Chapter 550: Fight for Rights

Empress Xalvoria stared at the boy in front of her. The stone resting on the altar behind him cast a steady, pale glow across the room, acting as a silent witness to his claim. She straightened her spine, her jaw clenching so tight it looked as though her teeth might shatter.

"You are lying," Xalvoria hissed. Yet the cold certainty in his star-forged eyes told her otherwise. "A fragile vessel could not withstand the combined divine resonance of fourteen shards without turning to dust."

"Good thing I am built different, then," Xavier replied, leaning his weight onto one leg. "So, what is your next move, your Majesty? Because as far as I can tell, you are standing on my ship, in my territory, holding a losing hand."

Xalvoria's crimson eyes narrowed. She took a slow breath, forcing her ancient pride to swallow the bitter reality. She needed that stone, and if he truly possessed twelve more, she needed those as well.

The galactic ruler shifted her strategy, masking her desperation with regal authority.

"Then let us strike a deal," Xalvoria commanded, her voice turning cold and transactional. "Your corrupted bloodline has tainted her legacy for far too long. You lack the ancient rites and the purity required to safely fuse her soul. Relinquish your fourteen pieces to me. Hand them over to the matriarchy of the Sun's Moon, where they belong. I will personally hunt down the remaining two across the cosmos and complete the mission. You will be granted wealth and planetary systems beyond your comprehension, and your lineage can finally be relieved of its burden."

Xavier stared at her for a long, quiet moment. Then, a low chuckle rumbled in his chest. It quickly grew into a loud, mocking laugh that bounced off the metal bulkheads, shattering the tense atmosphere.

Xalvoria's face contorted in outrage. "Do you find the restoration of our Goddess amusing, boy?"

"No, I find your lack of basic logic amusing," Xavier said. His laughter faded into a grin as he took a step forward, invading her personal space and forcing her to look up at him. He channeled the overbearing aura of Zephyros, projecting a heavy, dominant presence that made the metal walls groan under the pressure.

"Let me break this down for you, Xalvoria," Xavier whispered, his tone dripping with condescension. "Fourteen is a bigger number than eight. I hold the vast majority of her soul. I hold the power. So, if we are consolidating the board to finish the puzzle, the pieces go to the one who owns the most of them."

He leaned in closer, his eyes locking onto hers.

"You are going to hand over your eight shards to me," Xavier demanded smoothly, weaponizing the very authority she despised. "I will find the missing two. I will put the Goddess back together myself. And you can take your shiny metal dragon and go right back to sitting on your little twilight throne, knowing a man finished the job you couldn't."

The unapologetic disrespect pushed the Empress past her breaking point.

Xalvoria's aura flared, dropping the room's temperature to freezing. Her regal composure snapped. The obsidian knight let out a battle cry and raised her massive broadsword with both hands, ready to cleave Xavier in half.

The obsidian broadsword descended toward Xavier's neck just as Reva's claws slashed upward to intercept it. Lyra's boots melted the floor plating as she lunged.

Before a single drop of blood could spill, a blinding pale light erupted from the altar.

"Enough." Astrea's voice did not just echo in their minds, but it also seized their physical forms.

The divine command slammed into the room like a heavy gravity field, freezing every single person in place. The knight's heavy blade locked mere inches from Xavier's throat. Reva and Lyra halted mid-lunge, suspended by an invisible, crushing force.

Xalvoria's fierce aura suffocated instantly.

Xavier stood still, his eyes darting to the glowing stone on the table.

"I am the true heir!" Xalvoria argued through gritted teeth, struggling against the unseen pressure pinning her down. "My matriarchy has bled for you! This corrupted boy does not deserve the honor of holding your pieces!"

"My ancestor is the only reason your bloodline even exists," Xavier shot back, his jaw tight. "I have fourteen. They belong to me."

"Silence, both of you," the Goddess ordered. "Your petty squabbling wastes my time and my energy. We will settle this under the ancient rites. Xalvoria, you will retain your eight fragments. My chosen vessel, you will keep your fourteen. The terms are simple: whoever locates and secures the final two pieces will earn the absolute right to fuse my scattered soul."

Xalvoria glared at Xavier, her chest heaving as she processed the terms. She had no ground to argue against her own deity. "Fine," she spat.

Xavier gave a slow nod. "A race. I accept."

"It is agreed," Astrea declared. The crushing pressure vanished in a flash, dropping Reva and Lyra to the deck and allowing the knight to stumble backward, lowering her sword.

"However," the Goddess continued, her voice shifting from a judge's wrath to a cold, clinical tone. "There is a vital mandate you must fulfill right now. An essential mission to prepare your conflicting lineages for the eventual fusion."

Xalvoria stood tall, adjusting her crimson mantle with supreme arrogance. She shot Xavier a disdainful glare. "Speak the mandate, Divine Mother. Whatever the task entails, I will execute it with far more skill and grace than this pathetic male ever could."

"Excellent," Astrea replied dryly. "Because Zephyros's violent starlight and your matriarchal purity are currently a highly volatile mix. If either of you attempts to merge my core in this state, the resulting blast will vaporize this sector. To stabilize the resonance between your bloodlines and synchronize your biological data, the two of you must intertwine your physical forms."

The room went dead silent.

"Intertwine?" Xalvoria raised her brow. "Are you suggesting we both should fight? I will gladly accept that mission."

"No. You must engage in intercourse," Astrea clarified, her voice ringing clearly off the metal walls. "Immediately."

Xalvoria's arrogant expression shattered into pure horror.