Temporal Dominion

The world blurred around Lucian as he forced himself up, his limbs trembling from the impact. A deep ache pulsed through his ribs, and his breathing came in ragged gasps. Darren had done more than just counter his Temporal Strike—he had turned Lucian's own power against him.

Darren smirked, rolling his shoulders as kinetic energy crackled around his fists. "I told you, Lucian. You're not special. You're just another stepping stone."

Lucian gritted his teeth, pushing through the pain. He couldn't afford to stay down. Not now.

But as he tried to move, something felt… off.

His body wasn't reacting normally.

His vision flickered—distorted—as if reality itself was shifting around him. He could see afterimages of Darren, fragments of movement that hadn't happened yet.

Echoes of time.

And then—

A sudden surge ran through his body, an unfamiliar warmth coiling around his core. His heartbeat slowed… and then sped up unnaturally.

Something was changing inside him.

Something was unlocking.

---

Lucian clenched his fists, instinctively reaching for the energy swirling inside him. The power felt different. Stronger. More refined.

Time wasn't just slowing down anymore—it was bending to his will.

He looked up, his eyes glowing with an ethereal blue hue. For the first time, he wasn't just reacting to time's flow.

He was controlling it.

Darren, oblivious to the shift, scoffed. "Done stalling? Good. I'll end this now."

He moved—faster than before. His fist blurred toward Lucian with unrelenting momentum.

Lucian saw it before it happened.

Not just milliseconds in advance—but seconds.

A precognitive flash.

Lucian didn't dodge.

Instead, he raised his hand—and caught Darren's punch.

BOOM!

A powerful shockwave erupted from the collision, shaking the entire training hall. But this time, Lucian didn't budge.

Darren's eyes widened. "What—?"

Lucian twisted his wrist, redirecting the stored kinetic energy with unnatural precision. Darren stumbled back, his own power failing him for the first time.

Lucian exhaled. "I see now."

Darren growled, regaining his footing. "See what?"

Lucian met his gaze, something unreadable in his expression. "You store and amplify kinetic force… but you're still bound by time's flow."

Darren scowled. "And?"

Lucian took a step forward.

And the entire room shifted.

The air around him distorted, rippling as if the very fabric of reality had been rewoven.

Darren's eyes darted around in confusion. "What… the hell is this?"

Lucian spoke, his voice calm. "Time-Lock."

In an instant, Darren's body froze mid-motion.

Not physically—temporally.

Darren's stored kinetic energy meant nothing if his momentum was severed from time itself.

He struggled, his muscles twitching, but he couldn't move.

Lucian clenched his fist, channeling the newfound surge within him. The technique had come instinctively—born from the very limits he had been pushed to.

He stepped forward, his Temporal Strike forming once more—only this time, it carried the weight of his new ability.

Controlled Time Distortion.

Darren's body flickered as the Time-Lock shattered, but it was already too late.

Lucian struck.

BOOOOM!

The impact sent Darren flying, crashing into the far wall with devastating force. The kinetic energy he had been storing dispersed harmlessly, unable to counter an attack that had existed outside of time's flow.

A deep silence followed.

Lucian exhaled, releasing his stance. His body trembled, but the new power inside him still burned brightly.

He had evolved.

He had won.