Helios didn’t miss a beat, summoning his Dark Form to cloak his identity further. His silhouette darkeo an inky bck, with glowing amber eyes pierg through the veil of shadow. Helios then stepped out of the swirling dark corridor and into the vast expanse of the Crystal Cave. The soft hum of the glowing crystals around him echoed faintly, casting shifting blue and purple light across the chamber. His senses were on high alert; the eerie stillness wasn’t a sign of safety—it was the calm before the storm.

  Before he could take aep, a voice broke the silence.

  “Well, well. Look who decided to e back.” Braig’s casual drawl echoed through the cave, but there was a sharp edge to it, a predator’s menace lurking behind the feigned cheer. He stepped into view from behind a tall crystal formation, his arrowguns hanging loosely in his hands. “I gotta say, didn’t think you were dumb enough to show up at the se of the crime.”

  “As if,” Helios quipped back, mimig Braig’s signature phrase with a smirk. The mockery made Braig’s grin falter ever so slightly, his expression darkening.

  Din and Aeleus appeared , fnking Braig. Din’s long spear gleamed in the crystal light, while Aeleus’s axe rested over his shoulder, its bde sharp enough to cleave the air. Din g Braig, then at Helios, his voice calm but firm. “So, you were right. The criminal did return.”

  Braig tilted his head, his gaze locked on Helios. “I thought you were smarter than this,” he said, taking a slow step forward, his tone low and warning. “What’s yame, pal? Why e back here?”

  Helios tilted his head mogly, his shadowy form rippling like liquid darkness. “Are you sure you wao ahat… here?” His voice was calm, almost taunting, and his glowing eyes flicked meaningfully toward Din and Aeleus.

  Braig’s smirk wavered, his sharp eyes darting to his panions. For a fra of a sed, the calcution in his gaze betrayed him. He didn’t want Helios to speak. Not now.

  In one fluid motion, Braig raised his arrowguns, the barrels gleaming faintly in the light. “Guess I’ll just have to shut you up!” he snapped, firing a barrage of glowing projectiles.

  Helios raised his Keybde and cast a Reflect spell. The shimmering barrier materialized just as the shots reached him, defleg them back toward Braig in a shower of light. Braig dodged effortlessly, his griurning as he twirled his guns.

  Din and Aeleus took this as their cue, springing into a. Din lunged with his spear, its sharp tip slig through the air toward Helios, while Aeleus charged, his massive axe poised to crush anything in its path.

  Helios’s senses, honed from sparring with Sephiroth, kicked into overdrive. He sidestepped Din’s thrust, the spear barely grazing his shoulder, and spun to block Aeleus’s downward swing with his Keybde. The force of the axe sent a shockwave through his arms, but Helios held firm, twisting his body to redirect the blow to the ground.

  Braig’s voice called out from behind, “Hope you didn’t fet about me!” A series of energy shots fired from his arrowguns, aimed squarely at Helios’s blind spot.

  Helios leapt backward, flipping through the air as the shots struck the ground where he’d been standing. The crystals trembled from the impact, sending shards scattering. Mid-flip, Helios hurled a Blizzard spell toward Braig, who rolled out of the way with a fluid motion, ughing as he fired back.

  Din was on him again, spinning his spear in a arc that forced Helios to focus. The two exged a flurry of attacks, sparks flying as the Keybde cshed with the spear’s shaft. Din’s precision was relentless, each strike aimed to exploit a potential opening. Aeleus joined in, his heavy axe sweeping toward Helios in punishing blows that required split-sed reas to evade.

  Braig, ever the opportunist, used their relentless assault to his advantage. As Helios parried a strike from Din, Braig’s shots rained down from above, f Helios to dive away. His movement was fluid but strained—every time he tried to terattack, Braig’s well-pced sniping forced him to stay on the defensive.

  “You guys are pretty good at this,” Helios quipped, his voice tinged with sarcastic amusement as he narrowly avoided another axe swing. “Almost like you’ve dohis before.”

  “Save the pliments,” Aeleus growled, his massive frame t over Helios as he swung his axe again.

  Helios ducked uhe blow, his instincts screaming as Braig’s volley of shots streaked toward him. He twisted his body, the projectiles grazing his Dark Form and dispersing harmlessly into the air. Summoning his magic, Helios unleashed a Thunder spell that crackled through the cave, lightning bolts arg toward all three of his oppos.

  Din raised his spear, grounding the energy into the metal with a grunt, while Aeleus shielded himself with his axe. Braig leapt out of the way, grinning. “Close, but no cigar,” he taunted.

  The battle raged on, the cave trembling with every csh. Helios found himself forced to rely on the instincts he’d honed during Sephiroth’s brutal training sessions. He wasn’t faster than Braig’s shots, but he could sehem, his body reag just in time to avoid the worst of them. Din and Aeleus worked in perfeison, their attacks alternating to keep him off bance. Every time Helios thought he saening, Braig would snipe from the shadows, f him bato defense.

  “Yood, I’ll give you that,” Helios muttered under his breath, defleg a blow from Din’s spear before tering with a sweeping ssh of his Keybde. Din dodged, and Aeleus’s axe was immediately there to fill the gap, crashing toward him with devastating force.

  Helios rolled to the side, his dark form flickering as he cast Aero to shield himself fr’s attack. He was buying time, waiting for an opportunity to turide.

  Finally, it came.

  As Din thrust his spear forward, Helios sidestepped and twisted his Keybde, log the on in pce. Using the leverage, he flipped over Din, nding behind him and hurling a Dark Firaga toward Aeleus. The fming projectile forced the axe-wielder to retreat, creating a brief gap.

  Helios raised his Keybde, ready to unleash a sed spell—one powerful enough to turide pletely.

  But before he could act, a sharp crack echoed through the cave. Braig’s arrowgun fired, but not at Helios. The shots struck Din and Aeleus squarely, knog them unscious before they even hit the ground.

  Helios froze, his Keybde still raised, as Braig stepped forward, spinning his guns with a casual flourish. “Alright, that’s enough of that,” Braig said, his tone light but carrying a dangerous edge.

  Helios lowered his on slightly, his glowing amber eyes narrowing. “What’s yame?” he asked, his voice cold.

  Braig shrugged, holstering his guns with a smirk. “Rex, pal. We o talk, just you and me. No need for the peanut gallery.”

  Helios g the unscious forms of Din and Aeleus, then back at Braig. The tension in the cave alpable, but Helios nodded slowly, his dark form flickering as he dismissed his Keybde.

  “Alright it's about time anyways,” he said. “Let’s talk.”