The field was silent.
Braydon stood alone beneath a sky split with red, the ground beneath him marked by hundreds of old scars — not from time, but from battle.
Riven's voice echoed from the edge of the stone arena. "No tricks this time. No illusions."
"Just me?" Braydon asked.
"And what you choose to become."
The air shifted.
Something stepped into the ring from the opposite end — tall, armored, faceless.
A Veiled warrior.
But this one was different. Faster. Deadlier. A living weapon.
⸻
Braydon didn't wait.
He struck first — pulling the air tight, using his gravity to rip chunks of debris upward and hurl them forward.
The warrior darted through them like smoke and slammed Braydon back with a blow that rattled his ribs.
He rolled, spat blood, and stood again.
Another strike. Harder.
Another dodge. Sharper.
The Veiled wasn't trying to kill him.
It was testing him.
⸻
"You're too wild," Riven's voice echoed. "Too raw."
The warrior struck again — but this time, Braydon caught the arm mid-swing. Not with strength.
With gravity.
He reversed the pull and snapped the Veiled into the ground. It rolled, landed on its feet, and kept coming.
Braydon stumbled back — and his hand touched something cold in the dirt.
A hilt.
Stone-wrapped. Ancient.
His fingers closed around it.
The moment he lifted it, the blade ignited — a katana, pulsing with ghostlight and shadow-threaded energy. Balanced. Clean. Hungry.
Braydon didn't ask questions.
He moved.
⸻
This time, he was faster.
Every strike with the katana came like breath — fluid, controlled. He wasn't relying on power anymore. He was measuring it. Channeling his gravity through each slash, making his blade heavier at the last moment before impact.
The Veiled staggered.
Braydon didn't hesitate.
One clean cut.
The enemy fell in silence.
⸻
Riven stepped forward, arms folded.
"That blade," he said, "only responds to warriors who understand balance."
Braydon turned, the katana now hanging loosely at his side. "Then maybe I'm starting to."
Riven watched him for a long moment.
Then nodded once.
And for the first time…
he smiled.