CALAMITY : Legends Of The Chosen

Chapter 1: Veskrith, the Abysscaller (Part I)

The group had been traversing the ruined water-logged ruins of coastal Valmaar, their boots splashing through shallow floodwaters as the chariot they'd parked behind them whirred down into silent standby mode. A salty fog crept in from the ocean—thick, grey, unnatural.

They moved as a unit, fast and light.

Shojiro darted forward in bursts, body loose and honed, scanning rooftops for danger. Morgz let his hand skim the air, sensing water particles' vibrations to detect life nearby. Enme was chatting casually with Leone while reinforcing pressure points in their surroundings with nearly invisible glyphs. Zans walked quietly, but Kuro's presence flitted around his feet in streaks of writhing black ink.

The Sudden Stop

Shojiro halted mid-step, right hand snapping up. The others froze behind him.

Before them lay a massive crater filled with stagnant water, its center bubbling faintly. Steam hissed from vents in the fractured concrete, the remnants of an old drainage canal system.

Karl's scanners clicked to life. "Something big was here. Not long ago. Trace VYTHRA signatures, aquatic and dense."

Morgz narrowed his eyes. "Wait... this mist... it's not natural."

The crater trembled.

Suddenly, the water surged upward like a geyser, and from its depths, a towering serpentine mass exploded out.

Veskrith, the Abysscaller.

An ancient Catalyst-Class demon. Its body was semi-transparent, armored in layered, reflective water-plating. Luminescent coral horns twisted from its skull like a crown, and its limbs churned water with unnatural elegance.

Its voice echoed without words—just a sound that pressed against the mind like deep-sea pressure.

Shojiro: "That thing... it's alive."

Max's lightning cracked. Zans disappeared into the shade. Enme raised both palms. "Positions. Now."

Opening Clash: 92% VYTHRA

Shojiro tightened every fiber in his legs, entered Ligament Drift.

BOOM.

He blurred forward, superheated air trailing behind him, and launched a roundhouse kick at Veskrith's jaw—but the demon phased into mist.

A shimmering blade of water formed silently behind him—aimed for his kidneys.

Enme channeled instantly.

CLINK.

A floating shield intercepted it inches from impact.

"Watch your six, dumbass," she said with half a grin. Shojiro gave a grateful nod.

Meanwhile, Max dashed left and unleashed a wave of black lightning. It scorched the side of Veskrith's armor, stunning it.

Karl followed up, twin swords morphing from his arms. He darted between Veskrith's limbs, slicing seams of its plating, burning VYTHRA at 10% per maneuver.

Zans lunged from the shadows, raking Veskrith's spine with phantom claws—but the demon swirled its form into a cyclone of mist and slammed into Zans like a whirlpool blast.

Zans skidded across the pavement, coughing blood. 89% VYTHRA.

"That hit harder than expected," he muttered.

Veskrith's Response: 81% VYTHRA

Veskrith reared up and vomited a spiral of scalding, acidic mist.

Max leapt upward, using his lightning to blast open an air pocket. Morgz swung a stream of water sideways and froze it into a makeshift wall.

Enme began spinning, casting glyphs at full speed. Five barriers surrounded the team in sequence—three held. Two cracked.

"He's testing our defense matrix," Karl muttered.

Shojiro: "Let's give him something to worry about."

Shojiro switched tactics. He began condensing every muscle into his upper body. His skin burned red. One step. Two. Then a forward launch punch—Helix Overdrive. A devastating uppercut laced with speed-shock ripples.

CRACKKKK!

He slammed Veskrith in the throat, knocking it backwards.

Shojiro stumbled. His vision blinked. 79% VYTHRA.

Zans + Leone Sync: 74% VYTHRA

Zans vanished. His shadow zigzagged across the ground like a slithering monster.

He leapt out, grabbed Veskrith's coral fin, and activated Nightmare Leech—sinking into the beast and draining VYTHRA.

Simultaneously, Leone blurred into motion. Shifting into Spectre form, she phased through the mist—then Ghoul form for extra power—and slammed her blade into Veskrith's midsection.

Three stabs. Two cuts. One scream.

Veskrith retaliated with an ice bloom shield, piercing outward. Leone dodged left—but too slow.

A shard grazed her ribs. Zans shielded her.

Enme, at range, cast a trio of rebound barriers around them.

Zans groaned. "Thanks again."

Enme, not looking: "Just stay alive."

The Ocean Crush: 62% VYTHRA

Veskrith bellowed, summoning a 360° shockwave of collapsing mist.

The tidal burst shattered the outer buildings.

Karl shouted: "No time! Evade or brace!"

Leone: "Enme!"

Enme stepped forward, slammed her palms to the earth. A tidal glyph pulsed outward—intercepting the wave.

CRUNCHHH.

Her body cracked. Blood sprayed from her mouth. She collapsed.

Shojiro caught her.

"You okay?!"

Enme winced. "63%. Dropping fast."

Shojiro: "You need to fall back."

Enme: "No time. He's charging again."

Karl + Morgz + Max Combo: 58% VYTHRA

Karl initiated Photon Split, separating his blades into high-precision drones. They circled Veskrith, cutting like razors, stalling its regeneration.

Morgz summoned every droplet of water around them, forming a rotating ring of 12 pressurized spheres—Piercing Water. They began firing, targeting joints.

Max timed his pulse.

Shojiro launched Veskrith into the air.

Max activated Heaven Break Spark.

Lightning surged through the soaked battlefield.

BOOM.

Veskrith screamed, convulsed midair, then slammed down.

Enme constructed a compression dome, barriers spinning tight.

"Stage is mine," she whispered.

The dome shrank.

The demon howled—then turned to vapor.

Scene: Morgz Awakens — "Piercing Water"

Smoke and brine lingered in the air.

The remains of Veskrith slumped forward—its monstrous frame twitching, gouged open, blood and seawater pooling beneath it. Enme's final compression seal dissolved into faint gold dust.

Shojiro collapsed, chest heaving. Karl's arm sparked from overload. Enme was slumped against the wall, her fingers twitching from mana feedback. Max had long since gone silent. Zans was unconscious. Leone's eyes were half-closed, breathing shallow.

Only Morgz stood.

Barely.

He stumbled toward the corpse—steam rising from the fresh holes he had punched into its aquatic core.

"...It's dead," he whispered.

Then—

The water all around them… shifted.

It turned to him.

A glow pulsed from the demon's dissolved core, and in that instant, Morgz's pupils widened. Blue glyphs formed across his skin. A ripple of light passed over him. Water—once unruly and vaporous—suddenly obeyed.

Dozens of tiny spheres floated into the air, forming concentric rings behind his back.

Karl's visor sparked to life.

"That's not just VYTHRA resonance… That's a skill evolution."

Morgz blinked, dazed. One orb hovered in front of him.

He raised a hand.

It fired—fast as a sniper shot. It shattered a stone pillar in the distance.

He turned to Shojiro, confused.

"Did I… just do that?"

Shojiro, still catching his breath, gave a weak smirk.

"You're not just our frontline anymore, You're now our marksman."

[New Ability Unlocked — Piercing Water]

An evolved water technique born from absolute fatigue and survival instinct. Upon felling a major threat, Morgz's VYTHRA deepened — granting him the ability to produce floating water orbs that autonomously fire ultra-condensed jets of water. Targets are marked by intent.

Up to 30 orbs

Damage scales with water mass nearby

Trigger: Post-Kill Evolution

Max groaned from behind a broken bench.

"Bro... if you unlocked a turret mode and didn't tell me, I'm suing."

Leone chuckled faintly.

"He didn't unlock it. He earned it."

Morgz turned, finally understanding.

The whole team had fought to the brink of death. And in delivering the final strike—he'd ascended.

VYTHRA Left: 1-5% Each. Fatigue Maxed.

But a CRACK looms near.