above. Cerebro snapped his gaze upward, raising his claws to block the strike. The crescent collided with his outstretched hands, and he grimaced. His claws sparked and screeched while clashing with the wave, and after a moment of intense struggle, he overpowered it. The light was dispersed with his slash.

With a roar, he charged straight toward Hyorine with sand following in his wake like a living wave. His claws reached out, ready to tear her apart.

But just when he thought he had her, his claws passed through a mere afterimage of her. His eyes widened in disbelief.

“You...!”

Hyorine reappeared on the ground several feet away. Cerebro landed across from her. His eyes were now burning with rage.

“The first Lunar cycle,” Hyorine said calmly, “is ready.”

The Lunar charm at the hilt of Hyorine’s sword pulsed once, and a small moon-like symbol materialized near the base of the blade, glowing with the same silvery light that her aura produced.

“First Phase: New Moon,” Hyorine called out with intensity.

At her command, a beam of light descended from the sky, cutting through the night. It illuminated a portion of the battlefield, casting an eerie, pale glow on the rocky terrain. The spotlight began to shift and moved across the ground like a hunter seeking prey.

Hyorine’s eyes locked onto Cerebro. “This light is where the full power of my lunar energy resides. If you get caught in it, even someone as strong as you will have a hard time.”

Cerebro sneered with a predatory grin. “You sound confident,” he scoffed and flexed his claws in anticipation. “But it doesn't change the fact that your power is too weak to hurt me directly.”

Hyorine didn’t flinch. “I warned you.”

With a snarl, Cerebro lunged forward with his claws slashing toward Hyorine. She barely managed to block the attack. Sand spread from the impact, swirling around them like a suffocating fog.

Raising his hand, Cerebro formed a swirling ball of sand, dense and compact with malevolent energy. He hurled it toward her with the sand spinning wildly. Hyorine’s eyes narrowed.

"Lunar Starlight!"

She unleashed the radiant arc of moonlight to cut through the ball of sand with pinpoint precision. Afterwards, the wave made a path toward Cerebro.

But Cerebro’s power surged, and an aura of sand formed around him like a shield. He tore through the attack with sheer force. With an animalistic growl, he charged at Hyorine again. Now his body moving more aggressively than before.

Hyorine’s eyes flicked toward the spotlight, calculating. She timed it perfectly.

As Cerebro stormed toward her, the spotlight’s path shifted directly over him. The moment he entered its radius, he froze. His entire body locked up.

“What—?!” Cerebro wavered for the first time with confusion flashing across his face. His muscles strained against the invisible weight holding him in place. The sands that had once obeyed his every command now faltered, swirling weakly around him.

Hyorine exhaled slowly. “I’ve got you.” She raised her sword. The lunar charm attached to the sword was now glowing even more brightly. “And now... this is over.”

She lifted her blade high and pointed toward the darkened sky. “Lunar Eclipse!”

The spotlight that had trapped Cerebro began to close in. The bright light gave way to an all-consuming darkness. It folded in on itself, engulfing Cerebro in shadow. He soon erupted into a scream of pain that echoed across the battlefield.

A pillar of black energy shot up from where he stood, pulsing with the raw power of Hyorine’s lunar magic. Cerebro’s screams grew louder, more desperate, as his body was ravaged by the crushing force of the eclipse.

Soon afterwards, the light returned, and the spotlight faded away. Cerebro’s body emerged broken and covered in blood. Deep wounds were etched across his flesh. He dropped to the ground slowly, his once-imposing frame was now trembling and weak. Blood pooled beneath him. He struggled to breathe.

Hyorine watched him fall. She lowered her blade and began to breathe steady.

Yokuni looked on with eerie calm. Cerebro was on the verge of death and yet, Yokuni did not even flinch. She didn't seem the least bit concerned.

Hyorine took a step forward. Her eyes were fixed on Cerebro, but she spoke directly to Yokuni. “With my next attack, I’ll purify him. He’ll be cleansed by the light and then be useless to your cause. After that, Yokuni, you're next. I will be taking that Divine blade from you.”

For the first time, Yokuni smiled but it was a condescending one. "You're talking big, Hyorine. Lunar Eclipse—it’s an impressive move but do you really understand what it takes to finish a Lycan King under a red moon?" She gestured lightly toward Cerebro’s fallen body. "I’m glad I chose to watch him. It’s been instructive to see how far he would go against you... but you're mistaken if you think he would be killed by the likes of you."

Hyorine felt a cold chill crawl down her spine. Yokuni’s confidence was unsettling and at the same time, a sound was heard behind her. It was soft and then building. It was the laughter of Cerebo who began to rise slowly.

His entire body shook with laughter after getting upright. It became more manic by the second. His left claw twitched, then raised itself into the air.

“More fun than I thought,” Cerebro growled with a twisted delight. He stood taller now with his grin returning in full force. His bloodshot eyes held within them an unholy fire.

Hyorine’s eyes widened. ‘Is he for real?’ She thought with a knot of disbelief tightening in her chest. ‘He should be one Lunar wave away from death! His Mystcry level... it dropped so much after my last attack. What could he have up his sleeve?

Cerebro’s claws flexed, and he cracked his neck to the side. His skin, though torn and bloodied, seemed to ripple with a strange energy. “Thought you had me, didn’t you? That your precious light was enough to wipe me out, but that’s the thing about sand, little girl.”

He grinned wider, baring his fangs as grains of sand began to swirl lazily around his feet. “No matter how hard you hit it, it can always reform.”

“You’re still weak,” Hyorine said. A fear was building but she forced herself to stay steady. “You can barely stand. One more hit, and you’re done.”

Cerebro’s eyes glinted dangerously. The sand around him grew thicker. “Maybe. But you better make sure that one hit counts, because if it doesn’t, you’ll regret letting me live.”

Hyorine clenched her teeth. "Fine then," she muttered. ‘A Lunar Starlight should be enough, ‘she told herself but questions lingered in her mind. ‘But what if it isn't? He seems like he’s got something …ngh…’No, it has to be enough. It has to be.’

She tightened her grip on the hilt of her sword, forcing her conviction to rise above the shadows. With a deep breath, Hyorine charged her blade with the lunar energy enveloping the steel.This was her chance—one final strike to end it all against the mighty Lycan King.

She raised her sword and released Lunar Starlight toward Cerebro, cutting through the air with deadly precision.

But Cerebro didn’t move.

He stood there unfazed by the attack rushing straight at him. Hyorine's pulse quickened. Why wasn’t he dodging? Was he that confident, or just reckless? Her mind raced, and then she saw it—a slight movement. Cerebro’s claw lifted ever so slightly.

In an instant, the ground beneath her shifted. The sand that had been scattered around the battlefield since the beginning of their fight, sand she had barely noticed, surged up with terrifying speed. It wrapped around her body in a suffocating grip, pulling her off balance. She gasped with shock as it covered and tightened around her arms, legs, and chest.

“No!” She struggled to break free, but the sand held firm. The Lunar Starlight wave flickered and faded into nothingness before it could even reach Cerebro.

Cerebro chuckled darkly “I thought so.” He lowered his claw. “Your dreams... they’re strong, I’ll give you that. But what good are dreams if you can’t control them? If you can't make them reality?” He took a slow step forward with his sand swirling around him.. “This... this has all been part of the plan, from the moment the fight began.”

Hyorine’s eyes widened. ‘He planned this?’

Cerebro’s grin was menacing. “Every time I attacked, I left a portion of my sand behind. Little by little, I spread it across the battlefield, waiting for the moment you’d feel secure enough to go for a direct attack. You were so focused on your big, flashy moves... you didn’t even notice the trap forming right under your feet.”

He leaned in closer with his grin widening further. “Your power is useless if you can’t back them up with real control and tactics. This is where you failed.” His eyes glinted with satisfaction. “Now, it’s over.”

Hyorine struggled against the crushing sand, trying to summon her energy, her sword, anything—but the sand was relentless. It tightened with every move she made. Panic came to her actions and face. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. She had been so close and now, she was powerless against the sand that could damn well end her life at this point.

“You underestimated me,” Cerebro sneered with triumph. “And now you’ll pay the ultimate price. Prepare to become one of us.”

For the first time in the battle, Hyorine’s fear seized her completely.