PART 13: THE SECOND OVERTURN

  Chapter 041

  II - Luminar Thallion

  In her insect form, Luminar glided through the skies toward the land of RrodKa. She hovered above a nation coming apart—smoke coiling from burning buildings, bricks strewn like broken crumbs across a smoke-blinding canvas. She passed over collapsed towers, bursts of uncontrolled magic flaring through the ruins. Soldiers marched through the wreckage. Screams echoed from alleys where rebellion was silenced. The effects of rumors of a hero. She flew over it all.

  At last, she reached the space directly beneath where Donnor stood. Looking down, she saw soldiers and slaves arranged in rigid, uniformed lines. One child happened to glance upward, expecting nothing more than birds crossing the sky. Instead, she saw a massive creature glowing white, drifting just below the clouds. The child raised a finger and cried out, her voice sharp enough to turn heads.

  Faces tilted skyward. Eyes widened. Soldiers followed, lifting their gazes to the figure they had all been waiting for. This revelation did not surprise the leading slave. Though his body was restrained, he laughed at what was coming. Donnor stepped back as the six-winged insect flew overhead. Its radiance was impossible to ignore—impossible to lose.

  “Luminar?” he whispered, retreating another step. The elites behind him watched in stunned silence.

  Duxe let out a whistle, tracking their Sovereign-in-command as she flew past without a glance at the world below. “Well, well,” he said. “Showing up like a storm in the dead of night. Aaaand… she’s ignoring us. What an entrance. Donnor, what do you—”

  Donnor activated his QS before the sentence could finish. The elites turned as their commander vanished, slipping through corners and shadows in pursuit of the glowing figure.

  Luminar reached the heart of RrodKa, where the great Armiton HQ awaited. She descended near the far edge, a moderate walking distance from the entrance. The moment her small form touched the ground, it shimmered and expanded.

  A white silhouette unfolded. Hair spilled back in gentle waves. A pristine dress formed around her. Her bare feet hovered just above the cracked marble. Above her actual arms, phantom limbs cradled Vynelor, who lay burned and unconscious, yet still breathing.

  “Luminar!” a voice shouted. Just behind her, Donnor appeared, catching a breath.

  She turned with effortless grace, golden eyes fixing on him. When she didn’t speak, he continued. “You are not going anywhere. You need to explain the nonsense you’ve left behind.”

  But Luminar could only stare, a smile at the very least.

  It was not a smile Donnor could read. There was no warmth in it—no malice either. It made him feel as though he were staring at something inanimate. A statue. Her pallor, the white of her hair and skin, unsettled him more than ever before. And by now, there should have been an answer.

  He tried again. “That figure I saw over the balcony. You called it a Shadow. They changed you, didn’t they?”

  “Do not be mistaken,” she said at last. “No one changed me. You are seeing the same one from ten years ago. I have simply watched and waited. You grew alongside a version of me that never worshiped right. I was godless, and you know very well on what that does to me.

  “I only required someone worthy to inherit the crown. Speaking of…”

  She approached him, her actual feet never touching the ground, as though she walked upon the air itself. Donnor lowered his gaze.

  Only now did he notice the child cradled in her phantom arms. Her presence so consumed him that he had forgotten the world around him.

  As she drew closer, he sensed it again: a gathering weight, a tightening stillness. Irregular shadows pooled nearby, shifting unnaturally. He didn’t need to look to know they were not alone.

  “Here,” Luminar said, extending the child toward him. “Behold, my god.”

  Questions flooded Donnor’s mind, overwhelming him. For the moment, he ignored the Groggins. His attention was fixed on the child stirring weakly in his sleep. Luminar placed Vynelor into his arms, and he instinctively drew the boy closer. Tears leaked from the child’s eyes. Half his skin was burned, his hair charred, cuts tracing his fragile body. From his lips came a faint, broken whisper:

  “Dad.”

  “Hold him for me, Donnor,” Luminar said, already turning back toward the entrance of the HQ. “The child is special. Keep him safe. I have other matters to attend to.”

  He looked down at the broken boy, an innocence that was ridden with scars that cut deeper than wounds. His tears ran and soaked his arm, cold to the touch. Without even knowing this child, there was an unspoken history that was trapped inside those shut eyelids. The longer he stared at the child, the more his teeth clenched and heart stirred.

  Why are you hanging a nation on a child who cannot stop crying?

  His mind couldn’t compromise the thoughts around all this. He looked up at Luminar.

  “You are not doing this again,” Donnor said, stepping forward. “The Overturn. You promised the lands the kings you placed would last. You cannot undo the vow you made to the people.”

  “I can,” she replied calmly, “if there exists another above me with authority over my actions. If he speaks of my favor, then I have committed no wrong—for the burden falls upon the one who commands me.” She paused. “I will take the nation’s crown. And I will see the child brought to fulfillment.”

  “How can a god take the crown when you already possess it?”

  “This god will not take the crown that I take,” she said. “He will take the crown that does not belong to this world. I promise you: there will come a time when every crown breaks and no man rules by systems alone.”

  Her gaze hardened, and she turned to walk away. “Let this be your warning, brother. I am not destroying the world, but saving it.”

  Seeing Luminar’s back, Donnor pressed forward, his eyes narrowing.

  “Luminar, you say you haven’t had proper worship…”

  She stopped.

  “But have you ever found what is right when you left RathNah?”

  Her shoulders flinched.

  He continued, his voice trembling, “Don’t do this. If you keep wielding authority like this, what even is a crown? Luminar, if you continue down this path, you’ll be lost to your ambitions.”

  Her fingers twitched. When she spoke again, her voice was quieter. “I have to. We are not ready for what’s coming.”

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  “What are we not ready for?”

  Then she turned.

  Her golden eyes radiated brightness. In the depths of her iris without pupils, there was a distant image of flames peeking through the window of her stare. Without blinking, she kept her eyes on him, letting the fire speak for itself—the world disintegrating, the people mourning, nature withering, flames rising.

  “Brother, do you see me? Look at me. Why do I feel this way? Why does the world look like this?”

  He could see something burning inside those eyes that he could not describe. Anyone would express fear, anger, or some form of conviction. But Luminar could only stare, showing no ounce of what humans could explain. With her stare, she said firmly:

  “This level of destruction is done by one man, someone who should never come into this world. That man must not be worshiped, and I refuse to worship him.”

  Donnor shook, unable to speak, as if something forced his mouth shut. His grip on the boy tightened for some reason. The words spoken from her mouth froze him. Luminar saw the blank stare, and she sighed, almost like she was content with that reaction.

  “Things will improve, brother. I will overturn this place and bring peace, even if it demands a price—a price of a crown. Someone must stop him from coming.”

  She turned away and said with a tone that never looked back, “And I will be the one.”

  With that, she bowed her head and closed her eyes.

  Luminar rose, and her form brightened again. Wind caught her long hair, and her dress rippled as power surged from her. The crowds finally reached Donnor, pouring in from distant streets, drawn by the light. They shouted her name—voices colliding in blessing and curse, rage and joy, grief and praise.

  “Now, it is time to remove the kings. Appoint me as your queen, for all ages.”

  Fluttermorph ? Lv. 73

  Her body shrank, reshaping back into the six-winged insect. She launched skyward, shrinking into a radiant orb crowned with wings and trailing tails. In a single burst of speed, she flew to the HQ.

  The Groggins sank into the ground, shadows drawn after her light.

  She carved through the streets at blinding velocity, stopping near the grand entrance, and surged into the open sky. Higher and higher she climbed, white particles shedding from her form like falling snow. The sun met her above RrodKa, casting golden fire across her gleaming wings.

  She reached the peak of the Armiton HQ—the highest spire. And there, she unleashed a one-in-a-season AP, the one unheard of for generations—the power of her founder passed down.

  —LUMINAR—

  Fluttermorph ? Lv. 73

  Rathalla’s Righteous Light ? Lv. 4

  The system erupted in blinding chaos. Text flickered, unreadable beneath the surge of power. Hovering above the spire, Luminar drew force from the air, the light, and the land itself. Her insect form pulsed brighter. Brighter. The sky dimmed. The air tightened—tightened and tightened—

  And then—

  HOWL.

  Her wings unfurled.

  The sun ignited.

  She became a second star.

  A beam of holy light detonated outward, cascading over RrodKa in a divine wave. It swept through the city—piercing towers, flooding bridges, blinding green-lined streets, conquering rooftops, whitening walls and scattered stone. And the people—soldiers, slaves, children, elders, beasts—froze beneath the overwhelming radiance.

  No one moved.

  No one spoke.

  They shielded their faces. They fell to their knees. The world drowned in white.

  The Groggins withdrew, no longer intervening, but only watching. They fled to distant trees, hills, and mountains beyond the city’s reach. From the wilderness, they observed as though seated in a colosseum, gazing down upon the arena that was the nation of RrodKa.

  Here stood Luminar—the first to enter the ring. But who would face her?

  Even the strongest among them turned away, undone by the radiance bearing down upon them. The second star howled. It burned brighter than the sun itself. And from its core, a voice rang out, rolling across the land. Every soul heard it. It shook ears, burrowed into bone, and echoed through the deepest parts of their being, calling forth her challengers:

  “To the kings—step down from your stools and give me your submission.

  To the slaves—fear not, for your liberator shall rise and bring you peace.

  To the men of wealth—lay down your souls, for this land will no longer need you.

  To the Armiton Force—lower your heads and cast your favor to me.

  To the children of Rrodder Ka—behold, your new crown has come.”

  And so she called into the halls that would summon her opponent.

  Or rather… opponents. Suddenly—

  Telekinetic Magic ? Lv. 64

  Telekinetic Magic ? Lv. 62

  Telekinetic Magic ? Lv. 59

  Standing alongside Armiton HQ, the royal tower began to quake. The rooftop shuddered—then exploded.

  Bricks, marble, and rare stone blasted outward as a pillar of fire erupted skyward. From its heart rose three radiant figures, suspended midair by arcs of red magic.

  Elegant strands of energy lashed around them, extending like living arms to seize every fragment of falling debris. The rubble spiraled and shimmered, assembling into a vast orbiting shell.

  With a single motion, the light folded inward, and the brilliance condensed. Luminar’s blinding power faded, and her insect form emerged once more. She descended onto the rooftop of Armiton HQ.

  An instant later, the orb expanded. White hair. Pristine dress. But this time, her phantom form dissipated, letting her step onto the rooftop barefoot.

  She looked up—half amused, half merciful. No fear lived in her smile as her gaze met the three kings she had summoned.

  The opponents had arrived.

  Crimson light streamed from their eyes like molten tears. Their stares burned with disdain. One rested a knee against the edge of a shattered wall, elbow propped casually atop it. The others stood rigid, magic surging around them like caged storms.

  “You seem to enjoy tossing royalty around like a game of catch,” said Trotto, his voice calm, the reckless one. “The one mocking the throne, the same one who forged it. You do well at mocking yourself.”

  “To her defense, we were appointed by her,” Tyllida added, the calculating one. “But you are correct. Royalty has become a word, not an honor, to that woman. Luminar, your pride and reckoning bring disgrace.”

  Luminar tilted her head. She shrugged and said, “I have seen the truth you do not know:

  “The one who will unify this world—the one who must never reign. He is coming. Until then, I will hold the false peace in place. I will govern what cannot be destroyed.”

  Her eyes narrowed slightly.

  “Revelation rises and fades. And so has my decision to keep you from ruling. I will not place every system beneath your blinded crowns. There is a greater crown for this world. And he is here, under my stewardship.”

  “A greater crown? Oh, Luminar,” Trotto said, tone barely convinced. “Where do I start with you? The woman of RathNah. A lost soul wandering the wilderness, unable to return home. Now that you are sheltered and comforted, you do this?”

  “Do not forget who dragged you from your filth,” the third said—Kallanor, the cold one.

  For the first time, Luminar’s smile vanished. Her eyes dulled. Her voice flattened.

  “Watch it,” she said. “You did not bring me in. I brought you in, and now, I will take you out. I will deliver what is necessary to delay what comes next.”

  Kallanor’s grin widened. “And what would that be, slave?”

  Luminar rose slowly, lifting until she met them at eye level. Her smile returned, but it held no amusement anymore. Resolve was written all over her, a goal set in place. She raised her arms. From her open palms, strands of blue and violet magic poured forth, silken threads woven with incredible control.

  “The answer,” she said, her voice low and final, “will reach three skulls by dusk.”

  —LUMINAR—

  Telekinetic Magic ? Lv. 47

  Quick Speed ? Lv. 32

  Luminar vanished instantly.

  And so did the kings.

  —TROTTO—

  Quick Speed ? Lv. 56

  —TYLLIDA—

  Quick Speed ? Lv. 60

  —KALLANOR—

  Quick Speed ? Lv. 59

  And the battle of the authorities began.