The sky lit up the second the enemy fleet crossed the Dead City’s defensive line, and I saw what a real battle looked like for the first time since arriving in this world.
Blue Aether beams tore through the clouds, and the ancient cannons answered with thunderous explosions, making the dead city the most beautiful and frightening place I had ever seen.
"Riven!" Vexa shouted.
I ducked as the shell passed over my head.
"What?"
"The left defense tower is failing!"
I turned to the tower, and three enemy airships were focused on it.
The ancient structure shook from the bombardment.
"How long?"
"Maybe thirty seconds!"
"Can we reinforce it?"
Vexa gave me a strange look.
"With what?"
I pointed at the tower.
"Me."
She stared at me for a moment before smiling.
"Of course."
I ran toward the tower as the streets filled with chaos.
Ancient Sovereign Guards fought through the ruins, blue Aether rifles in hand, firing at the enemy soldiers that landed from the airships.
Mechanical creatures scuttled over the buildings, tearing through the armored troops, while explosions lit up the fog.
It was beautiful, but I had somehow become the one person responsible for keeping it all together.
I skidded to a halt at the defense tower as a massive Aether conduit was torn from the building’s side.
The tower’s systems sputtered and sparked, losing power.
I placed my hand on the broken conduit, and the System appeared.
[Ancient Defense Tower detected.]
[Current Integrity: 41%.]
[Upgrade available.]
[Required Upgrade Energy: 8.]
I glanced at my energy.
Fifteen, so I had seven left after this.
"Do it."
Blue light flared from my palm as the conduit repaired itself, and something strange happened.
The tower’s metal plates shifted, and more armor appeared along its base, and the cannon at the top grew larger.
The System flashed before my eyes.
[Upgrade complete.]
[Defense Tower Mk. II.]
[Aether output increased by 37%.]
I stared at the tower in shock.
"Wait."
The cannon fired a beam of blue energy that cut through the sky, and one of the enemy airships vanished in the explosion.
I smiled.
"Okay."
I looked at my hand.
"That’s new."
"Vexa said, "You just upgraded an entire defense tower!"
"I noticed."
"Do it again!"
"I can’t."
"Why?"
"I’m broke."
There was a pause, and then Vexa laughed.
"Fair enough."
I turned to the battlefield, where the remaining enemy ships were shifting their formation.
The black flagship was leading the charge, and the Aether Executor stood on its deck, raising her massive weapon.
"That’s our problem."
Her weapon charged, and the System warned me.
[High-output Aether weapon detected.]
[Estimated destructive capability: Extreme.]
"Everyone!"
I shouted into the communicator.
"Brace!"
The Executor fired, and a beam of light brighter than anything I had ever seen struck the city’s shield.
The Dead City trembled as the ancient barrier cracked, and the enemy soldiers began to pour into the opening.
Cyra turned to the gap in the city’s defenses.
"I’ll take care of it."
Blue Aether flared from her body, and she lifted into the air.
I stared at her in shock.
"Since when can she fly?"
"It seems the Sovereign’s Core is working correctly now!" Vexa said.
Cyra raised both hands, and a storm of Aether formed above the city.
Blue lightning struck the enemy soldiers as the storm rained down on their formation.
The battlefield fell silent for a second before Nyx whistled.
"She’s terrifying."
I smiled.
"She’s getting better."
Cyra looked down at the enemy, her eyes locking onto mine through the storm.
She smiled before turning to the Executor.
"So the Sovereign finally remembers how to fight."
Cyra’s expression darkened.
"I remember enough."
The Executor fired, and Cyra raised a barrier to meet the blast.
The attack shattered the shield, sending her flying backward.
"Cyra!"
I ran to where she landed, and she crashed through the roof of an abandoned building.
I was right behind her, skidding to a halt as she sat up.
"I’ve had worse."That doesn’t answer my question."
She smiled as she looked at me.
"I am fine."
I offered her my hand, and she took it, her fingers lingering for a moment longer than necessary.
"Thank you."
"Don’t make me worry."
She looked at me, surprise flashing across her face.
"You worry about me?"
I realized what I said and frowned.
"Obviously."
Her cheeks turned pink before she smiled.
"I like that."
Before I could respond, the building exploded, throwing us both back.
The Aether Executor landed outside the building, her mechanical weapon pointing at us.
Cyra got to her feet, and I pulled my revolver.
The Executor looked at me.
"You."
"Me."
"You are the one controlling the Network."
I frowned.
"Technically, I’m just giving suggestions."
"You have no idea what you possess."
"That’s becoming increasingly obvious."
She raised her weapon.
"Give me the Sovereign."
"No."
"Then I’ll kill you."
Cyra moved to stand beside me.
"You’ll have to get through me first."
The Executor smiled.
"Gladly."
She attacked, and Cyra blocked the Executor’s strike, but the force sent them both sliding backward.
I fired at the Executor’s weapon, but the bullets did nothing as they struck the metal plates.
"Great."
I dove to the side as the Executor attacked again.
"She’s heavily armored."
Cyra shouted.
"Then find her weakness!"
I smiled.
Finally, something I was good at.
I opened the System.
[Target analysis initiated.]
[Aether Executor armor detected.]
[Analysis: 14%.]
The Executor attacked, and I rolled out of the way.
[Analysis: 27%.]
I fired again, and one of the bullets struck the Executor’s weapon in the lower joint. She staggered back as I saw the weak point.
"Cyra!"
She looked at me.
"Her weapon!"
I pointed at the Executor’s joint.
"Lower joint!"
Cyra attacked the Executor’s weapon, and a beam of Aether struck it, but it did little damage.
[Analysis: 63%.]
"Again!"
Cyra fired another shot, and this time the weapon cracked.
The Executor looked stunned as her cannon shattered.
[Analysis: 98%.]
"Now!"
Cyra fired a beam of Aether, and the Executor’s weapon exploded.
The Executor looked at her broken cannon in horror, and for the first time, I saw fear in her eyes.
"What did you do?"
I smiled.
"Found the weak point."
The Executor reached for a hidden blade, but Nyx shot it from her hand.
Vexa followed up with a mechanical charge, and the Executor was sent flying.
Cyra raised her hand, and Aether crackled around her, and the Executor dropped to her knees.
"Wait."
Cyra stopped, and the Executor looked at me.
"You don’t understand what you’re doing."
"Probably not."
"You are awakening the old world."
I lowered my revolver.
"What does that mean?"
Her expression hardened.
"The Network isn’t your ally."
She looked at Cyra.
"And she isn’t its master."
Cyra frowned.
"Then what am I?"
The Executor smiled bitterly.
"The key."
Before we could ask her what she meant, she crushed a small device in her palm.
A flash of light erupted from her hand, and when the glow faded, she was gone.
I stared at the empty space where she was.
"Teleportation?"
Vexa ran over to us.
"She escaped."
Nyx looked at me.
"Did you get anything useful?"
I turned to Cyra, who was watching the sky.
The old Network still glowed, and the System appeared before me.
[Upgrade Energy: 7.]
[Major objective updated.]
[Investigate the Sovereign Network.]
I sighed.
"Apparently, we just made things much more difficult."
Cyra walked over to me and took my hand.
"Then we’ll figure it out."
I looked at her.
"You’re getting used to saying that."
She smiled.
"Because you’re getting used to dragging me into trouble."
I laughed.
"Fair."
Behind us, the ancient city continued to fire at the enemy fleet, which was beginning to retreat.
But I couldn’t stop thinking about the Executor’s words.
Cyra wasn’t the master of the Network, but the key to something greater. And somewhere beneath the Dead City, something was waiting for us to find it.