The Choice of Loyalty
He approached nearer, the distant ring of his boots the sole noise remaining within the crater.
The earth beneath him was warm, exhaling faint wisps of smoke and sorcery. The air clung to his lungs like a heavy, metallic shroud of soot and blood and something older, the dying thrum of energy that had once ripped this field apart. Above, the moon was low and pale, casting its silver light across the broken earth like an unfeeling witness.
Leon's eyes met Aden — the man kneeling at his feet, chest bowed but refusing to crumple. His armor was cracked and blackened, his hands trembling, but there was still pride hidden somewhere deep beneath that fatigue. Everywhere else, the world waited with bated breath. The soldiers, the knights, even the wounded men scattered across the ruins — all waiting. Between the two men, the silence was more potent than any sword ever had been.
