The group began celebrating their short victory from Hugo. They were happy that he didn't back down to Magnus. After all, most people out there would have if they knew about him. Kairo especially was delighted. She couldn't stop jumping for joy over how cool she thought her dad was. Kairo mentioned how Magnus had left now and that maybe returning was a good idea. "No. Let's keep walking ahead until we know it's safe." The group nodded together at Luna's suggestion. Nyxon nudged at Lapis. He wanted her to apologize for calling Hugo a snake. Although Lapis did it out of frustration, she knew she was still in the wrong. She apologized quickly, and Kairo was pleased about it.

Nyxon was still thinking about the prophecy that was given to Magnus. A warrior from a fearsome race in the future would bring him down? That could truly mean anyone. It could be an Elf or even an Elderian. Nyxon wondered if humans were fearsome. Although, the humans Nyxon has met so far wouldn't really help with his guess. He thought about Kairo taking down Magnus in a fight, but that almost made him laugh. The group set out into the junkyard. Luna clutched her nose from the horrible smell. Lapis was acting unusual. She stopped and looked behind her as if Magnus would appear from nowhere and attack her. "Lapis? You ok?" Nyxon asked worryingly.

"Huh– I'm fine. N-No, hang on–" she stared at the wooden shack. "Something's wrong. It can't be Magnus's power–"

"Is there someone else there?" asked Luna. Kairo also shared the same worried expression.

"It's hard to say. But it's such a weak power signature– but now it's getting stronger! IT JUST KEEPS GETTING STRONGER!"

BOOM– an explosion rang from the distance. Planks of wood and fire suddenly shot out from the shack they were just inside. Kairo watched as her home was set ablaze. Her eyes went blank as she witnessed smoke and ashes rise from her home. She screamed. She screamed louder than the explosion itself. Kairo fell to her knees, grabbing her ears, hoping it would make the explosion go away. Lapis watched the fire rise to the clouds. It made her head spin, knowing Magnus was a bigger monster than she thought. Luna and Nyxon's eyes couldn't keep themselves open. They didn't want to see Kairo cry or the explosion that had affected the shack. Kairo kept coughing; the constant crying was making her choke. Nyxon's scar started to hurt. It was burning with the pain from seeing Kairo cry.

A plank flew from the shack at breakneck speeds towards Kairo. Luckily, Nyxon was able to cut it in half before it could hurt her. Luna uncovered her eyes from her hands. She was still crying from seeing Kairo upset. Nyxon watched Lapis growl with annoyance. If Nyxon hadn't known her then, he would have been terrified. Kairo couldn't stop crying. She kept coughing and wiping at her eyes, trying to get her tears to stop. Nyxon rubbed her back, but she wasn't responding. "Kairo... we have to go," said Nyxon. He was trying his best not to cry, too.

Kairo got her last tears out, "Mhm," wined Kairo. She was still trying not to cry. Luna came from behind her, offering a hug. Kairo quickly accepted it. It was the only thing she needed right now.

Danger suddenly approached the group. Five dragons had appeared in front of them. The– Dragons had sharp horns on their scaly heads, and their wings flapped furiously. Kairo was panicking behind Luna. Nyxon glared at the Dragons before him. Lapis had begun to growl, and she already looked ready to attack—her growling caused tiny threads of lightning to crackle on her breath. Nyxon started to draw his blade in case any fighting were to happen here at the moment. The dragons had scaly faces and dark red eyes. They had a face that looked like they were trying to hold a sneeze in. Nyxon watched as the dragons circled around the group like animals; their scaly feet were beating on the ground like a drum. "Kairo– please! Get up, please," cried Luna.

"What's going on?" asked Kairo, her eyes still with tears.

"It looks like these guys were with Magnus. They're here to kill us," Lapis said seriously. She started to let lightning crackle and swirl around her body.

Nyxon steadied his blade. "Protect Kairo, everyone!"

"Right!" said Lapis and Luna.

BOOM! The Dragons leaped off the ground at breakneck speeds towards the group. Nyxon clashed with two of the dragons, while Lapis and Luna handled one independently. Nyxon glanced at Kairo; she had a golden shield cast over her from Luna. Nyxon could see Lapis dashing around with sparks of lightning flowing behind her. Her fighting stance was interesting. She mainly used kicks and quick jabs at her opponents. The two dragons on Nyxon were rough with the way they fought. They mainly kept biting and gnawing at Nyxon's sword while he used his other hand to defend himself. Nyxon flung himself upwards to do a backflip, his sword plunged deep into the dragon's shoulder and shouted, "AZURE STYLE: BLUE SHOCK FLASH,"

A bright blue Aura overtook Nyxon's body as he sped past the dragon. The dragon's shoulder fell to the floor next to Nyxon, making his body shiver from discomfort. Nyxon took his sword, resting it on his hip as he attacked the next dragon near him.

Nyxon violently lowered his sword on the dragon's shoulder, plunging him into a steel fence as he said, "LAPIS!"

"RIGHT!" Lapis shouted as she hurled a white lightning bolt through Nyxon's sword, piercing the dragon.

Nyxon watched the sparks of lightning flicker while the dragon shouted in pain. Nyxon managed to grab his sword in time to see what was happening with everyone else. Lapis was still holding her own against two dragons, while Luna was still fighting one on her own. Luna wasn't the best at fighting but managed to hold her own long enough.

Nyxon watched as the dragon slashed across Luna's shield, knocking her to the ground and removing the bubble off of Kairo.

Luna gasped and said, "NYXON!" The dragon was inches away from clawing Kairo across the back.

Nyxon took his blade, entered a stance, and shouted, "Azure Style: Navy Tide Sweep! "in a flash of navy blue light, Nyxon dragged his sword, sweeping the dragon and piercing his chest.

Kairo kept her head to the ground, shaking in fear. Nyxon rubbed her back, held out his hand, and helped her up to her feet. Lapis had finished defeating the two dragons with a smile on her face. "Man! It feels good fighting again–"

"I'm sure you did enjoy it. You Elderians have a knack for fighting, right?"

Nyxon and the group turned around and spotted a man. He was dressed in a black coat with spikes on top of his hood. He also had metal arms, and his face was concealed with a silver mask that reflected the shock Nyxon had over his face. "This is the guy!" Lapis shouted.

Kairo sprung to her feet and shouted, "YOU MONSTER! YOU–(Nyxon managed to stop her before she could run toward him) YOU DESTROYED MY HOME!"

"Kairo–"

"THAT'S ALL I EVER HAD! YOU TOOK ALL I'VE EVER HAD!"

"For reference, these people took all you had," said the man. This is her fault, isn't that right, Nyxon?"

"Shut up! I hate all of this! This shouldn't be happening...Luna, take Kairo and get as far as you can from here,"

"Nyxon–"

"Luna! Please..." Nyxon said softly.

He didn't know how much of a threat this person was. The last thing he needed was both Luna and Kairo getting hurt. He wanted them to run away and find a boat. Since both Lapis and Nyxon could fly, returning to them wouldn't be a struggle. Luna summoned a falcon on the ground and tugged Kairo along with her. "Please be safe...Nyxon," said Luna. The falcon roared and flew away into the desert.

"Now, I apologize for my...explosive entrance. (Lapis muttered a swear under her breath.) My name is Ferros, and I believe you have something I want, Nyxon,"

"I have a couple of things you could have," said Lapis. She walked over to Nyxon, reaching into his armor, "Oh! Here it is–" she pulled her middle finger out from Nyxon's armor. "Is this— what you're looking for?"

"Charming..." said Ferros. He entered a fighting stance, crossing his arms over each other fiercely. Lapis growled, and sparks of lighting exited her mouth.

Lapis clashed with Ferros, creating a wave of smoke and lighting in the air. "I've heard many stories of your people–"

"If you don't mind– please, find ten of those and jump off, will you?"

Nyxon always wondered if Lapis was always this snarky. But after being with her for only a month, he was sure he would find out soon.

Nyxon finally managed to focus. He grabbed his sword and let his Aura fly over his body freely. Within a second, he managed to dash behind Ferros and whisper," Azure Style: Riptide Slash," Nyxon dragged his sword in the motion of an ocean and slashed his sword towards Ferros' metal arm. Within a second, Ferros freed his left arm and caught the sword, stopping Nyxon's attack. Nyxon was shocked, but that didn't stop him and Lapis from focusing.

Nyxon and Lapis attacked fiercely at Ferros. They swung their arms and feet as violently as possible at Ferros, but he kept catching and blocking every attack that came towards him. Ferros threw a punch towards Nyxon, hitting him in the eye. Nyxon flew back in pain. He felt his face was on fire from the impact. He tucked his sword away in its scabbard. He knew that those arms were strong enough to destroy the sword if he wasn't careful. Lapis was fighting with Ferros still. Her red Aura clashed against his own red Aura as she dashed and kicked fiercely, with her lighting dancing around her. Nyxon transformed into his Hybrid form of a dragon and flew towards Ferros at top speed. He raised his fist behind him, ready to strike him at any moment. Lapis was caught on the arm by Ferros. She shouted and whined frantically. It caught Nyxon off guard, but he saw Ferros's Aura overlapping with Lapis's. He tossed her away, and within a fraction of a second, he clashed his fist with Nyxon's.

The punch had created a small explosion between them, causing them to move from the crater and back to the surface. Within a second, Nyxon felt every bone in his left arm shatter. He couldn't bear to move it or even try and wiggle his fingers. He wanted the pain to stop, but it just kept coursing through him. He felt his arm sink from his body as he tried to heal it as quickly as possible. Ferros was walking towards him slowly. Nyxon entered a stance again, and the two clashed with one another.

Nyxon swung his right arm and legs across Ferros. He was trying to gain as much distance as he could so that he could fend him off. Nyxon managed to kick Ferros in the face, then use his wings to move himself around and attack in separate directions.

Ferros took another kick to the face and held out his right hand. "DODGE!" shouted a voice. Nyxon didn't know where it came from and sounded nothing like Lapis. Nyxon saw a spark of light come from Ferros's metal hand and swung his head to the left. A lightning bolt left his hand, curved along the sky, and struck the ground, causing a lightning spiral to soar. Nyxon felt a wave of questions wash over him. Was he an Elderian? How was he using lightning? Where was Lapis? Lucky for him, Lapis came from the ground and held Ferros with his arms behind his back. Lapis swept him off his feet, planted his body on the ground, and stretched her hand into the air. The clouds in the air started to darken and crackle with lighting, and she shouted, "NYXON, WITH ME!"

"RIGHT–" Nyxon stretched his hand out. He felt a wave of anger wash over him, his mind clouded, and lightning formed in his hand. He wanted to defeat Ferros and be able to protect Kairo and Luna, and if he was going to do it, he needed more power than ever. Nyxon shouted, "DIVINE TEMPEST! (Lapis shouted, STATIC TEMPEST!) Lightning shot from his hand within a second, and lightning struck from the clouds, driving Ferros into the sandy ground.

Nyxon and Lapis fell to their backs and started gasping for air from the long battle. Nyxon was exhausted from the battle, and Lapis seemed to be the same way. Over the course of the battle, Nyxon was extremely worried about Lapis. She had been fighting the hardest from the two of them, which worried Nyxon. Nyxon managed to reach over to Lapis. He hugged her and said, "I-I'm glad you're ok,"

Lapis's eyes widened, "Of c-course I'm fine," she rubbed Nyxon's hair softly.

"Do...you think we killed him?" asked Nyxon.

"Hm...no. That guy's tough,"

"Let's find Luna and Kairo. They're gonna wanna hear this," Nyxon transformed into a dragon and let Lapis climb aboard him. Nyxon flapped through the sky. "How was he using lightning? Is he-"

"No, he's not an Elderian," said Lapis. "I think...those arms that he has, they absorb powers, and it lets him use it for himself."

Nyxon thought this was scary. He knew how fast Elderian lighting was, and Ferros being as strong as he was while wielding it was dangerous enough. They managed to cross the town of Efrana finally. Nyxon watched as crowds of people pointed up towards him and shouted at him for flying above the town. Nyxon was only wondering where Luna and Kairo were. He scouted over the town until he saw a glimmer of blond hair, which he believed was Luna. He touched down on the ground, tapped her shoulder, and said, "Luna?"

Luna turned around, "Oh– hey– Nyxon," panted Luna. "I...ran out of energy...and needed to walk the rest of the way,"

"Oh, c'mon. It's not that far now," said Kairo, who was rubbing her head nervously. "How was the fight back there?" Nyxon explained the story. He couldn't tell if Luna was about to faint or not about his arm being broken. "Holy–"

"NYXON–" Luna calmed down and sighed. "Loving you is such a task when things like this happen," Luna gently grabbed Nyxon's left arm. "Hm. It looks like he broke...twenty-seven bones in your arm,"

Kairo gasped. "Sometimes I'm glad I don't have powers,"

Luna made sure to heal Nyxon's arm. In just a couple of minutes, Nyxon could bend, thrust, and even feel his fingers again, which he used to rub Luna's head, making her ears turn red. Eventually, Nyxon and the group could finally approach the line to the boat docks. They entered through a brown shed that was big enough to house at least a dozen dragons. Nyxon glanced at the countless lamps on the roof and the people in black suits. Nyxon stretched his head over the long line, only to be met with a row of brown hats and coats. "Do we really have to wait all the way back here?" Lapis said annoyingly.

"Yes, (Lapis groaned loudly.) It's only fair we wait just like everyone else," said Luna.

"Can't you just tell them you're a noble, and they'll just let you pass?"

"Well, that's not fair to them. We should be like everyone else and wait in line," said Luna, who sounded high and mighty.

Kairo glanced at Lapis. "Hey, why don't you wear any shoes? Do you just walk around barefoot?"

"Yeah? What, am I supposed to wear shoes?" Kairo roared with laughter.

Nyxon glanced at Lapis. He saw a small dot of blood on her lip. "Lapis,"

"Hm? What?"

"Just come here," Lapis bent down, where Nyxon could use his thumb to wipe the blood away. "You had some blood there. You're fine, right?"

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?"

"Luna healed me already. (Luna smiled nervously as she rubbed her ears.) "But he hit you hard, too,"

"It's fine. It felt nice fighting him. Haven't had fun like that in a while,"

Nyxon gazed at the silent line. But suddenly, people kept running and shouting from the front of the line and shoving Nyxon and the group away.

"What the– what's going on?" shouted Kairo, who was just shoved.

"I don't know! I don't sense anything dangerous," responded Lapis.

Luna was quickly shoved and fell into Nyxon's arms. "Do you think–"

"No. Lapis said she didn't sense anything," Nyxon gazed at the tunnel of light that escaped the gap in between the crowd of brown coats. He watched as he saw glimpses of black spikes— a dark hood— then his own scared reflection staring back at him. Ferros was back. Nyxon felt a cold shiver down his spine. "HE'S BACK!" he shouted at Lapis.

Ferros stretched his hand, and a pillar of fire struck the ceiling, knocking the lamps down. Luna screamed while Nyxon let his wings rise over him for protection. But the lamps never fell. Nyxon noticed and saw them floating above him. He let his wings rest as he saw Kairo stretching her hands, holding the lamps from hitting Nyxon and Luna.

"This– is– really– hard," panted Kairo. She tossed the lamps aside as Lapis walked behind Luna and Nyxon, who readied their weapons.

Kairo walked before the group, tied her orange bandana on her arm, and placed her goggles over her eyes. "Kairo! What are you–"

"I got this," said Kairo, with a strong tone of hope in her voice. She stretched her right hand towards a brown barrel and watched the red Aura flow around it. Ferros walked towards Kairo and watched her throw it at his face. The barrel fell apart, and Kairo stood still, with her legs shaking in fear. "S-S-S-So...n-n-n-need h-help p-polishing that m-m-mask?"

If Ferros had a face to show, Nyxon knew it would be show dissapointment. He raised his fist, and Nyxon rolled to grab Kairo. "LOOK OUT–" Nyxon grabbed Kairo and felt a punch knock against his head. He tumbled towards the wall, and Kairo unfolded from his grasp and beside him.

Lapis transformed into Aeon Ikari and charged at Ferros with a lighting kick, followed by Luna using her whip to restrain his legs. Kairo shook Nyxon, "C'mon– c'mon, get up! Please!

If Nyxon were hit any harder, he would have thought he was back in Esmus. He was groggy. His head felt like it was taken off and thrown one hundred times. He finally managed to speak. "Um, fawn, Kaijo."

CRASH! A sudden display of power was shot from the middle of the room. Ferros held a red shield bubble over himself as Luna and Lapis kept their distance. He extended his stretched his hands out and shouted. "NYXOOOOOON AND LAPISSSSSSSSSS! YOU BOTH HAVE MADE A FOOL OF ME FOR THE LAST TIME! I WON'T LET YOU ELDERIANS ESCAPE EVEN IF I HAVE TO KILL ALL FOUR OF YOU! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME? THIS IS BETWEN ME AND THOSE SPACE PORCUPINES, DO YOU UNDERSTAND?" Ferros's voice smacked against Nyxon as he did early with his fist. It was almost ear-deafening how loud he could be.

His red Aura shot across the room, hitting every corner and flicking the lights across the ceiling. Lamps fell, shouts were heard, and Ferros was making his move. Ferros quickly shot across the room like a bullet and pinned Lapis to the wall by the throat while Luna was thrown away by his gust of power. Nyxon got up, took his sword from his hip, and shouted, "LUNA! GET OUT OF HERE! TAKE KAIRO AND GO!"

Luna glanced at Nyxon and Kairo and looked back at Lapis, who Ferros was still pinning. She ran away, but in a moment, Ferros teleported in front of Luna, raised his hand, and punched her. The sight was nauseous, and Nyxon felt like his stomach jumped off a cliff. Luna slowly glided on the floor towards Nyxon, where he didn't feel like himself for a moment. He glanced at Luna, who had a gash of blood across and on her dress. Nyxon used his shaky hands to try and lift her, but he was too scared. Nyxon dropped his sword to Kairo, who was also locked onto Luna. "Take...my sword. And get Luna...to a boat," he grabbed his chest.

The lights started to flicker, and Kairo finally was able to move. "N-Nyxon, what about–"

"K-Kairo–" Nyxon felt his mind wander. He was starting to get furious. His mind couldn't do anything but think about beating Ferros now.

"Lapis and Luna, and then Ferros–"

Nyxon's eyes shifted to purple. He looked at Kairo, his hair fading between black and white. "KAIRO! TAKE MY SWORD, FIND A BOAT AND LEAVE!"

Nyxon grasped onto his head; he was trying to make himself calm down, but it was impossible. He was already transforming.

The lights flickered around the room, and within a second, Nyxon grabbed Lapis from the floor and got Kairo and Luna to the exit. Nyxon's hair shot up towards the air. Lighting formed around his body and danced violently across the room. Ferros looked around him frantically, "What the– where did she–" he glanced at Nyxon, who was now in Aeon Ikari. "This is what I wanted to fight,"

"Please...don't come back here, Kairo," Nyxon whispered heavily. "My sword generates energy. You can use that to defend yourself," Kairo nodded and left the room with Luna and Lapis on top of her. Nyxon glared at Ferros and started growling fiercely. Sparks of lightning lept from his mouth as he dashed to Ferros in the blink of an eye and punched him through the ceiling.

Nyxon bent his knees on the ground and shot through the roof like a bullet. Piles of wood fell toward his face, but Nyxon's Aura quickly shot them from his face. He sped behind Ferros and glared at him. He could see the confusion in Ferros's posture. He was looking everywhere around him and feeling around his jaw.

A spark of lightning fled from Nyxon's body and tapped Ferros. Ferros gasped as he flinched from seeing Nyxon's blue Aura flow violently from his body. "YOU!" shouted Ferros. He punched Nyxon in the stomach, only to pull his hand back in pain. "Y-You broke my hand! You freak of nature–"

Nyxon clenched his jaw tightly and glared at Ferros.

"LEAVE THIS PLACE NOW!"

Ferros, for a second, almost flew away from Nyxon, but instead, he saw a massive boat leave the shore. "I wonder if that's where my target is. I'll bite, listen–"

Nyxon thrust his knee into Ferros's stomach, making him stagger in the sky. "I DON'T CARE! LEAVE THIS LAND AND DON'T COME BACK!"

Nyxon glared behind him, where he saw a ship along the waters. His eyes weren't deceiving him. That person on the boat was Kairo. Ferros managed to breathe normally again, stretched out his hand, and shouted, "DIE ELDERIAN SCUM!" and fired a wave of fire at Nyxon.

Nyxon's eyes softened and then again went back to purple for a moment. He was nearly bathing in the fire in front of him. The flames weren't hot enough to damage him or even scratch him. Ferros muttered, "To think I almost sinned like that to try and recruit an Elderian...I'll never fall this low again."

The fire stopped, and Nyxon was standing, even angrier than before. "Let's test that,"

"What–" Nyxon quickly elbowed Ferros into the ocean, where he promptly used his wings to support himself from falling. Ferros growled, "DAMN YOU!" and shot lighting from his palm toward Nyxon.

Nyxon reacted and flew through the sky, dodging every bolt possible. He glided his feet across the ocean, jumping and flipping over the lighting bolts while trying to make space for himself. He slid across the sea again and shouted into the sky, causing his power to rise violently over himself.

Nyxon stretched out his hands, "FERROS! YOU TRIED TO TAKE LUNA AWAY FROM ME, AND YOU FAILED! YOU TRIED TO HURT MY FRIEND KAIRO AND FAILED! YOU TRIED TO TAKE AWAY MY SISTER, AND YOU FAILED AT THAT TOO–"

"I DON'T NEED SOME STUPID SPEECH FROM YOU!" Ferros roared, raising his hand into the air, and started to form a fireball. "I'LL DESTROY YOU, THIS COUNTRY, AND EVERYTHING BELOW IT!"

Ferros created a fireball. To Nyxon, it looked big enough to blow away the entire country. Ferros wasn't kidding, and Nyxon knew that. Ferros hurled the fireball toward the ground and shouted, "GOODBYE! ELDERIAN!"

"YOU TRIED TO TAKE LUNA AWAY FROM ME–" Nyxon felt his eyes return to brown momentarily. He felt himself calming down but quickly succumbed to his anger again, and his eyes returned to purple. "LUNA'S A GOOD WOMAN! A GREAT FRIEND! SHE'S BEEN WITH ME SINCE THE BEGINNING, AND SHE'S ONE OF THE FEW PEOPLE I CAN CALL FAMILY– AND YOU TRIED TO TAKE THAT FROM ME!" Nyxon soared to the sea surface, where he could be directly below the fireball. "I'll destroy this fireball, and when I'm done– YOU'RE NEXT– FERROOOOS!"

Nyxon's hands sunk into the fireball. For a moment, he would have thought that he was touching the sun from how hot the attack was. He squirmed and shouted from the pain of the attack, but he kept his mind focused on protecting Efrana and his friends. He planted his hands deeper into the fireball. Ferros laughed and shouted, "YES! THAT'S RIGHT! FALL TO MY POWER AND DIE! I DON'T NEED LAPIS OR LUNA OR KAIRO! I'LL TAKE YOU OUT ALONG WITH THIS COUNTRY, AND I'LL BE HERE TO WATCH THE LIFE LEAVE YOUR EYES!"

Nyxon didn't know what his body was doing anymore. It was aching, and he felt he could drop into the ocean anytime. The thought of defeating Ferros and keeping his friends safe was enough to make him keep trying. No matter how hard his hands were melting, he kept his stance and pushed with all his strength. "I...I...I wanna defeat Ferros! I wanna save my friends!" Nyxon took a step on the ocean, "I...I can't stop fighting– I won't stop fighting–" he took another step. "I can't stop fighting– I won't stop fighting!" Nyxon felt lighting form at the palm of his hands and shouted, "FERROOOOOOS!" lighting shot from his palms, and soon, the fireball flung towards Ferros.

"WHAT! NO– NO, NO, NO, NO!" Ferros thrust his palms into the fireball. It was too strong. Nyxon was too strong. The fireball soon overtook Ferros and pushed him towards the sky. "DAMN YOU! NYXOOOOOOOOON!" shouted Ferros, and he quickly vanished into the sky with his fireball.

Nyxon felt a sense of relief. He was happy that Ferros was gone but also scared again. The power of the Aeon Ikari was still too much for him, and it proved dangerous. Nyxon quickly fell from the Aeon Ikari form into the sea, floating on top of the water. He rested there, trying to find the strength to fly towards the ship, but his eyes slowly fell on him. Nyxon then passed out on the sea, hoping he would land on the ship somehow with everyone else.