Kem Kagu I

The Void Vanguard pressed forward, their disciplined march echoing through the desolate landscape as they approached the city where their target awaited. Cassius von Noctis—the prince of vampires, a nightmare given flesh, and the equal of the three Vampire Venerables combined.

Cassius was no ordinary foe.

Kem Kagu's narrowed eyes betrayed no hint of fear, but within him, pain pulsed from the wound at his side—a lingering reminder of their last encounter. The injury Cassius had dealt him had refused to heal properly, a festering mark of humiliation and danger alike. It gnawed at him, a constant, bitter ache, but it was not the pain that troubled him most.

It was Cassius himself.

A monster among monsters, Cassius had proven his strength in their last battle. He was not merely powerful—he was overwhelming, a force of nature whose every movement carried the weight of centuries of cultivation and mastery. His blood and night magic had torn through Kem's defenses like paper, leaving him battered and beaten.

Kem clenched his fists as the Vanguard neared their destination. Among humanity's Immortal-rankers, he was a titan, one of the top fifteen in the world—a warrior whose name inspired awe and respect wherever it was spoken. His mastery of the Kagu family's Grade 6 art, Void Fist, bordered on the legendary. Few had reached the level he had attained. Fewer still could stand against him in combat.

And yet, against Cassius, even that had not been enough.

The memory of their duel haunted him still. Kem had fought with all the skill and power at his disposal, channeling Void Fist to its utmost, his strikes ringing out like thunderclaps, the very air trembling with the force of his blows. But Cassius had weathered it all, his blood astral energy swirling around him like an impenetrable shield, his counterattacks swift and brutal.

Kem exhaled slowly, forcing the memories aside. This time would be different. It had to be.

He glanced down at his clenched fists, the faint shimmer of astral energy flickering around them. Void Fist was the pride of the Kagu family, a technique honed over generations to perfection. And Kem… Kem had nearly reached the virtuoso realm of mastery within it, a feat few could boast. His fists were weapons of unparalleled precision and power, capable of bending the very fabric of space with a single strike.

Yet even that might not be enough against Cassius.

His sister, Selene, was the matriarch of their family and a Radiant-ranker—a league beyond Kem in sheer rank. But her mastery of Void Fist was incomplete. She had adapted the art to suit her talent for the glaive, creating a hybrid technique that suited her perfectly. Kem, on the other hand, was pure fist and fury, a true inheritor of the art's original form.

There had been whispers once, quiet murmurs among the elders of the Kagu family. Some had wondered if Kem, not Selene, should have become the patriarch. His raw talent, his unparalleled understanding of Void Fist, had earned him admiration and respect, even in the shadow of his sister's Gifts.

But now, none of that mattered. All that mattered was the task ahead.

As they approached the city's outskirts, Kem raised a hand, signaling the Vanguard to halt. His eyes scanned the horizon, his God's Eyes-less perception keenly attuned to the vibrations of the world around him. He could feel it—the oppressive, suffocating aura of Cassius von Noctis, emanating from the heart of the city like a black sun.

Kem's fists tightened as he began to channel his aura. Void Fist was not merely a martial art—it was a way of shaping reality itself, of folding space around his strikes to create blows that defied logic and distance.

He took a deep breath, steadying himself as he prepared to unleash the first movement of Void Fist: Gravity Collapse. With this technique, the force of his punch would ripple through space, converging on its target with devastating precision. It was a technique of overwhelming power, designed to obliterate defenses and crush enemies in a single, decisive strike.

"Ready yourselves," Kem commanded, his voice low but firm.

The Vanguard moved into formation, their weapons at the ready, their auras blazing like a sea of fire. The city loomed ahead, its ruins shrouded in shadow, the air heavy with the scent of death and decay.

Kem exhaled once more, his fists glowing with astral energy as he stepped forward. This was no longer about personal pride or the wounds of the past. This was about survival—of the Kagu family, of the Vanguard, of humanity itself.

And this time, he would not falter.

The oppressive weight of black magic surged through the air, brushing against Kem's skin like an invisible current, sending a shiver through his body. He recognized it immediately—the unmistakable, malignant presence of vampires and cultists. This wasn't just a skirmish. They had brought an army, a force to rival the Void Vanguard itself.

Out of the shifting shadows, a figure emerged, his presence cutting through the malevolence like a dagger through flesh.

Cassius von Noctis.

Kem's jaw clenched, his stomach twisting as he felt the overwhelming power radiating from the vampire prince. Cassius stood at the same peak of Immortal-rank as Kem, a breath away from the zenith of Radiant-rank. The air between them seemed to crackle with tension, each warrior's aura vying for dominance.

Cassius opened his mouth to speak, but Kem didn't wait. Words were unnecessary. With a sharp intake of breath, he surged forward, his fist already glowing with a fierce intensity.

Radiant-rankers could warp the very fabric of space and time with their presence alone, bending reality to their will. Immortal-rankers, while not possessing the same passive dominance, could still manipulate the world around them through sheer force of power.

Kem, however, had an advantage. His affinity for space magic.

As his astral energy coursed through his body, space twisted around his fist, spiraling inward toward a singularity of raw, destructive force. The first movement of Void Fist—Gravity Collapse—manifested in full. His strike carved a gravity well into the air itself, the distorted space trembling as the blow hurtled toward Cassius.

Cassius responded instantly, his own fist surging forward. His mastery of Fist Heart, combined with the blood and night astral energy that coursed through his veins, met Kem's strike head-on. The collision of their fists created a deafening shockwave, warping the space between them into chaotic spirals of energy.

Kem stumbled back a step, the force of Cassius's counter pushing him off balance. His teeth ground together as he steadied himself, his eyes narrowing. The prince's counter wasn't just powerful—it was precise, almost surgical, in how it unraveled the gravitational pull of Gravity Collapse.

Cassius's lips curled into a faint smirk.

"You're strong, Kagu," he said, his voice smooth yet dripping with malice. "But strength isn't enough."

Kem didn't reply. His knuckles tightened, his muscles tensing as he prepared for the next exchange. His gaze locked with Cassius's, a silent acknowledgment passing between them.

Cassius was not merely a vampire prince. He was a fist warrior like Kem, but there was no denying it—he was a step ahead.

And that was a step Kem couldn't afford to ignore.

In an instant, the air around them thickened as both warriors unleashed their Domains, their presence carving out two distinct subspaces that clashed violently against one another.

Both were masters of the fist, wielding Fist Domains, yet their expressions of power could not have been more different. The astral energy emanating from each rippled outward, painting the world with their unique wills. Kem's domain shimmered with the distortion of gravity, each pulse of his power creating invisible waves that threatened to drag everything into a singularity. Cassius's domain, in contrast, exuded a suffocating aura of blood and shadow, its oppressive darkness expanding like a predator stalking its prey.

These weren't mere displays of power. The Domains themselves were extensions of their mastery, brought to life by the path every warrior of their caliber walked:

Intent leads to Resonance. Resonance births the Heart. The Heart manifests the Domain.

A Domain was more than just a show of strength—it was the ultimate expression of an individual's essence. Within its bounds, the user reigned supreme, their techniques sharpened, their power magnified. For Immortal-rankers like Kem and Cassius, this amplification was vital, pushing their abilities beyond their natural limits. Even for Radiant-rankers, whose presence could warp reality itself, Domains served as tools of transcendence, a way to channel their Unity and exact their will upon the battlefield.

The two subspaces collided, their boundaries grinding against one another with a soundless fury. The sheer magnitude of their confrontation rippled through the atmosphere, sending waves of pressure that shook the surroundings to their core.

Kem's first movement ignited within his domain.

First Movement: Gravity Collapse.

The gravity within his subspace condensed and folded, creating an overwhelming pull that threatened to dismantle the very foundation of Cassius's domain. Space trembled under the strain, fragments of distorted light warping and breaking apart.

Cassius's response was immediate. His blood and night astral energy surged as he unleashed his counterstrike, dark tendrils of energy weaving through the air to stabilize his domain. The two forces clashed, their power tearing at the edges of reality itself.

Kem felt the strain in his body, the toll of keeping his domain intact against such a monstrous foe. Yet he refused to yield. Domains were not merely tools of power—they were battlefields where the soul was laid bare. And in this battlefield, Kem's resolve burned brighter than ever.