Chương 22: Episode 19: The Realization

Power pushed himself off the dirt as the last echoes of the fight died out, scanning the scorched clearing and broken trees.

"Sound off," he said.

"Now." Prince staggered upright and dropped his lightning form, sparks dying along his arms as blood ran down his elbow. He wiped it on his sleeve without looking at it.

"I'm breathing," he said, glancing at Power.

"Barely. But yeah." He paused, his tone sharpening.

"You could've ended that thing in seconds. Why didn't you?" Power kept his eyes on the ground.

"I can't. This isn't my prophecy." Silence settled over the group. William's fists clenched.

"Then we stabilize Olsen and go after him. End of discussion." Lonnie Mae shook her head.

"It's not that simple." She gestured to the destruction around them.

"We're already off schedule, and we still have to reach the Rufty Mountains. If Don doesn't deal with the beast or Dreadixz—""The prophecy fails," Prince cut in flatly.

"We know." Near the edge of the clearing, Kai stood half-hidden behind a broken stone slab. Snow-furred and red-eyed, the small Hric padded forward slowly, sniffing the darkened dirt where Don had been standing. He sat down silently, tail curled tight against his paws. Ella watched him, then looked toward the blood sinking into the sand.

"So how are we supposed to stop anything if the one person everyone's counting on is gone?" she asked.

"And before anyone says it—this isn't Don freezing up. Something's been messing with him for a while now." A few heads turned.

"It's Incarceration," Ella said.

"So that's who he was," Jocabed said slowly.

"He's been in Don's head. Not giving orders, but feeding him everything he already hates about himself." Demaurion's eyes narrowed.

"Explain."

"You've all seen it," Ella said.

"Don overthinking. Second-guessing. Worrying about how he looks, how he sounds, whether he's embarrassing himself." Mason's voice went hard.

"Incarceration turns that into pressure. The feeling that the whole world is just waiting for him to screw up." Ella looked toward the treeline.

"That's why Don ran. Not because he's weak, but because he thinks the second he fails, everyone will just see him as a mistake." While she spoke, Drake hauled stone blocks off Olsen's leg. Lonnie knelt beside him, green energy pulsing from her hands as she bound torn muscle and knit broken skin together. Archie shifted out of his phoenix form, embers dusting his wings.

"So Incarceration's just trying to scare him?"

"No," Ella said.

"He's isolating him. If Don believes everyone's judging him, he stops trusting us. Once he's alone, Incarceration becomes the only voice left."

"That's when he listens," Power said, stepping forward.

"And that's how the prophecy gets twisted. We're not letting that happen." He looked around at the battered group.

"Don doesn't need a lecture right now. He needs to see that when he messes up, we don't just walk away." Kai padded over, nudging Power's leg before turning his ears toward the dark forest.

"Incarceration's betting on Don isolating himself," Power said.

"We just have to show up." Sophia broke the silence.

"I've got spare suits." Ryan checked his gear.

"Weapons ready in five." Prince cracked his neck.

"Then let's stop wasting time." Olsen, pale but breathing, hauled himself onto Kayson's back.

"Don better not try apologizing when we find him," he muttered. Power glanced toward the dark woods where the tracks led, gesturing for the squad to move out.

"Move fast," Power said.

"Let's go get him." The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. South of the Grolian Forest Dark Don stood atop a low ridge, hidden beneath a knot of trees and brambles. The night hung black and heavy, the moon cutting through ragged clouds in thin silver streaks. Crickets murmured. The wind sighed. Then the rain came—cold, steady, tapping on leaves like impatient fingers. Dark Don stepped out of the brush.

Moonlight slid across his silvery scales as he descended the slick slope, landing in mud that swallowed his shoes. He scanned the clearing—ferns, shadows, nothing else.

"Hmph. Not here." Thunder cracked. Lightning tore open the sky. And in that flash, he saw him. Don. Hanging limply in a tangle of thorns, his hero suit torn to shreds, dust and blood staining every inch. His hood drooped; his gloves had split open, claws showing through the seams. The shredded scarf around his neck fluttered like a fallen banner. His face hung low, hidden in shadow. Everything went still. Dark Don stepped closer, brushing Don's cheek with the tip of his tail. Rain and mud smeared across Don's skin.

He pulled back, eyes narrowing. In Don's hand rested a hexagonal black gem, swirling with slow, poisonous energy. The Incarceration Gem. Is he dead? I could end him here. But… what if he already is? Dark Don's gaze shifted—and froze. The Grolian Beast lay beside Don, green blood spilling from its bark-like hide. Its massive neck was snapped clean, bones jutting out like broken branches. Dark Don's stomach tightened.

"Don… are you—""KX FORM!" Celestial energy erupted in a white explosion. Dark Don was launched across the clearing, skidding through mud. He barely raised his head before Don tore free from the vines, wings trembling, blood dripping from fresh gashes.

"WHO DARES WAKE ME FROM MY REST?!" The voice wasn't his. Not anymore. Don stalked forward, eyes blazing. Dark Don wiped his mouth.

"The hell is wrong with you?!" Don didn't respond. He dropped the gem with a dull clink, dark celestial energy pulsing around him.

"I see you've crawled back to challenge me again," he growled.

"Don't waste my time." His wings flared. His scarred tail lashed the ground. Dark Don rose, lunar energy coiling around his fists.

"Fine. Let's settle it." They slammed into each other, the shockwave splitting the night. Celestial and lunar energy tore through the forest, flattening trees in every direction as they rocketed upward. Don struck first—relentless. Punch after punch hammered Dark Don's guard. Dark Don countered with a brutal elbow to the jaw, but Don only snarled and axe-kicked him straight back to the earth. Dark Don crashed through a line of trees.

Don fell on him like a comet, smashing into his chest and shaking the mountainside. Before Dark Don could breathe, Don yanked him up and hurled him through five trees in a row, each one exploding on impact.

"SCOURGE DON'S FATE!" Don became a vortex of celestial power and drove his fist into Dark Don's gut. A shockwave blasted outward, flattening the forest for a hundred feet. Dark Don staggered, blood dripping from his mouth. He summoned a lunar shield— But Don shattered it instantly.

"SINGULAR DROPKICK!" The kick rocketed Dark Don across the clearing. He rolled, gasping, and launched a desperate flurry—hook, hook, backhand, kick. Don weaved around each strike with unnatural fluidity. Celestial chains burst into existence behind Don. He anchored himself, pulling back like a loaded slingshot.

"150% INCREASE—OVERRIDING KICK!" He shot forward in a blur. His foot collided with Dark Don's face, the impact shattering the air itself. The final shockwave leveled the rest of the forest, carving a deep crater into the earth. At its center, Dark Don knelt—dazed, bleeding, and barely conscious. Don walked right past him without a second glance.

"Rufty Mountains," he murmured, his voice hollow.

"Then Celestia will tumble." A spiral of darkness opened beside him, and Incarceration stepped through—calm, composed, and watching everything unfold.

"You're getting efficient," he said, a faint smile pulling at his face.

"Breaking symbols is always the fastest way to break a world." Don didn't respond. Incarceration's eyes flicked toward the fallen Dark Don, then back.

"Finish him," he suggested casually.

"Or better yet… save it. There's a bigger message to send." Don kept his gaze locked ahead.

"After I raze Celestia, then no one will doubt me again." Incarceration chuckled under his breath.

"Good, because doubt is exactly what we're killing." He stepped closer, his voice dropping into a deliberate, cold tone.

"Listen carefully, Celestia is a shield. As long as the Celestianites stand, Avangard believes it's safe. So we remove it. We destroy Celestia, and wipe out every Celestianite we can reach. Not for territory. For fear. Because once they fall… every other tribe realizes the truth. They were never safe to begin with." Incarceration paused, letting the heavy rain fill the gap before continuing in a whisper.

"And while the world panics…" He raised a hand, dark energy flaring to form a warped image of towering structures glowing with unstable power.

"The Celestial Pillars, they were built to stabilize the Power Gems. I'm going to corrupt them. They won't stabilize anything anymore, they'll produce—Fake Lunaranites and worse. Alien Uragas. Engineered predators. Weapons that only destroy." The illusion collapsed into smoke as Incarceration looked back at Don.

"An army that doesn't need loyalty. Not even belief. Just orders. And the Power Gems?" he added, almost amused.

"They're influence, the gems can be corrupted." Don finally turned his head slightly. Incarceration met his gaze.

"And when they are… they change you."

"DON!" The shout ripped through the clearing. At the treeline, the crew stood soaked, tense, and holding their weapons at the ready. Javier stepped forward awkwardly, raising his hands.

"Don… we don't wanna fight you. Maybe if you come home we'll, uh… give you free blueberries?" Silence stretched across the clearing. Javier shrugged.

"Had to try." Incarceration didn't even look toward the crew.

"Dispatch." The treeline erupted as the Illegals surged forward in their beast forms—Ironz, Azure, King, Rusty, Darn, and Vironos—cutting through the downpour like unleashed weapons. The crew shifted into combat stances instantly, but Don didn't move or react. He simply turned his back. Incarceration melted back into the shadows.

"I'll get him!" Power shouted, lightning sparking around his body as he shot forward into the storm. Scourge Don's voice echoed faintly behind him.

"Good-bye."